Large, top quality diamond found in Russia

Russia's diamond company Alrosa discovered a first large diamond weighing over 50 carats at the  new Verkhne-Munskoye field in Yakutia Republic.

Photo: Source: alrosa.ru

"A transparent octahedral round crystal with a slight yellow tinge was extracted from the ore of the Zapolyarnaya pipe, one of the four kimberlite pipes developed at the field. The weight of the diamond is 51.49 carats, and its dimensions are 23x22x15 millimeters. The approximate age of the extracted crystal is over 350 million years," the company said in a statement.

Company representative Alexander Makhrachev, the director of the Udachninsky mining complex, said that it would be possible to make either one or several diamonds from the stone.

"Despite insignificant inclusions and cracks, the diamond is undoubtedly a cuttable rough diamond that will make either one or several top quality diamonds," Makhrachev said.

The Verkhne-Munskoye field is located in Yakutia, 170 kilometers from the town of Udachny. President Putin personally attended the launch of the field on October 31, 2018.