The mine company Gem Diamonds Ltd., a British-based diamond company listed on the London Stock Exchange, has not yet decided whether it will sell the diamond and its cost. Its value will be determined by the size and quality of polished stones that can be cut from it. Although very large diamonds have been given specific names, this one has not yet been named. In the past year, Lucara Diamond Corp. sold the diamond in 1,109 carats for $ 53 million, but received a record $ 63 million for the smaller stone with a diameter of 813 carats, which was discovered at the same time in 2015.
The big diamond
Last week, Gem announced that it has discovered a 117-carat and 110-carat stones. The Letseng mine is known for the size and quality of diamonds that it produces, and has the highest average sale price in the world. Diamonds are formed about 125 miles (200 kilometers) below the surface of the Earth, where pressure and heat squeeze carbon molecules into a very strong crystalline structure. This requires temperatures of around 2,200 degrees Fahrenheit (1,200 degrees Celsius) and pressures upward of 725,000 pounds per square inch.
