Sourcing

Gem Diamonds Uncovers Fifteenth Diamond Weighing 100+ Carats

SourcingDec 21, 2018

Gem Diamonds Uncovers Fifteenth Diamond Weighing 100+ Carats

The 125-carat white diamond comes just a day after the recovery of 101-carat and 71-carat roughs in Lesotho.

London—The year may be coming to a close, but Gem Diamonds’ recoveries sure aren’t slowing down.

The diamond mining company announced Thursday it had uncovered a 125-carat white Type IIa diamond, seen at left, from its Letšeng mine in Lesotho.

This is the fifteenth diamond weighing more than 100 carats that Gem Diamonds has recovered in 2018.

The news came just a day after the miner put out a news release that it had recovered two more significant diamonds—101-carat and 71-carat white Type IIa stones—within a 24-hour period from Letšeng.

The company claims the mine is the highest dollar-per-carat kimberlite diamond mine in the world.

This year, it also produced a 357-carat light brown diamond in the fall, a 169-carat diamond of “top white color” in March and an exceptional quality 910-carat, D color Type IIa diamond in January, among others.

Gem Diamonds said that 2018 has set a new record for the miner for most 100-plus carat diamonds recovered in a year-period.
Brecken Branstratoris the senior editor, gemstones at National Jeweler, covering sourcing, pricing and other developments in the colored stone sector.

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