PremiumOne of the world's largest diamonds has been unearthed in Botswana, a country located in Southern Africa this week.
The 1,098-carat diamond is be lived to be the third largest "gem-quality" diamond ever found.
Botswana President President Mokgweetsi Masisi said the precious stone was unearthed earlier this month at the Jwaneng mine, around 75 miles from the country's capital, Gaborone.
Officially opened in 1982, the Jwaneng mine usually yields between 12.5 million and 15 million carats of diamonds a year, a company that operates the mine said in a statement.
This month's find is the largest gem unearthed by the company since diamonds were first discovered in Botswana in 1967, the government said.
At present, the largest diamond ever recorded is the 3,106-carat Cullinan Diamond, found in South Africa in 1905. The Cullinan was subsequently cut into smaller stones, some of which form part of British royal family's crown jewels.
The second largest discovery is believed to be the Lesedi La Rona, a 1,109-carat stone found by Canadian firm Lucara Diamond at the Karowe mine, also in Botswana, in 2015. The diamond was sold to luxury jeweler Graff for $53 million two years later.
