Cullinan Diamond Mine
Just 20 minutes’ drive east of Pretoria, the mining town of Cullinan is home to the Premier Diamond Mine, also known as the Cullinan Mine following the discovery in 1905 of the largest rough diamond in history. Thomas Cullinan, owner of the Premier Mine at the turn of the century, was a South African explorer. The Transvaal government bought the stone from him and presented it to King Edward VII on the occasion of the monarch’s birthday. Aside from its remarkable clarity, a distinguishing feature of the stone is its black middle, a mark of bearing significant internal strain.
Miner. Photo courtesy olechkaok
The Asscher Brothers of Amsterdam were responsible for cleaving the stone before cutting it and legend has it that Joseph Asscher fainted with relief once this had been successfully done. The Great Star of Africa, a pear-shaped diamond of 530.20 carats, is the largest of the nine stones fashioned from the Cullinan diamond, and is the second largest cut diamond in the world. It is set in the sceptre of the Crown Jewels and is housed along with other royal jewels in the Tower of London.
The mine is the third richest diamond producer in South Africa and its functioning open pit is four times larger than the well-known Big Hole in Kimberley. The 3 106.75-carat Cullinan stone makes a not insignificant contribution to the 120-million carats that have been extracted from one of the biggest and richest kimberlite pipes in the world.
Daily tours of the mine are open to the public and explore both underground and surface operations including the mine shaft, hoist room, big hole, and the display room. The geology of the area is also explained, as is the mining process. Impressive displays of diamond cutting reveal the skill and mastery required to transform a diamond from a rough stone into a sparkling faceted gem. This is all the more awe-inspiring because of the stone’s extreme hardness due to millions of years underground in an environment of great pressure and heat.
The diamond rush and life in this era can be experienced by a trip back in time at the McHardy House Mini-Museum, which provides a window into life in those times through photographs and possessions of the mine’s first general manager. The museum is open on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays, and on weekdays only by prior appointment. Also worth seeing are the eight frescoes painted by Italian prisoners of war in the centre square.
While the history of the mine is still being completed, sparkling gems continue to be brought to the surface. In May 2008, a 101.27-carat diamond, about the size of a ping pong ball, was sold for more than $6.2 million at Christie’s in Hong Kong. De Beers, the diamond mining, diamond trading and industrial diamond manufacturing sectors giant, has conducted extensive marketing in the East where, clearly, diamonds have become a girl‘s best friend!