The discovery of the world Diamond supply started in India and Africa. The African discovery started around 1866 near Hopetown. A young boy named Erasmus Jacobs found some shiny stones illunimating through the grass while playing outside with his eldest sister. He curiously retreived them and brought them to his parents for them to look at.

They later tested them by writing their name on a window payne, positive proof at the time that they were real diamonds. They weighed approximately 21.5 carats. After going thru a few hands they wound up in the possession of a man named Jack O'Reilly who sold them to the governor of the cape colony for approximately $2,500.

They then where sent on a international tour thru Europe and officially started the diamond rush in south africa. There are mines all over Africa, however the history of diamonds known for mining gem quality diamonds can definitely be traced to its southern origin. After a few wars and some good politics, a renowned company emerged named de beers. It was created by a man named Cecil John Rhodes, and they reshaped the way diamonds where mined and distributed all over the world.

Today there are a limited number of economically viable diamond mines currently operating in the world. Most are in Africa. The Catoca mine is the fourth largest mine in the world, and is located in Angola. The mine produced approximately 1.8 million carats in 2000 and 2.6 million carats in 2001.

Catoca management has been actively expanding capacity at the mine, such that the owners plan to extract as much as 5 million carats in 2005. The mine's production is 35 % gem quality, which is phenomenal in comparison to a global average of 20 %; the diamonds produced at Catoca have an average value of $75 to $100 USD per carat. Estimated reserves are 60 million carats .

The Jwaneng mine is the richest mine in the world, and is located in south-central Botswana about 170 kilometers (110 miles) west of the city of Gaborone. Jwaneng is of open pit construction. The mine produces 9.3 Million tons per year of ore and an additional 37 Million tons per year of waste rock. The diamond mine is located on three kimberlite pipes that converge near the surface, basically covering 520,000 square meters at the excessive ground level. In 2003, the mine produced 14.3 million carats of diamond. The recoverable ore grade at the mine is about 1.25 carats per ton.

As of 2005, known reserves will allow production at current levels to fairly continue for 27 years. The high rate of diamond extraction, combined with high quality diamonds fetching excellent per weight prices, make the Jwaneng mine the richest diamond mines in the world by value of recovered diamonds.

This site gives a brief description on the history of where diamonds are mined and what to look for in a diamond.