Huge Diamond Found - the "Lesotho Promise"

Gem Diamond Mining Company of Africa recently announced the discovery and sale of one of the largest rough diamonds ever found. The 603 carat monster was unearthed on August 22 at the Letseng diamond mine in Lesotho, a tiny kingdom within the territory of South Africa. The diamond weighs 603 carats and is a third bigger than a golf ball. Named the "Lesotho Promise" it is the fifteenth largest rough diamond ever found and the tenth biggest white diamond.

It was auctioned last week in Belgium for 12.39 million US dollars. The buyer, Safdico of Antwerp, indicated that the rough diamond would be yeild several large faceted diamonds of perfect color. Safdico is the manufacturing arm of Graff Jewelers, a high-end retailer specializing in important diamonds and jewerly. It is predicted that the stones will have a finished value in the neighborhood of $20 million.

Gem Diamond Mining Company owns and operates the Letseng mine in partnership with the Lesotho government. The timing for Gem Diamond Mining could not have been better as the company had only recently purchased its 70% stake in the mine and had taken over operations mere weeks before the discovery. The Letseng mine is known for large, gem quality rough diamonds, producing numerous gems over 100 carats with top color.

Gem Diamond Mining Company of Africa, also known as Gem Diamonds, shares a similar name but is not affiliated with diamond e-tailer gemdiamond.com.