Botswana : Graff purchases 1109 carat Lesedi La Rona for 53 million $

Graff Diamonds, a British multinational jeweler founded in 1960, purchased for 53 million $ the 1109 carat Lesedi La Rona diamond discovered in November 2015 in the Karowe mine in Botswana.

Lucara Diamond Corp, with 100% ownership of the mine, disclosed on 25 September the sale of the famous diamond that is as large as tennis ball. It reported it realized an average price of 47 777 $ per carat by the sale of Lesedi La Rona, meaning “Our Light” in the local Tswana language in Botswana. This is a landmark acquisition for the Graff Diamonds that purchased, inter alia, the seven-sided Paragon diamond of 137.82 carats in 1989, the rough 603-carat stone Lesotho Promise for 12.4 million$ in 2006 and the Letseng Legacy diamond of 493 carats for 10.4 million $ in 2008.

Commenting on this, Laurence Graff, founder of the vertically integrated Graff Diamonds said : "We are thrilled and honoured to become the new custodians of this incredible diamond”.
“The stone will tell us its story, it will dictate how it wants to be cut, and we will take the utmost care to respect its exceptional properties”, he added, as the Lesedi La Rona is the largest rough high quality diamond unearthed since 1905. “This is a momentous day in my career, and I am privileged to be given the opportunity to honour the magnificent natural beauty of the Lesedi La Rona." Laurence Graff also said.

William Lamb, President and CEO of Lucara Diamond said the discovery of the Lesedi La Rona was a company defining event for Lucara and also solidified the amazing potential and rareness of the diamonds recovered at the Karowe mine. “We took our time to find a buyer who would take the diamond through its next stage of evolution. The price paid is also an improvement on the highest bid received at the Sotheby’s auction in June 2016”, he explained.
Mr. Lamb reported the Graff Diamonds is now the owner of the Lesedi La Rona as well as the 373 carat diamond, purchased earlier this year, which formed part of the original stone. "We are excited to follow these diamonds through the next stage of their journey." he said.

The Canadian company Lucara is a leading independent producer of large exceptional quality Type IIa diamonds from its 100% owned Karowe mine in Botswana. It has an experienced board and management team with extensive diamond development and operations expertise.