The World's Largest Gemstones
World's Largest Gemstones
This is a listing of the largest cut gemstones known of these minerals and a spin-off project from another page that is under construction for the world's largest crystals, this page is continously edited with new information and layout revisions, so this should not yet be considered definitive. As Peter Rickwood, author of the 1981 publication on the world's largest minerals, pointed out, defining the largest crystals is not a simple task. After all, what does it mean to be the largest? Largest in size? Largest in volume? Largest in mass? I've continued with Rickwood's idea of defining the largest gemstones with these three categories: size (length), volume, and mass. It is possible that some gemstones may very well be the largest of all three categories. A complication that Rickwood faced was that in some instances, only one or two measurements, such as length and mass, were taken. Unlinke with the largest crystals, many of these gemstones have been cut, polished, and/or faceted, so the other measurements are either unknown and cannot be estimated.
This project welcomes your contributions to expand this database! If you would like to help, please contact me!I have am not yet certain of the largest reported crystal of apatite (Ca5(PO4)3(Cl/F/OH)), but a record for a large gemstone apatite is known. Synthetic apatite crystals have been grown (McClure, 2001, p. 57), but I have not found any measurements of the synthetic crystals, so the largest manufactured apatite is unknown. For more information on apatite, click here (via Mindat.org).
Dimensions: unknown Volume: unknown Mass: 55 carats (11 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Brazil Today's Whereabouts: I have not found much information regarding this gemstone. The largest reported apatite from North America was found in Pulsifer Quarry, Auburn, Maine, USA, which is the same place the Roebling Apatite originated. It was 65.5 carats (0.0131 kg) as an uncut crystal and was cut down to 21.53 carats (0.004306 kg) in 2015 by Dennis Creaser of Creaser Jewelers, Paris, Maine, USA for a private owner. References: Place, E., 2015, North America’s largest apatite found in Auburn quarry: Sun Journal, 22 January 2015, online (accessed Dec. 2020)
Dimensions: unknown Volume: unknown Mass: 4,076 carats (815.20 g) Assumed Density: unknown Origin: unknown Today's Whereabouts: Dion Tulk (owner), Medici Collection LLC, Los Angeles, California, USA
I have not found the largest reported crystal of baddeleyite, but a record for a large gemstone baddeleyite is known. For more information on baddeleyite, click here (via Mindat.org).
Dimensions: unknown Volume: unknown Mass: 27.78 carats (5.55 g) Assumed Density: unknown Origin: unknown Today's Whereabouts: Dion Tulk (owner), Medici Collection LLC, Los Angeles, California, USA
Beryl (Be3Al2(Si6O18)) is a mineral that comes in a variety of colors and is highly sought after as a gemstone. Varieties of beryl based on color widely known include aquamarine (light blue), bixbite (red), emerald (green), goshenite (colorless), heliodor (yellow), maxixe (dark blue), and morganite (pink). Synthetic beryl crystals have been grown, but I have not found any measurements of the synthetic crystals, so the largest manufactured beryl is unknown. For more information on beryl, click here (via Mindat.org).
