Guinness Certifies World's Largest Rough Emerald

RAPAPORT... It's official: Guinness World Records has verified the 7,525-carat Chipembele as the largest uncut emerald on record. The agency presented Israel-based Eshed-Gemstar with its sought-after certificate in April, after the company bought the stone from Gemfields last December for an undisclosed amount. Gemfields recovered the emerald a month earlier from its Kagem mine in Zambia, claiming it was the largest discovery in the deposit's history, surpassing the 5,655- and 6,225-carat emeralds found there in 2010 and 2018, respectively. Eshed-Gemstar is now ready to facilitate the next phase for Chipembele, which means rhinoceros in the local Zambian dialect of Bemba. "We want to do something special with this stone," Eshed-Gemstar founder Avraham Eshed told Rapaport News during an exclusive viewing of the stone last week. "There is an opportunity to use it to educate the next generation, which is so focused on hi-tech but doesn't have the knowledge about diamonds and gemstones."The company has placed the emerald in G? 1/4 belin Gem Lab's traceability program, Provenance Proof. The platform makes a record of the stone's DNA, ensuring all cut and polished stones derived from the rough remain identifiable. If the Chipembele yields 500 polished stones, each will be traced to it no matter where they land, Eshed explained. Eshed-Gemstar is looking for a buyer, preferring to sell the rough whole, with the option to work with the buyer to cut and polish it. "We're not in a rush, as we want to find the right home for the stone," he stressed. "We feel we have a powerful story to tell considering the size, beauty and provenance of the Chipembele." Image (from left): Liran Eshed, chief operating officer at Eshed-Gemstar; Elena Basaglia, manager for downstream operations at Gemfields; Avraham Eshed; and Lior Eshed, head of sales and business development at Eshed-Gemstar. (Richa Goyal via Eshed-Gemstar)