![]() According to , about 6,400 kimberlite pipes have been discovered worldwide, 30 of which were found to contain diamonds. Diamond mines have played a significant role in the recent history of Africa, as well as in Wilburs adventures - and none more so than Kimberley. In 1871, an 83.5 carat diamond was discovered near the town of Kimberley in South Africa, spawning a diamond rush and giving these volcanoes their name.Īlmost all Kimberlites have already erupted millions of years ago. When the Kimberlite magma approaches the surface, a vertical column of rock known as a Kimberlite pipe comes discharging and then falls in a ring around a crater on the surface.Īpproximately one out of 200 Kimberlite volcanoes contains diamonds. Kimberlite volcanoes are not the kind that involves mountains with smoke and fire they are deep holes in the ground, full of crystalized magma. Įnter the Kimberlite volcanoes – the most important source of primary diamonds. The Northern Cape is the largest province in South Africa in terms of area. There is hardly space to stand, let alone dig another hole. A complete little diamond rush town with shops and houses, a church. Thousands of people had flocked to a hillside in South. On the heels on the death of Queen Elizabeth II, South Africa is asking the royal family to return the largest clear-cut diamond in the world, known as the Great Star of Africa or Cullinan I. Yet the way in which diamonds have “come into being” – hurled into the air, oozed out in lava flows, into a poisonous environment no man can withstand – is anything but elegant. Thousands of people had flocked to a hillside in South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal province to dig for mysterious stones first unearthed by a cattle herder and believed to be diamonds. Published Friday, JE&T’s analysis reveals lessons from last week’s diamond rush in South Africa, including how the government’s failure to allay public concerns poses threats to health and the environment. Gemstones that sparked a diamond rush to eastern South Africa last week are just quartz after all, according to preliminary findings. In our imagination diamonds are usually associated with comfortable wealth, grace and elegance.
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