Massive 2,492-Carat Diamond Discovered in Botswana: Second Largest in the World
A remarkable 2,492-carat diamond—the second-largest in the world—has been unearthed in Botswana, according to Canadian mining company Lucara Diamond Corp. The diamond was discovered at the Karowe Diamond Mine in northeastern Botswana, utilizing advanced X-ray technology, as announced in a statement on Thursday.
While Lucara has not disclosed the diamond’s market value or quality, it ranks just behind the 3,016-carat Cullinan Diamond found in South Africa in 1905. Lucara President William Lamb expressed excitement over the find, describing it as “extraordinary.” Images shared by the company indicate that the diamond is roughly the size of a human palm.
This discovery marks one of the largest rough diamonds ever found, thanks to Lucara’s Mega Diamond Recovery X-ray technology, installed in 2017, designed to identify and preserve large, high-value diamonds. Later on Thursday, Botswana’s President Mokgweetsi Masisi was presented with the massive stone, which the government confirmed as the second largest globally.
Tobias Kormind, managing director of Europe’s largest online diamond retailer, 77 Diamonds, noted that this diamond is the largest rough diamond discovered since the Cullinan Diamond, parts of which are now part of Britain’s crown jewels. He attributed the successful recovery to modern technology that enables the extraction of larger diamonds without breaking them into smaller pieces, suggesting that more significant discoveries could follow.
Botswana is a major player in the global diamond industry, with diamond production accounting for 30% of its GDP and 80% of its exports. Last month, the government proposed legislation requiring mining companies to offer a 24% stake in their operations to local investors, unless the government opts to acquire those shares.
Before this recent discovery, the largest diamond mined in Botswana was a 1,758-carat stone named Sewelo, discovered by Lucara in 2019. In 2021, the company also recovered a 1,174-carat diamond using similar X-ray technology.
