EditorsJan 16, 2026
Remembering Pete Yantzer for His Contributions and His Kindness Pete’s boundless curiosity extended beyond diamond cut and he was always eager to share his knowledge with others, no matter the topic.
SourcingMar 16, 2018
Gem Diamonds Finds Another 100-Plus Carat Diamond
It’s the seventh gem-quality rough over 100 carats to be dug up this year.
This 169-carat rough diamond is the seventh diamond over 100 carats Gem Diamonds Ltd. has recovered in 2018.
London--Right on the heels of the $40 million sale of the 910-carat diamond called “The Lesotho Legend,” Gem Diamonds Ltd. has announced the recovery of its seventh rough diamond weighing more than 100 carats in 2018.
The latest find weighs 169 carats and is a “top white color,” the London-based miner said.
The Type IIA stone was recovered from the Letšeng mine in Lesotho, of which Gem Diamonds Ltd. owns 70 percent, with the Lesotho government owning the remaining 30 percent.
The Letšeng mine is the highest dollar-per-carat kimberlite diamond mine in the world.
So far this year, Gem Diamonds Ltd. recovered a 110-carat and 117-carat stone, each Type IIa, D color.
Then, it discovered “The Lesotho Legend,” followed by the recovery of a 149-carat, Type IIa, D color stone.
A fifth diamond of more than 100 carats wasn’t gem quality, but earlier this week, the miner unearthed a Type IIa diamond weighing 152 carats and said to be of top color.
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