The Cullinan Diamond is the largest diamond-quality gem diamond ever discovered, weighing 3.106.75 carats (621.35 g), found at the No. 2 Premier mine in Cullinan, South Africa, on January 26, 1905. It's named Thomas Cullinan, head of the mine.
In April 1905, Cullinan was sold in London, but despite considerable interest, it remained unsold after two years. In 1907 the government of the Transvaal Colonies bought Cullinan and handed it to King Edward VII on his 66th birthday.
Cullinan produces stones of various pieces and sizes, the largest named CullinanÃ, I or Great Star of Africa, and at 530.4 carats (106.08 g) is the world's largest cutting diamond. CullinanÃ, I mounted on the head of the Sovereign Stick with Cross. The second largest is Cullinan II or Second Star of Africa, weighing 317.4 carats (63.48 g), installed at Imperial State Crown. Both diamonds are part of the Royal Crown Jewels.
Seven other major diamonds, weighing a total of 208.29 carats (41.66 g), were privately owned by Queen Elizabeth II, who inherited them from her grandmother, Queen Mary, in 1953. The Queen also has small brilliants and a set of rough fragments.
Video Cullinan Diamond
Penemuan dan riwayat awal
The Cullinan diamond was found 18 feet (5.5 m) below the surface at the Premier Mine in Cullinan, the Transvaal Colony, by Frederick Wells, the surface manager at the mine, on January 26, 1905. The length is about 10.1 cm (4.0 inches) 6.35 centimeters (2.50 inches) wide, 5.9 centimeters (2.3 inches) deep, and weighed 3.106 carats (621.2 grams). The newspaper called it "Cullinan Diamond", a reference to Mr. Thomas Cullinan, who opened the mine in 1902. It was three times the size of the Excelsior Diamond, discovered in 1893 at the Jagersfontein Mine, weighing 972 carats (194.4 g). Four of its eight surfaces are subtle, suggesting that it was once part of a much larger rock that was destroyed by the forces of nature. It has a blue-white color and contains a small pocket of air, which at a certain angle produces a rainbow, or a Newton ring.
Shortly after its discovery, Cullinan appeared in public at Standard Bank in Johannesburg, where it was seen by some 8,000-9,000 visitors. In April 1905, the rough gem was kept with Premier Mining Co.'s sales agent. in London, S. Neumann & amp; Due to the enormous value, the detectives were assigned to a steamship that was reportedly carrying the stone, and a package had been locked inside the captain safely and guarded throughout the journey. It was a diversionary tactic - the rock on the ship was fake, meant to attract the people who were interested in stealing it. Cullinan is sent to the UK in an ordinary box by registered mail. On arriving in London, it was submitted to Buckingham Palace for review by King Edward VII. It attracted great interest from potential buyers, but Cullinan did not sell for two years.
Presentation to Edward VII
The Transvaal Prime Minister, Louis Botha, advised buying diamonds for Edward VII as "a sign of the allegiance and attachment of the Transvaal people to the throne and to His Highness". In August 1907, a vote was held in Parliament about Cullinan's fate, and a movement authorizing a purchase was made by 42 votes in favor of 19 opposing votes. Initially, Henry Campbell-Bannerman, then the British Prime Minister, advised the king to refuse the offer, but he then decided to let Edward VII choose whether or not to accept the gift. Finally, he was convinced by Winston Churchill, then Colonial Deputy Secretary. For his part, Churchill sent a diamond replica, which he enjoyed showing off to guests on a silver platter. The Government of the Transvaal Colony bought a diamond on October 17, 1907 for  £ 150,000 or approximately 750,000 US dollars at that time, adjusted to pound sterling equivalent to  £ 15 million in 2016. Since a 60% tax is levied on mining profits, the Treasury receives a portion the money is back from the Premier Diamond Company.
The diamond was presented to the king at Sandringham House on November 9, 1907 - his sixty sixth birthday - in front of a large number of guests, including the Queen of Norway, the Queen of Spain, the Duke of Westminster and Lord Revelstoke. The king asked his colonial secretary, Lord Elgin, to announce that he received the prize "for myself and my successor" and that he would make sure "this great and unique diamond is kept and preserved among the historic gems that make up the Crown heirlooms".
