In 1906, some cargo was shipped to London carrying a mere stone that weighed about a pound. The parcel was sent to a mining agency at the center of London, S. Neuman & CO. Later on, it turned out that this mere package contained no ordinary stone. Rather, it was delivering what later turned out to be the most precious diamond that the British royalty ever owned. Shipped from the mountains of South Africa, this stone was what the world knows today as The Cullinan Diamond. Today, The Cullinan is one of the most precious diamonds owned by British royalty. Essentially, The Cullinan reveals many of Earth's secrets.
Lost Stones / The Cullinan Diamond, which was considered an ordinary stone in 1905, is now the precious diamond that British royalty owns.
Initially, African miners considered The Cullinan an ordinary stone. One of the miners in South Africa found that there was a glistering stone in a rough wall of the mining mountain. The inspector thought that it was “a practical joke” set by the workers at the site. Out of curiosity, the inspector started digging deep to come to the conclusion that he had found one of the most precious diamonds that was ever found in the mountains of South Africa. The stone was was of the size of a full fist, as they describe it. And it was a humungous 33,106.75 carat stone.
Thus, this stone, known as The Cullinan, turned out to be one of the largest diamonds in the history of South Africa. Some two decades later, The Cullinan was shipped to England.
Vox / The Cullinans were placed on the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II during the monarch’s funeral procession.
The Cullinan Diamond Continues to Shine After 120 Years!
Moving forward, the diamond seemingly disappeared as nobody talked about it. The British monarchs also did not publicly show the signs of this forgotten diamond. Fast forward to 2022, some 120 years later, the precious diamond made another debut at the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II.
During the funeral procession of Queen Elizabeth II, several pieces of The Cullinan were placed on the coffin of the monarch. Looking at the presence of The Cullinan, we are pretty sure that this largest diamond is one of the most precious stones ever found in the mountains of South Africa. Likewise, we also come to know that this precious diamond is owned by the British monarchy.
CNN / According to later investigations, The Cullinan Diamond was sold to England for just $15 in 1905.
However, later investigation revealed that The Cullinan was sold to England in 1905. Although there are disagreements on the cost of this precious stone, reports mutually agree that it was sold for three shillings. This price now translates into $15 USD today.
Similarly, reports also tell us that there were some “serious concerns” about the shipment of this precious stone. Shipping it safely from the mountains of South Africa to the center of England without being stolen was a tough task at the time. However, the stone was safely delivered to England and was owned by the British monarchy in the 1920s. Today, this largest diamond, which was once considered an ordinary stone, reveals many secrets of our planet.
