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JEWELPERSONALITIES

Back in 1957, Ian Fleming, alreadyamous or his 007 novels, published apiece o investigative journalism titledThe Diamond Smugglers. Though based onact, rst-hand derring-do experience andanecdotal evidence, the book read like onethe o the authors more amous spy thrillers.

In true James Bond-style Flemingtravelled to Johannesburg and Freetown,to Paris, Antwerp, Beirut and Moscow,

ollowing what he termed the greatestsmuggling racket in the world the illicitpassage o diamonds out o Arica, to thetune o $28m a year.

The diamonds that glitter so brilliantlyon a beautiul womans throat may verypossibly conjure a whole spectrum o crime,rom simple thet to murder and treason,wrote Fleming. No other precious stoneis so closely identied with mans loveo luxury, his greed and his rapacity. Theascination elt or diamonds is undeniableand universal, and this intense interestand curiosity extends to those who deal inthem especially in an unlawul way.

Fity-odd years later, things may bemore scrupulous and strictly regulatedthan they were in 1957 (theres nowan ocial and globally recognisedelectronic market or diamonds DealersOrganisation or Diamond AutomatedQuotes (Dodaq) and many stones areetched with the name o t heir origin mineto prevent the trade in immorally acquiredblood diamonds rom war zones).

Financially speaking, trade has certainlyrevved up a bit with approximately $9bn-worth o stones mined annually, but the

tracking o diamonds is arguably everybit as mysterious, labyrinthine, greedyand rapacious as it was hal a century ago,and the universal curiosity that intriguedFleming so much remains.

Take the case o the 507ct stone oundat the amous Cullinan mine in SouthArica by the Petra Diamonds companyback in September this year. This is oneo the largest high-quality diamonds ever

unearthed, and thoughexcess o 12.5m. Initithat it is o exceptionalwhich suggest extraordpolished yield, said PeJohan Dippenaar shortdiscovery. And since th

No one outside the the notoriously secretivknows whether the supbroken up or sold to a whether it remains in Shas been shipped to theRussia. It could be alrea pendant and hangingwies neck. Or it couldsae somewhere or justa jacket pocket. There anything untoward havsimply that a stone o teasibly have been purco the worlds richest co

This is a part o thebeen shrouded in mystadmits Keith Gerrard, Leviev Diamonds, the

and polisher o diamonpolishing o such a valube taken lightly, contina considerable amountbeore we decide what

Weighing up the modramatic way to dividebe done by eye. Now cdo all o this painstakinpolishing is completed

Diamonds may be a girls best friend, but super stones such as the Cullinan behemoths aremore likely to be hoarded by a secretive band of the worlds richest men. BySimon millS

No one outssanctum of thesecretive diamknows whethestone has beenup or sold to acustomer

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The biggest, cleanest and most fawlessdiamond, say 90-120cts, taken rom thestone may go on show at somewhere likethe Smithsonian Institute or a while, saysjeweller Stephen Webster. People in theindustry may get to know who has boughtit but ownership wont be publicised. Aterthat, it will disappear orever.

Chances are, the recent Cullinandiscovery was snapped up by either oneo the worlds two biggest players in thediamond business; Uzbekistan-bornbillionaire Lev Leviev, ormerly residentin Israel now living mostly in the UK, orLondons Laurence Gra, Britains 36thrichest man, according to the SundayTimes, with an estimated ortune o 1.5bn.Clearly, i Leviev did buy it, it was without

the knowledge o Keith Gerrard. Or,suggests Stephen Webster, they could evenhave gone in on the deal together. Whenthe amount o money required is that hugethey sometime put a consortium together.

Leaving aside their latent decorativequalities, rough, uncut diamonds are to-die-or desirable or a very simple reason; orsomething so very valuable they are so very,very small. The really alluring thing abouta rough diamond is not just its potential oroutstanding beauty but its convenient andstealthy portability. Unlike sprawling realestate, a classic car collection or a portolioo oil elds, rough diamonds can be slippedinto briecases or squirrelled away in suitpockets. This is abulous but unobtrusivewealth in compact orm.

