Lucara Recovers Rare 470-Carat Diamond in Botswana
Lucara’s latest diamond recovery is extremely rare and exciting for the natural diamond world.
It’s a big day for big diamonds! A 470-carat (!!) diamond was just recovered in Botswana. This precious gemstone is a top light brown clivage diamond that comes from Lucara Diamond’s diamond site in Botswana, Karowe.
A diamond finding like this is extremely rare and exciting for those of us obsessed with tracking new recoveries in the diamond world. To put it simply, the annual recovery of diamonds larger than five carats would only fill one basketball, this 470-carat rock included! The diamond, measuring 49x42x26mm is just one of six diamonds recovered at the Karowe mine greater than 200 carats and only the third to exceed 300 carats year to date and is roughly the size of an apricot or a kiwi.
Lucara’s natural diamond recovery in Botswana is incredibly rare.
Like all natural diamonds, this recovery is completely unique and no other diamond like it will ever be found again. Just like a snowflake or fingerprint, no two diamonds are identical with all their unique real qualities like color and inclusions. A once-in-a-lifetime find, indeed!
The rough diamond is absolutely gorgeous and calls to mind artisan style engagement rings and jewelry pieces with organic shapes and imperfect style.
Lucara also ensures that the people of Botswana benefit from the discovery, the collaboration, and the proceeds of the diamonds. In fact, 99% of Lucara Diamond employees are Botswanan. Their initiatives go far beyond job and wealth creation, to include vital sustainability and educational initiatives. In 2018, Lucara Diamond launched the Karowe Village Initiative (KVI), focused on investing in and developing sustainable community-driven projects and initiatives. The Mokubilo Co-Operative Society Farm, developed in partnership with Mokubilo village, is a community-owned, commercial farm designed to address malnutrition, to provide affordable and locally available vegetables, and to create employment and training opportunities. The country itself has been transformed thanks to the discovery of diamonds, providing infrastructure development, job creation, education, healthcare, and more. Since 1965, Botswana has been the 5th fastest growing country in the world and is the 5th wealthiest country in Africa.
When you buy a natural diamond, you can be proud of the fact that you help support the building of schools, free education for children, hospitals, infrastructure, and the protection of some of the world’s largest and most vulnerable wildlife reserves. This happens in communities that have limited alternatives in some of the most remote areas on Earth, from Canada to Australia, Southern Africa to Siberia.
We can’t wait to see what is in store for the future of this diamond!
