"This is one of the largest diamonds in the world," says the company that hired it. • CEO: "The value of the stone is expected to be up to $ 18 million, some of the profits will be returned to the country."

• "The discovery proves the potential of the mine"

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  Getty Images - Illustration

A rare diamond in size and quality weighing 442 carats was found in a mine in the African country of Lesotho. The announcement of the unusual and very rare find was made by Gem Diamonds last Friday. "This is one of the largest diamonds in the world that has been found and it proves the potential that the mine has for finding such large stones," the company said in a statement, quoted by Bloomberg News and quoted by American Fox News.

Clifford Alfick, the company’s CEO, added: “The experts who examined the stone estimated that its value reaches up to a value of $ 18 million. In any case, as we agreed with the Lesotho government, some of the profits from this find and other finds in the mine will be returned to the state and invested in the community to promote it. "

Gem Diamonds is pleased to announce the recovery of a high quality 442 carat Type II diamond from the Letšeng mine https://t.co/fAHOuMKPJZ pic.twitter.com/aRlXfkHvpJ

- Gem Diamonds Limited (@GemDiamondsLtd) August 21, 2020

It is interesting to note that this is not the largest treasure the company has found. In 2018, a 910-carat diamond was unveiled at the same mine, which was named "The Legend of Lesotho." An investor bought that diamond for $ 40 million.

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The African Lesotho gained its independence from Britain in 1966 and is surrounded on land by South Africa. The country has two million inhabitants, who make their living mainly from agriculture and tillage. The government hopes the profits from mining will help it advance the population. Although the diamond industry has largely been hit hard by the spread of the corona plague worldwide, the unique demand area of ​​large diamonds has remained stable and is in great demand around the world even today.