Dimensions: 0.3556 m x 0.1016 m x 0.1016 m Volume: unknown Mass: 10,363 carats (2,072.60 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Pedra Azul, Minas Gerais, Brazil Today's Whereabouts: National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., USA
Dimensions: Volume: Mass: 22,450 carats (4,490 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Today's Whereabouts: Dion Tulk (owner), Medici Collection LLC, Los Angeles, California, USA
Dimensions: unknown Volume: unknown Mass: 8 carats (1.6 g) Assumed Density: unknown Origin: Ruby Violet claim, Wah Wah Mountains, Utah, USA Today's Whereabouts: unknown Red beryl (aka bixbite and red emerald) is a small, rare variety of beryl that is best known to occur in the Wah Wah Mountains of Utah, USA. As of 1981, the largest reported faceted red beryl was 2.93 carats (Miley, 1981, p. 405). Additional searching indicates that an 8 carat faceted red beryl is in existance and came from the Ruby Violet claim in the Wah Wahs, which is the most well-known deposit of these minerals. Synthetics are known to be in extistance as well. References: Miley, F., 1981, An examination of red beryl: Gems and Geology, v. 16, n. 12, p. 405-408. RockCollector.co.uk Noospheregeologic.com The Gemmological Association of Great Britain RealGems.org Hurrell, K. and Johnson, M. L., 2016, Gemstones: A Complete Color Reference for Precious and Semiprecious Stones of the World, United States: Book Sales, p. 80 Oldershaw, C., 2003, Firefly Guide to Gems, United States: Firefly Books, p. 129
Dimensions: Volume: Mass: 86,136 carats (17,227.20 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Carnaiba, Brazil (1974); carved by Richard Chan, Hong Kong (1982) Today's Whereabouts: This specimen was entered into the Guinness World Records as the largest cut emerald. References: Guinness World Records (accessed Nov. 2020)
Dimensions: Volume: Mass: 6500 carats (1,300 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Today's Whereabouts: Wing Kiat Cheong (owner), Singapore This specimen was entered into the Guinness World Records on 13 March 2018 as the largest cut goshenite References: Guinness World Records (accessed Nov. 2020)
Dimensions: Volume: Mass: 5,900 carats (1,180 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Today's Whereabouts: Dion Tulk (owner), Medici Collection LLC, Los Angeles, California, USA
Dimensions: unknown Volume: unknown Mass: 1,002.50 carats (200.50) Assumed Density: unknown Origin: unknown Today's Whereabouts: Dion Tulk (owner), Medici Collection LLC, Los Angeles, California, USA
For more information on cerussite, click here (via Mindat.org).
Dimensions: Volume: Mass: 898 carats (179.60 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Tsumeb, Namibia Today's Whereabouts: Royal Ontario Museum, Canada
For more information on chrysoberyl, click here (via Mindat.org).
Dimensions: unknown Volume: unknown Mass: 141.92 carats (28.38 g) Assumed Density: unknown Origin: unknown Today's Whereabouts: anonymous owner, Japan This specimen was entered into the Guinness World Records on 06 September 2010 as the largest cut alexandrite. References: Guinness World Records (accessed Nov. 2020)
For more information on corundum, click here (via Mindat.org).
Dimensions: Volume: Mass: 2,475 carats (495 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Today's Whereabouts: Displaying asterism, this ruby, named Rajarathna, is owned by the same owner as the largest double-star ruby, the Neelanjali Ruby. This References: Rai, S., 1995, Bangalore resident seeks buyer for world-famous rubies: India Today, June 30, 1995 (accessed Dec. 2020) McGirk, T., 1995, Jewel owner in real gem of a fix: The Independant, London, United Kingdom, 18 June 1995 (accessed Dec. 2020)
Dimensions: Volume: Mass: 1,370 carats (274 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Today's Whereabouts: Displaying a asterism, this ruby, named the Neelanjali Ruby is owned by the same owner as the largest star ruby, the Rajarathna Ruby. References: Rai, S., 1995, Bangalore resident seeks buyer for world-famous rubies: India Today, June 30, 1995 (accessed Dec. 2020) McGirk, T., 1995, Jewel owner in real gem of a fix: The Independant, London, United Kingdom, 18 June 1995 (accessed Dec. 2020) Wikipedia (accessed Dec. 2020)
