Ekati Spirit Diamond Sets New Record

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed)
Feb 17th 2011 at 4:03PM

A 78-carat rough diamond from the Ekati mine in Canada's Northwest Territories sold in Antwerp this week at BHP Billiton's diamond center. The diamond sold for $2.8 million which is a record for Canadian stones. The previous record was for a 10.22 carat gem, also from Ekati, which sold for $1.2 million. The stone was named the Ekati Spirit by an employee after a company contest.

The stone is internally flawless and is considered to be the mine's most significant gem-quality find in the last 13 years. It's not the biggest stone to come out of the mine, that would be a 182-carat stone found two years ago, but that stone was of poorer quality.

No word yet on who the buyer is, although it's hard not to see a big stone and wonder if Laurence Graff or maybe Lev Leviev is behind the transaction. It's also not clear if the stone will be cut and set. Stones lose a significant amount of weight when cut so it will be interesting to see what this stone looks like after the master cutters get their hands on it. With stones of this size and value, the diamond plotters often strategize for months, using computer modeling and other methods, before making that first fatal cut.

Tags: BHP Billiton, diamond, ekati diamond, ekati spirit

Filed under: Jewelry

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)

jimanulli Feb 19th 2011 8:14AM

What a rip off. Diamonds are not "rare". Every woman 18 and above in America and Europe has at least 1 . Think how many women you know that have 3 or more. DeBeers or whoever are just controlling how many hit the market. And they all get rich off a common stone . Laughing at everyone . Heres another thing. You can take 10 zirchonian fake diamonds of different sizes, and tell 98% of women that if they pick the real 3 diamonds you'll give them one free, then no matter what they pick, you give them one saying they were right, they would be super happy!!!!!!!! they would freak!!!! As long as no one ever appraises it and tells them that its fake.

Gen Feb 19th 2011 9:53AM

You obviously don't know diamonds very well then. Diamonds of this quality are quite rare. Yes, many women have multiple diamonds, but they probably have internal flaws and aren't as colorless as this one. To find a 78 carat, internally flawless stone is like seeing pigs fly. It's unheard of. The majority of diamonds found are not up to the standard of what customers want. Finding a diamond that can be cut into a necklace of earrings or a ring or whatever you want is much more difficult than you think.

And it's cubic zirconium, not zirchonian ;)

onedayatatime Feb 19th 2011 12:37PM

Your a jerk!

onedayatatime Feb 19th 2011 12:50PM

Make no mistake my last comment was for jim.

jcecoman13 Feb 19th 2011 3:42PM

Pretty funny I like you thinking.....

t2nyval Feb 19th 2011 4:16PM

Wrong. Its actually cubic zirconia....

haysmclark Feb 19th 2011 5:22PM

.........and all this time I thought it was Cuban Jerk Chicken

steves1709 Feb 19th 2011 11:15PM

To Gen, OneAday et.al. - Jim made a good point - the supply of retail diamonds is restricted, and the prices artificially high, because of DeBeers (mostly). Go back 100 years and read about their strong-arming (and worse) of other diamond miners, forcing a near monopoly of gem quality stones out of S. Africa. Even today a huge % of stones pass through DeBeers to the retail jewelery market. They fear Russian and other diamond sources killing their markup and dominance.

Angela Feb 19th 2011 8:43AM

If the stone is going to remain uncut, I hope the buyer was Canadian and the stone stays in its home country. Perhaps on display in a museum. But if the distinct buyer is going to cut the stone and give it to his lucky, lucky, lucky wife in a dazzling necklace or earring/necklace set or a lovely diamond ring or... well, you get what I mean. Anywho. if the distinct buyer is going to make it into breath taking jewelry, I hope whoever bought it is someone who is well known so they can wear the jewels as they travel the world to showcase one of Canada's unsung natural resources. Wouldn't you love to have the jewels from THIS baby, and what better way to focus positive publicity to support Canada's diamond industry?

Diana Feb 19th 2011 1:03PM

Has anyone ever seen a red natural diamond ,If so can you tell me what web site I may find one to look at. thanks

PATRICK DUFFY Feb 19th 2011 10:14AM

Its a Blood diamand !! many canadians died to deliver this stone. Eskimo children enslaved to dig for Canadian rebels.

herkminer Feb 19th 2011 10:18AM

Diamonds are not rare. Its a controlled market. And there are more and more synthetics coming out of china that are difficult to spot from real ones. There are many rough diamonds that are held by these controlling companies and only a small amount are sold each year to create a fake market of rarity. And the retail markup is so high that there is virtually no chance of getting back what is paid for a so called "rare" diamond. And then there are the stories of people taking their jewelry to be cleaned only to find out they have been cleaned out by the jeweler replacing their stones with ones of less value and cutting or selling the original stone

bohr137 Feb 19th 2011 1:28PM

Cubic Zirconia is Zirconium Dioxide - Chemical formula ZrO2 - in crystalline form.
Diamond is Carbon - Chemical formula C - in crystalline form.

The weight and other characteristics of the two materials are different.

Diamonds are not as rare as you might think, but the diamond described in this article is more than rare - it is unique. Gems are fascinating whether or not you like jewelry (unless, of course, you are not fascinated).

criterion29 Feb 19th 2011 9:10PM

i feel sorry for you beliving everything the media say .

rexitalia Feb 19th 2011 10:24AM

You def must be three years old, and very inexperieced, if you place 10 Diamonds side to side all or equal size , you can bet yopur bottom dollar you could pick out the genuine ones quite easily. Diamonds have a much huger refractive index , meaning they spakle more . Id like to see you give your wife or your girlfriend a CZ for an engagement gift,, you would find yourself in deep do do if she finds out. Pony up some bucks boy and man up , bet you have a cool car or motorcycle don't you?

onedayatatime Feb 19th 2011 12:34PM

Thank you rex for your comment to the 3 year old!
Good job!

herkminer Feb 19th 2011 12:52PM

You are incorrect. Synthetic diamonds (lab grown) have the same exact chemical
content as natural ones.. And If I lined up 5 natural and 5 real you will fail to find the real ones. The refractive index is exactly the same. There is a special test by passing a minute electrical current through the stone.. That will find the synthetics. Even an Electron Microscope cannot discern between synthetic and natural stones. And by the way there is a town in China, and as you walk down its main streets it is lined with vendors selling all you want of lab grown gemstones
by the bucket. And they are eye clean. So you you can go and spend your money on a diamond and play a form of russian roullette good luck

bohr137 Feb 19th 2011 1:35PM

Cubic Zirconia is Zirconium Dioxide ZrO2 in crystalline form.

Diamond is Carbon C in crystalline form.

Both are clear crystals, but other characteristics are different, including weight.

Of course some people try to defraud others. This does not cause diamonds to be without value or without intrinsic interest. Diamonds are valuable and interesting. The diamond depicted in this story is very valuable, very interesting. Thanks for article!