Star of the South

This article is about the diamond. For the Brazilian municipality, see Estrela do Sul.
For other uses of "Southern Star", see Southern Star (disambiguation).
Replica of the Star of the South in Reich der Kristalle museum, Munich

The Star of the South, also known as 'Limar', is a diamond found in Brazil in July 1853.[1] The diamond is cut into a cushion shape and weighs 128.48 carats (25.696 g). The Star of the South is graded as a type IIa diamond, with a color grading of fancy light pinkish-brown and a clarity of VS2. At the time when Madi Magassa discovered it at Bagagem River, the diamond weighed 254.5 carats (50.90 g). It has passed through the hands of many owners, including the Maharaja of princely Baroda State in India,[2] and its last known purchase was by Cartier, the French luxury jeweler around 2002, when it was sold to them by Rustomjee Jamsetjee of Mumbai.[3] The light reflected by the diamond is white, and the refracted light is of a rose tint. This gives the diamond its light pinkish-brown hue.[4][5]

  1. ^ W. Jones (1880-04-11). "The Star of the South" (PDF). History of Precious Stones. The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-11-02.
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