Dimensions: Volume: Mass: 736 carats (147.20 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Today's Whereabouts: Dion Tulk (owner), Medici Collection LLC, Los Angeles, California, USA
Dimensions: Volume: Mass: 5,905 carats (1,190 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Today's Whereabouts: Ophir Collection LLC, Atlanta, Georgia, USA This specimen was entered into the Guinness World Records on 22 February 2014 as the largest cut brown sapphire. References: Guinness World Records (accessed Nov. 2020)
Dimensions: Volume: Mass: 214.5 carats (42.90 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Today's Whereabouts: Dion Tulk (owner), Medici Collection LLC, Los Angeles, California, USA
Dimensions: Volume: Mass: 332.18 carats (66.43 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Today's Whereabouts: Dion Tulk (owner), Medici Collection LLC, Los Angeles, California, USA
Dimensions: Volume: Mass: 12,560 carats (2,512 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Today's Whereabouts: Dion Tulk (owner), Medici Collection LLC, Los Angeles, California, USA
Dimensions: Volume: Mass: 80,500 carats (16,100 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Today's Whereabouts: Richard Sipe, Sr. (owner), Hickory, North Carolina, USA This specimen was entered into the Guinness World Records on 19 July 2012 as the largest carved sapphire References: Guinness World Records (accessed Nov. 2020)
Dimensions: Volume: Mass: 31,308 carats (6,260 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Today's Whereabouts: Ophir Collection LLC, USA This specimen was entered into the Guinness World Records on 19 July 2012 as the largest faceted cut sapphire. References: Guinness World Records (accessed Nov. 2020)
Dimensions: unknown Volume: unknown Mass: Cut: 9,719.50 carats (1,943.9 g). Uncut: (4,762.72 kg) Assumed Density: unknown Origin: North Carolina, USA Today's Whereabouts: Harold Roper (owner), USA This specimen, known as "The Lone Star" was cut in November 1989 and has been entered into the Guiness World Records as the largest star sapphire. From the Charlotte NC Observer (6 Dec 1989): N.C. Man's Rock A Star among Gems: By David Perlmutt, Staff Writer: There was nothing remarkable about that morning last June. It was Saturday, long before sunrise. And like most summer Saturdays, Harold Roper had already loaded picks into his Dodge four-wheel pickup truck and driven from his home in Marble deeper into the NC mountains. With him was Rob Cutshaw, his rock-hunting buddy of 25 years. ... But on this remarkable morning, Roper made a spectacular find that threatens to make a millionaire out of a man who's rarely left his native Cherokee Co. Two feet below a vein of earth-where the two had dug for a year and found only chunks of rubies and sapphires-Roper pulled up a deep-blue star sapphire too big to stuff into his pants pocket. Uncut, it weighed 10.5 pounds. Cut and polished, it's the size of an egg-shaped cantaloupe and weighs 9,719.5 carats. That's almost nine times larger than the world's previous largest star sapphire, the "Star of America" weighing 1,154 carats. "Rob threatened to kill me when I found it," said Roper, 44, who operates a small tool and die plant in Marble, population 500. ... Roper's stone, called "The Lone Star," was certified last month as a star sapphire by Roger Harding, curator of gems at the British Natural History Museum. Harding recently evaluated the crown jewels of England. Gemnologists in Texas and London estimate the sapphire's worth in the millions of dollars. They say the color is good, blue with a hint of lavender; the clarity opaque. "It's a spectacular find," said Texas gem broker Daniel Banks, who is selling the stone for Roper. "Like a fairy tale that's come true. Everyone always wants to find a treasure. Mr. Roper has found a treasure. ... The stone will go into the next Guinness Book of World Records as the world's largest cut and polished star sapphire, Banks said. Soon it will hit the road for a year's tour. ... Last week, the stone was put on public display for a day in a Dallas jewelry store. A thousand people showed up. Banks will sell it through sealed bids. He says he already has gotten three inquiries, two from collectors, one from a corporation. Like any boy who digs in the bountiful NC mountain