The largest pink diamond in 300 years has been found in Angola 

Lucapa, an Australian Stock Exchange diamond miner and explorer, has two niche diamond mines in Angola (Lulo) and Lesotho (Mothae) that produce large high-value diamonds. Since it has been in commercial production, Lulo mine has uncovered two of the largest diamonds in Angola, the largest being the 404 carats “4th February Stone” and the 5th largest diamond being the “Lulo Rose”. They have uncovered over 27 +100 carat diamonds overall.

The ‘Lulo Rose’, recovered recently, is a 170-carat stone believed to be the largest pink diamond in the last three hundred years. Natural pink diamonds are as rare as they are stunning. They are also rated highly because of the speculation on how they get the pink hue.

His Excellency Diamantino Azevedo, Angola’s Minister of Mineral Resources, Petroleum and Gas said, “This record and spectacular pink diamond recovered from Lulo continues to showcase Angola as an important player on the world stage for diamond mining and demonstrates the potential and rewards for commitment and investment in our growing diamond mining industry.”

The diamond will be sold via international tender by the Angolan State Diamond Marketing Company. Pink diamond gems are the most valuable coloured diamonds and can fetch 20 times more than clear diamonds. The market rate for these types of diamonds could reach tens of millions of dollars, for example in 2017, the ‘Pink Star’ sold at a Hong Kong auction for $71.2m (£59m).

They also feature in prominent pieces. According to the BBC, the largest known pink diamond is the Daria-i-Noor, discovered in India, which experts believe was cut from an even larger stone and forms part of the Iranian crown jewels.

But clear diamonds are much larger than any coloured ones. The largest rough diamond of any colour ever recorded, weighed 3,107 carats ( more than half a kilogram) and was found in South Africa in 1905. It was cut into 105 different stones- the largest of which forms part of the UK Crown Jewels.

Dr. José Manuel Ganga Júnior, Chairman of the Board of Endiama commented, “Lulo diamond field has again delivered a precious and large gemstone, this time an extremely rare and beautiful pink diamond. It is a significant day for the Angolan diamond industry and the long-standing partnership between Endiama, Lucapa, and Rosas and Petalas.”

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