Cullinan

In 1905, as miners filed out after a long day in South Africa’s Premier mine, one miner noticed what appeared to be a shiny object lodged in the earth. With nothing more than a pocket knife, he pried it lose from the ground and presented it to his mine manager. This humble discovery is regarded today as one of the greatest diamond discoveries of all time.

Once this great stone had been found, the question then was what to do with a diamond the size of a very large grapefruit.When no buyers were found for the great stone, it was decided that the diamond would be made into a gift for King Edward VII of England. Interestingly enough, even the king was at a loss for what to do with a stone so large. Logic soon prevailed and it was decided that the great stone would be cut into two smaller stones: Cullinan I and Cullinan II. The larger of the two (Cullinan I) was renamed the “Great Star of Africa.”

It’s worth noting that while the newly divided stone was nowhere near its original size, it was still massive by comparison measuring (2.3 x 1.7 inches at its broadest points). The cutting of the Cullinian was so successful that the two new gems became part of the Crown Jewels of England. King Edward’s royal jewelers even went so far as to redesign the setting of the scepter in order to accommodate the Great Star of Africa. The Cullinan II, humbly measuring 1.7 x 1.5 inches, was handsomely set in the brow of the British Imperial State Crown.