The largest diamond in the world, the Star of Africa, or Cullinan 1, is pear-shaped and adorns the scepter of the British queen. However, Cullinan 1 is only part of a large nugget found in the Transvaal.
"Cullinan" - the name of the largest nugget-diamond - is nothing more than the surname of the owner of the mine where the diamond was found. The event took place in 1905, when only one significant place of diamond mining was known in the world - the mines of South Africa, located along the banks of the Orange and Vaal rivers.
Travel to Europe and cutting
At that time, the Transvaal Republic was located on the territory of what is now South Africa. The found stone became known to her government, which purchased the find for 150,000 pounds, despite the fact that the real value of the diamond at that time exceeded 8 million (the current cost of the stone, even without cut, is equivalent to the price of 94 tons of gold). Before the purchase, the stone was put on public display in one of the banks in Johannesburg. Visitors were amazed at the purity of the find - there were no air bubbles, mineral inclusions, - a diamond of 3106 carats or 621.2 g in weight was crystal clear.
The government of the republic decided to send the diamond to England as a birthday present for King Edward VII. It was officially announced that a special ship with security would be dispatched. However, in reality, in order to confuse the attackers, the diamond was sent by regular mail. One way or another, but the stone ended up in the UK. The king decided to divide the largest find of the century into several parts.
The best jeweler of that time, Assker, was entrusted to carry out such an operation, as well as to carry out the cutting. The challenge was to find the perfect place on the stone to break. The master studied the "subject" for several months and such a place was found. Several eminent jewelers watched the split process. The operation was successful - as a result, 9 large pieces were obtained (the heaviest weighed 530, 2 carats) and 105 small pieces. All of them went for cutting. And one, 69 carats, was still left untreated. The master's work was generously paid - he received 102 diamonds left after the division of Cullinan.
Where are the diamonds today
In 1910, the Prime Minister of South Africa bought the entire placer from Assker to donate the diamonds to Queen Mary of Great Britain, who was about to ascend the throne. So all the fragments of the world's largest diamond ended up in Europe. The largest diamond, the Big Star of Africa, was once crowned with the scepter of Edward VII, and is now in London (Tower). The stone has 74 facets and a teardrop shape - if you pull it out of the scepter, you get an elegant brooch. Cullinan 3, Cullinan 4 are also kept in the Tower. The 5th "Cullinan" is made in the shape of a heart, the 6th "Cullinan" was presented by King Edward VII as a gift to Queen Alexandra, and that - to Queen Mary. The Cullinan 7 was originally made in the form of a pendant, but later was placed in the crown of Queen Alexandra. Cullinan 8 is a brooch, and Cullinan 9 is decorated with a ring. All parts of the famous South African find are in England.
