A rare pink diamond discovered in Angola is thought to be the largest of its kind to be found in 300 years. The 170-carat stone, which weighs just 34 grams, has been named the ‘Lulo Rose’, after the alluvial mine where it was discovered. Alluvial means that the stones are recovered from a river bed.
Lulo Rose Diamond
- The 170-carat stone has been named the “Lulo Rose”, after the mine in Angola where it was found.
- It is believed to be the largest pink diamond mined since the 185-carat Daria-i-Noor, which was cut from a larger stone and is now among the Iranian national jewels.
- The Lulo Rose is a type 2a diamond, meaning it has few or no impurities.
- It is the fifth largest diamond recovered from the Lulo mine – a joint venture between Australia’s Lucapa Diamond Company and the Angolan government.
- Similar diamonds have been bought for tens of millions of dollars in the past, with one – known as Pink Star – selling at a Hong Kong auction for $71.2m (£59m) in 2017.
- Pink diamonds are extremely rare – but the same physical attributes that make the stones scarce also make them very tough, and not easy to work into shapes.
- The largest known pink diamond is the Daria-i-Noor, discovered in India, which experts believe was cut from an even larger stone.
- The largest rough diamond of any colour ever recorded is the Cullinan diamond, found in South Africa in 1905.
- Weighing 3,107 carats – more than half a kilogram – it was cut into 105 different stones.
- The largest of these – the Cullinan I – is the biggest clear cut diamond in the world and forms part of the UK Crown Jewels.