Sierra Leone has sold one of the world’s largest uncut diamonds for $6.5 million at a New York auction.
The egg-sized gem, known as the “Peace Diamond,” was bought by British luxury jeweler Laurence Graff on Monday.
The gem was sold to raise funds for development projects in the country.
“One hundred percent of the value of this diamond, of the auction sale of this diamond, is going to go to the government and the people of Sierra Leone. Never before has this happened,” says Martin Rapaport, chairman of Rapaport Group, a network of diamond companies that managed the auction.
The precious stone was discovered by Emmanuel Momoh, a Christian pastor in the eastern Kono district. He chose to hand it over to the government instead of selling it to smugglers or middlemen.
It was the government’s second attempt to sell the diamond after it rejected the highest bid of $7.8 million at an initial auction in the capital Freetown in May.
Ahead of Monday’s auction, the diamond was shown to some 70 potential buyers and received seven bids, Rapaport said.
“We showed the diamond everywhere. We did whatever we could and that’s the best price that we can get from the market today,” he said.
It is the 14th largest diamond ever found in the world and also the biggest diamond to be found in Sierra Leone since 1972.
But the auction of the ‘peace diamond’ has generated mixed reactions on social media.
Sierra Leone government failed to sell it diamond for $7.5m in March and yesterday it was sold for $6.5m in US. Sad
— Edward (@theedwardbassie) December 5, 2017
#SierraLeone’s 709-carat diamond auction in New York was a real bummer!! The Freetown auction came up with $7.07 million. Despite huge amounts spent on insuring the stone to take it abroad and all the other expenses, it was sold for $6.5 million.
— Umaru Fofana (@UmaruFofana) December 4, 2017
The United Nations lifted a ban on diamond exports from Sierra Leone in 2003, though the $113 million sector is plagued by smuggling.
Diamonds fueled a decade-long civil war in Sierra Leone which ended in 2002. Rebels forced civilians to mine the stones and bought weapons with the proceeds, leading to the term “blood diamonds.”