Cutting process
The king chose Asscher Brothers from Amsterdam to split and polish rough stone into brilliant gems with various pieces and sizes. Abraham Asscher collected it from the Colonial Office in London on January 23, 1908. He returned to Holland by train and ferry with diamonds in his coat pocket. Meanwhile, for much fanfare, Royal Navy ships carry empty boxes across the North Sea, once again throwing potential thieves. Even the captain does not know that his "precious" charge is a bait.
On February 10, 1908, the rough stone was split in two by Joseph Asscher at his diamond cutting factory in Amsterdam. At that time, technology has not evolved to guarantee the quality of modern standards, and cutting diamonds is difficult and risky. After weeks of planning, a 0.5 inch incision (1.3 cm) was made to allow Asscher to split a diamond in a single blow. Making the incision took four days, and the steel blade broke out at the first attempt, but the second knife was fitted into the groove and split it in half along one of the four possible cleavage planes. Overall, dividing and cutting the diamond takes eight months, with three people working 14 hours per day to complete the task.
"This story tells of Joseph Asscher, the greatest machete of today," writes Matthew Hart in his book Diamond: A Journey to the Heart of An Obsession (2002), "that when he prepares to split the largest diamond never known... he has a doctor and a nurse standing nearby and when he ends up crashing the diamond... he faints dead away ". Lord Ian Balfour, in his Famous Diamonds (2009), eliminates fainting stories, pointing out that it is likely Joseph will celebrate, unlocking a bottle of champagne. When Joseph Louis's nephew heard the story, he exclaimed, "No Ascher will faint from any operation on any diamond".
Maps Cullinan Diamond
Diamond cuts from Cullinan
Cullinan produced 9 main stones 1,055,89 carats (211,178Ã, g) in total, and 96 small brilliants weighing 7.55 carats (1.510 g) (average, 0.079 carats each) - yield of rough stone 34.25 percent. There is also 9.5 carats (1.90 g) of coarse fragments. All but two of the largest stones - CullinansÃ, I and II - remain in Amsterdam by arrangement as fees for Asscher services, until the South African government buys them (except CullinanÃ, VI, which EdwardÃ,® has purchased, and awarded to his wife, Queen Alexandra in the year 1907). ) and the High Commissioner of South Africa presented them to Queen Mary on June 28, 1910. Mary also inherited CullinanÃ, VI from Alexandra, and she abandoned all her Cullinan diamonds to her grandson Queen Elizabeth II in 1953. Cullinans I and II were part of the Crown Jewel, belonging to the Queen on the right of the Crown. Asscher sells small stones to various buyers, including then South African prime minister, Louis Botha, and diamond merchant Arthur and Alexander Levy, who oversee Cullinan cuts. Some were bought by Mary and arranged in long platinum chains, which Elizabeth never used in public, saying that "it went into the soup".
In the 1970s, two small Cullinan diamonds belonging to heir Louis Botha were analyzed by De Beers in their laboratory in Johannesburg, and they were found free of nitrogen or other impurities. Cullinans I and II were examined in 1980 by the gemologist at the Tower of London and both were assessed as colorless type IIa.
Cullinan I
CullinanÃ, I, or Great Star of Africa, is a brilliant pendeloque-cut with a weight of 530.2 carats (106.04 g) and has 74 aspects. It is set at the top of Sovereign Sovereign with Cross which had to be redesigned in 1910 to accommodate it. Cullinan I was surpassed as the world's largest cut diamond of any color by 545.67-carats (109.134 g) Golden Jubilee Diamond in 1992, but still the largest cutting diamond in the world. In terms of clarity, it has some minor splits and a small patch of flowers. The diamonds measuring 5.89 cm - 4.54 cm - 2.77 cm (2.32 inches in 1.79 in 1.09 inches) are fitted with a knot and can be taken from suit to be worn as pendants that are hanging from Cullinan II for make brooch. Queen Mary, wife of George V, often wearing it like this. In 1908, the stone was worth US $ 2.5 million (equivalent to US $ 49 million in 2016) - two and a half times the value of Cullinan's rough estimate.
