The Koh-i-Noor may be deemed as one of the most glorious diamonds in the history of mankind. But come June 29, a diamond perhaps more magnificent, weighing much more than the uncut Koh-i-Noor, will go under the hammer at a public auction in Sotheby’s, London. ‘Lesedi La Rona’, which means ‘our light’ in Botswana’s Tswana language, weighs an astonishing 1,109 carats. When the Koh-i-Noor diamond was found in the 13th century in Andhra Pradesh, it weighed approximately 793 carats, and after being cut several times, it is now believed to weigh 105.6 carats. An uncut diamond this large has been found after more than a hundred years.

‘Lesedi La Rona’ was unearthed in November 2015, at Lucara Diamond Corporation’s Karowe mine in Botswana. “No rough diamond, even remotely of this scale has ever been offered before at any public auction”, declares David Bennett, worldwide chairman of Sotheby’s jewellery division. Bennett has been auctioning precious gems for Sotheby’s since 1978. He has conducted several record-breaking sales of rare gems but when he set his sight on the Lesedi La Rona, he too was astounded. “What a fabulous, breathtaking stone. The Lesedi La Rona is extraordinary in the pure sense of the word. It is amazing to think of the long and calamitous journey it had to travel — from a depth of some 100 miles, carried up by a volcano — to arrive at the surface of the earth. The fact that it survived this process makes its discovery such a historic find,” exclaims Bennett.

Bennett and his team recently set a world record in any jewellery sale, achieving a record total of $175.1 million in May this year . Bennett will set a new record by auctioning this rare find. The 1,109-carat diamond is expected to fetch more than $70 million at the public auction. Despite its significant carat weight, Lesedi La Rona is not the biggest uncut diamond, to be found. It is preceded by the Cullinan Diamond, which weighed over 3,016 carats in rough, when it was unearthed in Africa in early 1900. A part of the Cullinan Diamond is the Great Star of Africa, currently the largest top-quality polished diamond. It weighs 530.20 carats and now sits pretty in Queen Elizabeth II’s sceptre. Will Lesedi La Rona also face a similar fate? Will its buyer cut it into smaller, more attractive pieces?

“I wouldn’t mind if it remains the object of wonder it is now,” confesses Bennett. “Independent reports on the potential yield of the rough diamond have also stated that ‘Lesedi La Rona’ may have the potential to yield the largest top-quality diamond that has ever been cut and polished. These reports have also stated that there is a high probability that the resulting polished diamonds will be ‘D’ colour — the highest colour classification for white diamonds,” he adds.

For Lesedi La Rona, the bright side of being discovered in the 21st century is that when it is cut, the best of modern techniques will be used to do so.

Modern techniques like laser scanning, plotting and precision-cutting will allow the diamond to show its most brilliant side as a jewel. Such engineering to cut diamonds was not available in 1905, when the Cullinan diamond or when the Koh-i-Noor were cut and polished to ornate royal collections. Lesedi La Rona will also be the first diamond of this size and stature to be rightfully auctioned.

The writer is the founder of LuxuryVolt.com

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