dirt, Roper always dreamed of making such a find. In his teens, he'd go with his late father, Harley, a rock mason, to dig for Indian relics. "My father got me hooked," Roper said, "He liked relics, I liked gems." In high school in nearby Andrews, Roper met Cutshaw. After Roper made his big find-at a location they refuse to pinpoint-the two loaded it into a canvas sack and took it back to Roper's rock room in his 4,000 square-foot brick and cedar house. Curiosity got the best of them and Roper ran the edge of the rough rock over a grinding wheel, deep blue spilled out. So in October, they took it to Dallas and gem cutter John Robinson, who had cut Cutshaw's sapphire. "We took some other stones with us, but when he saw this one, he grabbed it and didn't want to see the others," Roper said. Robinson wanted the stone cut in London and in November he and Banks took it to R. Holt & Co., known for its gem cutting. It took three weeks to cut and polish the stone. Then curator Harding had to pass on it. He told a Dallas newspaper that he knows of no other star sapphire the size of Roper's stone. They met with Guinness editor Donald McFarlan. Wealth probably won't change Roper. "I could never leave Marble," he said. "I have seven men who work for me who depend on a paycheck. I'd probably spend less and less time at the plant and let my son take over. "But I'm not going to dance until I see the money." References: Guinness World Records (accessed Nov. 2020) Charlotte NC Observer article via roperld.com (accessed Nov. 2020)
Synthetic diamond crystals have been grown, but I have not found any measurements of the synthetic crystals, so the largest manufactured diamond is unknown. For more information on diamond, click here (via Mindat.org).
Dimensions: Volume: Mass: 543.67 carats (109.13 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Premier Mine (now Cullinan Diamond Mine), Cullinan, South Africa Today's Whereabouts: King of Thailand (owner), Royal Museum, Pimammek Golden Temple Throne Hall, Bangkok, Thailand
Dimensions: 0.00016 to 0.00017 m diameter x 0.00011 m Volume: Mass: Assumed Density: Origin: Today's Whereabouts: This specimen was cut between 1991-1994 by Pauline Willemse, Coster Diamonds B.V., Amsterdam, Netherlands. References: Guinness World Records (accessed Nov. 2020)
I have not found the largest reported crystal of diaspore, but a record for a large gemstone diaspore is known. For more information on diaspore, click here (via Mindat.org).
Dimensions: Volume: Mass: 420.23 carats (84.04 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Today's Whereabouts: Dion Tulk (owner), Medici Collection LLC, Los Angeles, California, USA
For more information on diopside, click here (via Mindat.org)
Dimensions: Volume: Mass: 43.85 carats (8.77 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Today's Whereabouts: Dion Tulk (owner), Medici Collection LLC, Los Angeles, California, USA
For more information on ekanite, click here (via Mindat.org)
Dimensions: Volume: Mass: 498 carats (99.60 g) Assumed Density: Origin: near Welimada, Sri Lanka Today's Whereabouts:
For more information on enstatite, click here (via Mindat.org)
Dimensions: Volume: Mass: 19.18 carats (3.83 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Today's Whereabouts: Dion Tulk (owner), Medici Collection LLC, Los Angeles, California, USA
For more information on garnet, click here (via Mindat.org)
Dimensions: Volume: Mass: 3,956 carats (791.20 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Today's Whereabouts: Dion Tulk (owner), Medici Collection LLC, Los Angeles, California, USA
For more information on grandidierite, click here (via Mindat.org)
Dimensions: Volume: Mass: 764 carats (152.80 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Today's Whereabouts: Dion Tulk (owner), Medici Collection LLC, Los Angeles, California, USA
For more information on hauynite, click here (via Mindat.org)
Dimensions: Volume: Mass: 19.74 carats (3.94 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Today's Whereabouts: Dion Tulk (owner), Medici Collection LLC, Los Angeles, California, USA
For more information on hibonite, click here (via Mindat.org)
Dimensions: Volume: Mass: 283.47 carats (56.96 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Today's Whereabouts: Dion Tulk (owner), Medici Collection LLC, Los Angeles, California, USA
