$6 Million Diamond Unearthed in Sierra Leone (PHOTO)

By Daniel Distant, Christian Post Reporter Tuesday, February 25, 2014

A $6 million diamond was dug up in the mines of Sierra Leone recently, according to reports. The 153-carat stone is one of the largest and most valuable finds in years, shattering the record 125-carat diamond found in the country last year.

The $6.2 million diamond was unearthed in the eastern district of Kono, and derives its high value from its size, clarity and purity.

"This 153.44-carat diamond is one of the finest diamonds to be found in Sierra Leone in the last 10 years," the National Minerals Agency, a state-run organization, explained in a statement. Its D= on the D-to-Z diamond color scale means that the precious stone has almost no yellow tint— "it could only be matched or surpassed by fancy diamonds such as blue or pink in terms of price," they said.

Diamonds are also judged based on their shape, with certain shapes garnering more attention and commanding higher prices. This diamond was cleavage-shaped, but that isn't the most valuable one to buyers.

"This is a premium stone as a result of its colour and clarity, and had it been an octahedron-shaped stone, it could have almost doubled the price of $6 million," the agency added.

Though the National Minerals Agency is state-run, it's unlikely that the wealth received by selling the diamond will trickle down to average citizens. Sierra Leone is still one of the world's poorest countries while recovering from the 11-year civil war that ended in 2002, according to Agence France-Presse.

That doesn't mean the country doesn't attract investors, though. Even though less than a third of all diamonds have the quality to be sold as valuable gems, the industry is still growing, with sales of over $72 billion a year, the World Diamond Council reported. 65 percent of those diamonds come from African countries like Sierra Leone, but much of the money goes towards politicians, leaders and armed conflict.

Though the 153-carat diamond is certainly large, it is far from the record for the country. The biggest alluvial diamond ever found was the 968.9-carat Star of Sierra Leone, which was unearthed in 1972.