The Jonker Diamonds

With the Jonker V being featured at the upcoming Christie’s Magnificent jewels auction in Hong Kong coming up in May, we decided to rediscover the rough it came from. The Jonker rough weighed 726 carats and was discovered by Jacob Jonker at the Elandsfontein mine in South Africa. After being in ownership of Sir Ernest Oppenheimer it was then bought by Harry Winston. A lot of examining and studying of the stone led to 13 different stones being cut by master diamond cutter Lazare Kaplan. A total of 11 emerald cuts, a marquise and a baguette completed the collection of the Jonker Diamond family. Jonker I, the biggest from the collection, weighs over 142.90 carats; while the smallest, Jonker XIII is 3.53 carats. The Jonker V is 25.27 carats and is expected to reach even more than the expected price tag of $3 million.