|
The Cullinan diamond is a non-carbonado and gem-quality diamond. At the time of its discovery in South Africa, the rough and unpolished original weighed .〔A carbonado found in Brazil weighed more than , but no gem-quality material could be extracted from it.〕 About 10.5 cm (4.1 inches) long in its largest dimension, it was found on 26 January 1905, in the Premier No. 2 mine, near Pretoria, South Africa. The rough diamond was cut into several polished gems. The largest cut gem is named Cullinan I or the Great Star of Africa, and at 〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=The Cullinan Diamonds )〕 is the largest polished white diamond in the world. It was the largest polished diamond of any colour until the 1985 discovery of the Golden Jubilee Diamond, , also from the Premier Mine. Cullinan I is now mounted in the head of the Sceptre with the Cross. The second-largest gem from the Cullinan stone, Cullinan II or the Second Star of Africa, at , is the fourth-largest polished diamond in the world. Both gems are in the Crown Jewels of the United Kingdom. == Discovery == The Cullinan diamond was found by a miner named Thomas Evan Powell, who brought it to the surface and gave it to Frederick Wells, surface manager of the Premier Diamond Mining Company in Cullinan, South Africa on January 26, 1905.〔http://www.britishempire.co.uk/article/cullinandiamond.htm〕 At approximately , long, wide and high the diamond was twice the size of any diamond previously discovered. Wells immediately took it for examination. Sir William Crookes performed an analysis of the Cullinan diamond, ascertaining a weight of . The stone was immediately named after Sir Thomas Cullinan, the owner of the diamond mine, who had discovered the mine after many years of unsuccessful searching.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=The Cullinan Diamond )〕 Crookes mentioned its remarkable clarity, but also a black spot in the middle. The colours around the black spot were very vivid and changed as the analyser was turned. According to Crookes, this pointed to internal strain. Such strain is not uncommon in diamonds. Because one side of the diamond was perfectly smooth, it was concluded that the stone had originally been part of a much larger diamond, that had been broken up by natural forces. Crookes pronounced the Cullinan "a fragment, probably less than half, of a distorted octahedral crystal; the other portions still await discovery by some fortunate miner."〔 Naturally the discovery became a global sensation, with the developments being followed avidly by the press. Wells was awarded £3,500 for his find and the diamond was purchased by the Transvaal Colony government for £150,000 and insured for ten times the amount. Prime Minister Louis Botha suggested that the diamond be presented to King Edward VII as "a token of the loyalty and attachment of the people of Transvaal to his throne and person". A vote was staged in order for the government to find out what should be done with the diamond. Oddly enough, in the aftermath of the Boer Wars the Boers voted in favour of presenting the King with the diamond and the English settlers voting against such a move. The final vote was 42 against and nineteen in favour. In the wake of the vote, the British Prime Minister of the time Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman decided to leave the decision of whether to accept the gift up to the King himself. However, future prime minister Winston Churchill eventually managed to persuade the king to accept, to which Edward VII finally agreed. Churchill was presented with a replica of the diamond, which he allegedly delighted in showing off to friends and displaying on a silver plate. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Cullinan Diamond」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|