For more information on jeremejevite, click here (via Mindat.org)
Dimensions: Volume: Mass: 45.61 carats (9.12 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Today's Whereabouts: Joseph Fam (owner), Singapore This specimen was entered into the Guinness World Records on 06 July 2017 as the largest cut jeremejevite. References: Guinness World Records (accessed Nov. 2020)
For more information on musgravite, click here (via Mindat.org)
Dimensions: Volume: Mass: 27.56 carats (5.10 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Today's Whereabouts: Dion Tulk (owner), Medici Collection LLC, Los Angeles, California, USA
For more information on nephrite, click here (via Mindat.org)
Dimensions: Volume: Mass: 577 tonnes Assumed Density: Origin: July 1992; Yukon Territory, Canada; Max Rosequist Today's Whereabouts: Yukon Jade Ltd. This specimen was entered into the Guinness World Records on 09 March 2020 as the largest cut nephrite References: Guinness World Records (accessed Nov. 2020)
For more information on neptunite, click here (via Mindat.org)
Dimensions: Volume: Mass: 16.81 carats (3.36 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Today's Whereabouts: Dion Tulk, Medici Collection LLC, Los Angeles, California, USA
For more information on painite, click here (via Mindat.org)
Dimensions: Volume: Mass: 213.52 carats (42.70 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Today's Whereabouts: Dion Tulk (owner), Medici Collection LLC, Los Angeles, California, USA
For more information on rhodochrosite, click here (via Mindat.org)
Dimensions: Volume: Mass: 266.06 carats (53.212 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Today's Whereabouts: Dion Tulk (owner), Medici Collection LLC, Los Angeles, California, USA
For more information on serendibite, click here (via Mindat.org)
Dimensions: Volume: Mass: 140.76 carats (28.15 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Today's Whereabouts: Dion Tulk (owner), Medici Collection LLC, Los Angeles, California, USA
For more information on spodumene, click here (via Mindat.org)
Dimensions: Volume: Mass: 3,051 carats (610 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Today's Whereabouts: Victor Tuzlukov (owner), Bangkok, Thailand This specimen was entered into the Guinness World Records on 27 May 2020 as the largest cut spodumene (kunzite). References: Guinness World Records (accessed Nov. 2020)
For more information on taaffeite, click here (via Mindat.org)
Dimensions: 0.01146 m x 0.00865 m x 0.00702 m Volume: Mass: 5.36 carats (1.072 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Today's Whereabouts: Miho Ozawa (owner), Japan This specimen was entered into the Guinness World Records on 01 June 2011 as the largest cut taaffeite. References: Guinness World Records
For more information on tanzanite, click here (via Mindat.org)
Dimensions: Volume: Mass: 618 carats (123.6 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Today's Whereabouts: Dion Tulk (owner), Medici Collection LLC, Los Angeles, California, USA
Dimensions: Volume: Mass: 422.56 carats (84.51 g) Assumed Density: Origin:
For more information on topaz, click here (via Mindat.org)
Dimensions: unknown Volume: unknown Mass: 59,500 carats (11,900 g) Assumed Density: unknown Origin: unknown Today's Whereabouts: Dion Tulk (owner), Medici Collection LLC, Los Angeles, California, USA
For more information on tourmaline, click here (via Mindat.org)
Dimensions: 0.03644 m x 0.03375 m x 0.02185 m Volume: Mass: 191.87 carats (38.374 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Today's Whereabouts: Billionaire Business Enterprises Inc., Montreal, Quebec, Canada This specimen, called the "Ethereal Carolina Divine Paraiba", was entered into the Guinness World Records on 14 October 2009 as the largest cut paraiba tourmaline. References: Guinness World Records
Dimensions: 0.03674 m x 0.03202 m x 0.02874 m Volume: Mass: 295.08 carats (59 g) Assumed Density: Origin: Today's Whereabouts: Sushmorre (owner), Jadeite & Rare Gems Gallery, Singapore This specimen was entered into the Guinness World Records as the largest cut cat's eye rubellite tourmaline. References: Guinness World Records (accessed Nov. 2020)
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