Cullinan II
CullinanÃ, II, or Second Star of Africa, is a brilliant cushion with 66 aspects weighing 317.4 carats (63.48 g) mounted on the front of the Imperial State Crown, under Black Prince's Ruby (a large spinel). The size is 4.54 cm - 4.08 cm - 2.42 cm (1.79 inches 1.61 at 0.95 0.95 inches). Diamonds have a number of minor defects, scratches on the surface of the table, and small chips on the belt. Like Cullinan I, it was held in place by a yellow gold enclosure, which was screwed into the crown.
Cullinan III
CullinanÃ, III, or African Little Star, is a piece of pear and weighs 94.4 carats (18.88 g). In 1911, Queen Mary, wife and queen of George V, had been set on a cross pattà © e of a crown that he personally bought for his coronation. In 1912, Delhi Durbar Tiara, worn a year earlier by Mary instead of a crown in Delhi Durbar, where her husband used the Imperial Empire of India, was also adapted to take Cullians III and IV. In 1914, Cullinan III was permanently replaced on the crown by a crystalline model. Today, it is most often used in combination with CullinanÃ, IV by ElizabethÃ, II as a brooch. In total, the brooch is 6.5Ã, cm (2.6Ã, in) long and 2.4Ã,® cm (0.94Ã, wide). Cullinan III has also been used as a pendant on the Coronation Necklace, where it sometimes replaces the 22.4-carat (4.48 g) Lahore Diamond.
Cullinan IV
CullinanÃ, IV, also referred to as the Lesser Star of Africa, is square and weighs 63.6 carats (12.72 g). It is also arranged at Queen Mary's Crown base; However, it was also abolished in 1914. On March 25, 1958, when he and Prince Philip were on a state visit to the Netherlands, Queen Elizabeth II revealed that Cullinan III and IV were known in his family as "Granny's Chips". They visited Asscher Diamond Company, where Cullinan had been cut 50 years earlier. This was the first time the Queen had used the brooch openly. During his visit, he took off the brooch and offered it to be examined to Louis Asscher, Joseph Asscher's nephew, who shared a rough diamond. 84 years old, he was deeply touched by the fact that the Queen had brought the diamonds with him, knowing how much he meant to see them again after all these years.
Cullinan V
CullinanÃ, V is a heart-shaped 18.8-carat diamond (3.76 g) located in the center of a platinum brooch that forms a stomacher portion made for Queen Mary to be worn in Delhi Durbar in 1911. The brooch was designed to show off Cullinan V and is a pavÃÆ'Â © -set with a smaller diamond border. Can be suspended from brooch VIII and can be used to suspend pendant VII. It is often worn like this by Mary.
Cullinan VI
CullinanÃ, VI is marquise-cut and weighs 11.5 carats (2.30 g). It depends on the brooch that contains CullinanÃ, VIII and forms the stomacher part of the Delhi Durbar parade. CullinanÃ, VI along with VIII can also be fitted together to make another brooch, surrounded by about 96 smaller diamonds. The design is made around the same time that the heart-shaped brooch of Cullinan V is formed, both of which have a similar shape.
Cullinan VII
CullinanÃ, VII also cut marquise and weighs 8.8 carats (1.76 g). Originally given by Edward VII to his wife and queen of Queen Alexandra. After his death, he gave the gem to Queen Mary, who installed it as a pendant hanging from a Durbar necklace made of gems and emeralds, part of the parure.
Cullinan VIII
CullinanÃ, VIII is a 6.8-carat (1.36 g) long cut diamond. It is set in the middle of a brooch that forms the stomacher part of Durbar Delhi trench. Together with CullinanÃ, the VI formed a brooch.
Cullinan IX
Cullinan IX is the smallest of the main diamonds obtained from the rough Cullinan. It is a pendeloque stone or pear-cut pear, weighing 4.39 carats (0.878 g), and arranged in a platinum ring known as Cullinan IX Ring.
See also
- List of diamonds
- List of the largest rough diamonds
- The jewel of Elizabeth II
References
Bibliography
External links
- The Cullinan Diamond in the Royal Collection Trust (archived)
- Famous Diamonds at the Cape Town Diamond Museum
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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