Lucara Offers First Glimpse Of Its Spectacular 336-carat Diamond

Last week, Lucara Diamond Corp. announced the discovery of a spectacular 336-carat diamond at its Karowe mine in Botswana, but didn't provide photos. Yesterday, the company unveiled the $15 million rock on its Facebook page, and all we can say is "Wow!"

In its natural state, the diamond has a surprisingly symmetrical shape that resembles a rough-cut finished gemstone. This is the second 300-plus-carat diamond to be pulled from the Karowe mine in just the past five months.

Experts believe that the Type IIa diamond could yield $15 million or more when it's offered at Lucara's next tender in September. The buyer will determine the shape of the polished stone, hoping to maximize its size while bringing out its optimum brilliance. It's not unusual for half the diamond's weight to be sacrificed during the arduous cutting and polishing process.

The 336-carat diamond is rated Type IIa, the purest of all diamonds because they are composed solely of carbon with virtually no trace elements in the crystal lattice.

It was one of five notable diamonds — four white and one pink — unearthed at Karowe recently. The other white diamonds tipped the scales at 184 carats, 94 carats and 86 carats. Combined, they're expected to fetch $10 million at the September tender. A 12-carat pale pink diamond should also get buyers' attention.

Botswana's Karowe mine continues to generate a bounty of massive high-quality diamonds. Back in April, we reported on Lucara's discovery of a 341.9-carat specimen, also of Type IIa clarity. Lucara offered that stone at its July tender and it sold for $20.55 million.

Over the past three years, Lucara has recovered 216 diamonds that have sold for more than $250,000 each, with 12 of these yielding more than $5 million each.