So, i you happen to nd yoursel ina sticky position with local governmentocials (or worse) breathing down yourneck and you need to have it on yourBerlutis and vacate a country lickety-split,the expeditious liquidation o businessassets might be a problem. Opening thesae and simply clearing out a ew rocks,however, is a little less hassle.

Situations like this are all too commonduring an economic downturn, so could itbe that the global credit crunch has actuallybeen good or the struggling diamondindustry which saw drop in retail sales assteep as 20 per cent in its core Americanmarket in early 2009? Levievs Gerrardchooses his words careully: At a certainlevel o business, yes. I am aware that somepeople have liquidated their assets andlooked at investing in the rare diamondmarket. We have seen a huge increaseo this during the current economicuncertainty and an infux o clients showinginterest in diamonds or that reason.

The portability aspect, he admits, isa crucial element o attraction, and theidea that a rare stones high value tends tohold even in times o trouble. Best o all,unlike large amounts o cash or bars ogold, rough diamonds waltz through airportsecurity checks with the haughty immunityo a British blue blood. Hard to believe, butto most o the worlds Customs and Exciseocials, a rough diamond currently has thesame duty-ree status as a handul o gravelor a souvenir seaside pebble.

Not every one is happy about this.Indeed, the reimposition o a rough

diamond export tax is phottest point o debatediamond industry todaperiods in the past whemany assumed that expunder-invoiced as the rough diamonds addedwould have eroded anythat exporters had. Ththat an export tax wouleven more diamond sm

Security is, o courseissue. But burly manpowbombproo metals arenCojones, condence and oddly especially at the sthings. When the origindiamond, aka the First SCullinan I, was discoverinstance, its sae passagepart o it would eventuainto the crown jewels wprocedure. Detectives rplaced on a steamer shito carry the stone, but tto be a clever diversiona

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diamond on the ship was a red herring,intended to attract the attention o would-bethieves while the actual diamond was getthis sent to England in a plain box viaparcel post. Registered mail, o course.

Even now, Laurence Gra is said torequently produce multimillion poundstones rom the depths o nothing morearmour-clad than his blazer pockets andStephen Webster travels through Customs

with a bag o jewels under his arm. Thatsaid, I do tend to cause quite a stir atcustoms, he admits.

So, i you have the odd 10m or 20mlying around, should you invest in a superstone? Unortunately, it isnt just a priceissue but more a matter o access. Youdont just march into the murky diamond

market and go straight to the top o thebuyers lists. Getting in on the purchaseo the newest discoveries is more otenthan not a noncompetitive battle involving

just one client the Sultan o Brunei, stillLaurences Gras number one customer.

With his help, the Sultan owns whatGra calls the most royal o royal piecesand major gems including Les CoeursdArique, two heart-shaped diamonds romConakry, Guinea o 70ct and 25ct.

It goes without saying that it is worthwatching the markets. Diamonds may beorever, but away rom D Flawless superstones, at the entry level, engagementrock sector values can fuctuate wildly andrecently the diamond industry has seenprices tumbling. During 2009, De Beers cut

production by 40 per cent in an attempt torally prices, Belgiums exports o polisheddiamonds ell 18 per cent and exports oIndian cut and polished diamonds ell31 per cent in the last six months. India,

which has a 55 per cent share o theworlds diamond-cutting business, has beenparticularly hard hit with 200,000 jobs lost.

Keith Gerrard o Leviev Diamondsmaintains that rare diamonds coloureddiamonds being the most ashionable sincethe early 1990s will always be the smartgirls best riend and the most reliableinvestment or the boys.

What is rare today stands a goodchance o being even rarer in the uture,he says. The intrinsic value remainsbecause the diamond remains rare. H

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super stones

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