Biggest diamond in 100 years fetches $53 million

Ottawa, Sep 26 (IANS) The biggest diamond found in more than a century has been sold for $53 million, Canada's Lucara Diamond Corp said.

The 1,109-carat stone, which is said to be 2.5 to 3 billion years old, was bought by British diamond dealer Graff Diamonds for $47,777 per carat on Monday. It will now be cut and polished, Lucara said in a statement.

Lucara recovered the huge diamond from Botswana's Karowe mine nearly two years ago. The seller named it "Lesedi La Rona", which means "Our Light" in Botswana's Tswana language.

It had originally hoped to get at least $70 million for the stone, describing it as the biggest gem quality diamond found in more than a century, CBC News reported.

The price paid was an improvement on the highest bid received for the diamond at a Sotheby's auction in June 2016, Lucara Chief Executive and President William Lamb said.

The new owner, Laurence Graff of Graff Diamonds, said becoming the "custodian" of the diamond was the highlight of his career.

"The stone will tell us its story. it will dictate how it wants to be cut and we will take the utmost care to respect its exceptional properties," he said.

The only larger diamond previously unearthed was the 3,106-carat Cullinan Diamond, which was discovered in South Africa in 1905. The Cullinan was eventually cut into smaller stones, some of which are now part of British royal family's crown jewels.

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