16.5ct and other rough diamonds

[RoninRoss]

Hi everyone.

My father passed away recently and I inherited a rough diamond collection he had. I grew up in South Africa and I had seen these rough diamonds among the already cut diamonds my mother had and I know for a fact they are real. Back then it was illegal to own rough diamonds in South Africa and maybe that is why my father never did anything with them all these years. One of these was in an envelope on its own with 16.5ct marked on the envelope. All the rest are of a variety if shapes, sizes and colors. The larger 16.5ct stone is opaque and yellowish and I know that it is hard to tell the true color and clarity of a stone if it is not polished on some side of it to allow one to see inside unless it is in crystal form. Is it possible for me to polish one or two sides myself?
I would like to post an image of all the stones I now have in my possession which I may even do tonight and maybe get an idea if any are worth getting cut or even sold as is.

Thank you

RoninRoss

 

[Gypsy]

You need an appraiser. A good INDEPENDANT one, who is familar with evaluating and appraising rough diamonds. Where are you located?

 

[rogeshoe57]

Have any pictures?

 

[RoninRoss]

Here is a quick scan image of all the diamonds I have. The one next to the dime is the 16ct one the rest are smaller. I will be taking individual pictures with better light and detail but please let me know what you think these would be worth even as industrial quality due to the size.

Thank you for any information or opinions.

Ross

 

[rogeshoe57]

Wow that''s a beautiful collection! Thank you for sharing!

 

[Love in Bloom]

RR, that is one of the coolest things I have ever seen! Thank you for posting, and I''m very interested in what an independent appraiser has to say...

 

[triple]

Hi,

This is a very happy story! I hope you have found a lost treasure! Please let us know how it turns out.

 

[strmrdr]

Everyone we need too be real careful here:

1: rough diamonds are against the PS rules.
2: with the blood diamond issue and the kimberly process and the possible punishments no one in the trade in their right mind is going too want too touch these.
3: while the poster may be legit who knows in this day and age.

It would be very very uncommon for someone too have that amount of rough diamonds and be legit and add in the somewhat cloudy story I urge extreme caution.

To the OP is you are legit then I apologize but this is a very very touchy subject both in the trade and with law enforcement.

 

[RoninRoss]

My cloudy story as you put it is legit and painting all those like me that may have some rough diamonds with the broad "blood diamond" brush is very unfair of you but I accept your apology. These stones have been in my family for over 40 years and I am just looking to educate myself so that I do not get ripped off.

If the discussion of rough diamonds is indeed against the PS rules then a PS mediator should let me know.

Thanks anyway.

RR

 

[LegacyGirl]

Wow nice collection!

 

[DiamondExpert]

Your average appraiser, independent or not, is not likely to be an expert in diamond rough. You would be better off having them examined by an honest expert in the field (assuming you are in the US) like Ken Glasser in La Vegas - www.diamondrough.com

...I hope that discussing diamond rough is not against the PS rules, but if it is it''s, in my opinion, ill advised, short sighted and hurts the consumer.

 

[strmrdr]

hmmm I just checked and the section on rough diamonds and man-made stones is missing from the current rules.
They have been there for years since we had the rush of scammers pushing rough back around the time I first joined PS.


Andrey will have too clarify this.

 

[denverappraiser]

Very cool collection. Thanks for sharing.

Are you in the US? I second Gary’s suggestion of talking with Ken Glasser. This is very much a specialized field and the vast majority of jewelry appraisers haven’t a clue how to approach it. Whatever paperwork you have to document the 40 years of family history will be very helpful in persuading a potential buyer that you’re legit. The world has changed in the last 40 years and documenting provenance is now just part of the deal.

Neil Beaty
GG(GIA) ICGA(AGS) NAJA
Professional Appraisals in Denver

 

[DiamanteBlu]

Wow, how cool are those?!? Love the collection!

 

[Paul-Antwerp]

RR,

Although Storm sometimes chooses very ''rough'' words, the matters he raises are very important ones.

Even though, your case may be absolutely legit, you have ended up in a situation of illegality. Now, your diamonds are not ''blood diamonds'', but they are definitely ''untouchable''.

Since a few years, with the introduction of the Kimberley Process, rough diamonds are either KP-compliant or they are not. At the point in time of the introduction of the Process, anyone (mostly diamond dealers) could declare their stock of rough diamonds, and these were automatically considered KP-compliant. As you or your father probably did not declare your stock, these stones are now outside of the Kimberley Process, and I do not think that there is a way of getting them into it.

As such, Storm is absolutely right in stating that no legitimate diamond dealer or cutter will want to touch these stones. Doing that would risk allegations of trading in blood diamonds (indeed), money laundering and as a result terrorist-financing. Nobody in his right mind will take this risk.

Of course, others here have a gemolical curiosity in rough diamonds, but I personally would not even risk taking a look at these stones. Just to clarify to you how difficult your current situation is.

Other than that, from the pics, I do not see really nice material. Maybe, by louping it, they will prove to be better quality than at a first glance, but do not expect that you have a valuable treasure there. Illegal yes, valuable question mark.

Sorry for the harsh words, but it is essential that somebody warns you about your true situation.

Live long,

 

[Garry H (Cut Nut)]

I am afraid I weigh in on the side of caution also.
I suggest you do whatever you can to document the origin of the diamonds.

Anyone who will help you who is honest and less likely to rip you off will want to know the stones are legit. It is the way it is now. Our industry is accused of all sorts of things, but enabling the sale of illicit rough diamonds will not wash these days. A lot of NGO''s make out it still happens all the time, but I have had experiances that indicate to me that the best way to become persona non gratia in our game is to have a suspicion levelled against you.

I am not a rough expert, but it does seem the goods could come from 1 source. And SA seems reasonable from my limited experiance. That should go in your favour as other than stolen and smuggled (to avoid export tax) rough, there has not been conflict associated with these stones.

Storm I think you are correct - the rough rule was probably removed as everyone here is so vigilante anyway.

I think you have enough expets opinions now, if you want to contact any directly they may be able to advise you further.