A 647-carat diamond recovered in Brazil is the country’s second biggest and has been valued at just over $3m.
The brown-colored gem was unearthed late last month in the Douradinho river bed, home to mining companies and artisanal miners (known locally as garimpeiros) in the rural area of Coromandel, in the southeast of the country.
Large diamond finds are rare in modern Brazil and generate significant local excitement and economic activity, especially in towns with a mining tradition like Coromandel.
“Everyone was euphoric because Coromandel has a lot of mining activity,” said a spokesman for the Coromandel municipality. “It has been a long time since a diamond of this size was discovered.”
The record for Brazil’s largest diamond is still held by the 726.6-carat President Vargas diamond, discovered in the same region back in 1938.
Brazil was the world’s top producer of diamonds from 1730 to 1870, but is now responsible for less than 1 per cent of global production, mostly from alluvial deposits.
According to the Brazilian news website Click Petroleo e Gas, the gem has already been sold.
Source: DCLA
