A 3.64-carat gem-quality diamond is the largest stone unearthed from the Aviat Project on Nunavut’s Melville Peninsula, says Stornoway Diamond Corp.
Pulled from a 27-t sample collected last year from AV2 kimberlite surface exposures, the diamond is a white dodecahedron discovered during dense media separation (DMS) processing in an 11.4-t subsample.
“The recovery of a large, gem-quality stone from a relatively small sample from AV2 is an important and highly encouraging new development for the Aviat Project,” said Stornoway’s CEO Eira Thomas.
“Previous work at Aviat has identified significant tonnage potential together with good grades. The recovery of this 3.64-carat gem has, for the first time, established Aviat’s potential to yield large, high-quality gemstones, an important value driver in any economic diamond deposit.”
The company says the diamond was damaged during DMS processing and is thought to represent 90 per cent of its original weight.
