Excelsior Diamond

Excelsior Diamond

"The Excelsior." 970 Carats. Source: Streeter's Precious Stones and Gems (1898)
Weight	970 carats rough; assorted cut carats (13.936 g)
Color	G (near colorless)
Cut	assorted (ten stones total, largest is a pear shape)
Country of origin	South Africa
Mine of origin	Jagersfontein Mine
Date discovered	June 30th, 1895
Cut by	Asscher
Original owner	assorted
Current owner	assorted
Estimated value	assorted, largest stone sold for $2,642,000 in 1996

The Excelsior Diamond was found on June 30, 1893 at the Jagersfontein Mine by a worker while loading a truck. The man was able to hide the diamond from the supervisors but delivered it to the manager of the mine himself. Until 1905, when the larger Cullinan diamond was found, the Excelsior was the largest known diamond in the world. It had a blue-white tint and weighed 971¾ carats (194.2 g). It was ultimately cut into ten stones weighing from 13 to 68 carats. (2.6 to 13.6 g). Immediately after its discovery the news spread around the world.

The Excelsior I, the largest gem cut from the crystal, was eventually bought by jeweler Robert Mouawad.

The Excelsior Diamond

The Excelsior Diamond was the largest diamond in the world when it was found. It was a rare gemstone, coveted above all others. This immense diamond had been, in its day and age, the focus of great importance to anyone interested in gemstones, because of its rarity. The specifics surrounding its discovery are laced with intrigue. The properties of the rough stone were remarkable. The Excelsior Diamond was fated to have a tragic unfortunate end.

The discovery

The Excelsior Diamond was found June 30, 1893 at the Jagersfontein mine in South Africa by a miner named Kaffir (p. 186). He found it while shoveling gravel into a truck. He felt at risk due to the value and prestige of the large stone. He was seemingly frightened of his overseer and was very secretive about his truly monumental find. Kaffir hid it from his overseer, but eventually turned it over to the manager of the mine. He was rewarded with money and a horse and released from his contract. The first unfortunate event that occurred involved the ownership. On the day it was discovered, the contract expired between the mining company and the syndicate of London diamond buyers. Unfortunately, this meant the diamond was owned by people that didn't value its potential worth as a single significant stone. If it had been discovered within a brief period of time beforehand the diamond might have taken it place next to other famous diamonds such as The Cullinan or Hope Diamonds.

The rough stone

The rough stone measured 970 carats in weight and was categorized as Color G. The stone was shaped was like a half a loaf of bread; it was unique and inspired the name Excelsior, which means “higher”. It measured two and ½ inches by two inches by one inch thick. The Excelsior was a colored a stunning white with a tint of blue. It did contain a number of black carbon inclusions, which is typical of diamonds from the Jagersfontein mine. The crystalline structure resembled a fractured icicle (p. 277). From the time of its discovery on June 30, 1893, it was the largest diamond known to exist, until the discovery of the Cullinan Diamond in 1905.

The cutting of the excelsior

Finally, after the diamond sat in the vault waiting for a buyer for many years, the owners made the tragic decision to cut the stone into several smaller stones. This decision meant that The Excelsior would never be a single large spectacular faceted stone. At the time, the manager of the DeBeers diamond syndicate said the dividing of the stone into many small pieces was "the greatest tragedy of modern times in the history of famous diamonds". Diamond experts hoped that it would be cut to yield a single large diamond, but it was divided into ten smaller stones. By contrast, the owners of The Cullinan Diamond cut that stone in such a way that the largest faceted diamond in the world came from it. The fate of The Excelsior kept it out of the Smithsonion or other historical museums. It was cut without regard to its historical significance, divided into small, easily sold assorted stones. The Aascher Firm, a world-renowned cutter of large diamonds, cut it in London, the name of the cutter was A. Aascher. The pieces were :

Excelsior I	69.68 carats	pear shape
Excelsior II	47.03 carats	pear shape
Excelsior III	46.90 carats	marquise shape
Excelsior IV	40.23 carats	pear shape
Excelsior V	34.91 carats	marquise
Excelsior VI	28.61 carats	marquise
Excelsior VII	26.30 carats	pear shape
Excelsior VIII	24.31 carats	pear shape
Excelsior IX	16.78 carats	pear shape
Excelsior X	13.86 carats	pear shape
Excelsior XI	9.82 carats	pear shape

These diamonds were parceled out and sold to several different buyers. The Excelsior I, which came up for sale in 1991 and 1996, was purchased by Robert Mouawad for $2,642,000. The remaining stones were used in various grand jewelry pieces such as extravagant tiaras and fabulous bracelets and other fine jewelry creations.

The Excelsior Diamond was the great unknown of famous diamonds. It had the potential to be the largest cut diamond ever found. It is considered a travesty that it was divided into so many smaller stone parcels to be sold, instead of being preserved as one large historically important stone. It was a glorious natural wonder when it was discovered, but unfortunately the original owners allowed greed to take hold over the intrinsic value of the Excelsior Diamond.

References

• Excelsior diamond discussion in "Great Diamonds of the Earth" by Edwin Streeter.
• W.R. Catelle's "The Diamond" for further reading on the Excelsior Diamond
•  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.