South Africans want Britain to return the Star of Africa diamond, weighing 530 carats, set in the royal sceptre for King Charles III’s coronation on Saturday.
The diamond was discovered in South Africa in 1905 and presented to the British monarchy by the colonial government when the country was under British rule. Calls for the diamond’s return are part of a global conversation about returning colonial-era artwork and artefacts.
Mothusi Kamanga, a Johannesburg lawyer and activist, is promoting an online petition that has gathered approximately 8,000 signatures, calling for the return of the diamond. He said:
The diamond needs to come to South Africa. It needs to be a sign of our pride, our heritage and our culture.
I think generally the African people are starting to realise that to decolonise is not just to let people have certain freedoms, but it’s also to take back what has been expropriated from us.
The diamond officially called Cullinan I, and is in the royal sceptre, was cut from the Cullinan diamond, a 3100-carat stone mined near Pretoria. The Imperial State Crown also contains a smaller diamond, Cullinan II. All crown jewels, including the sceptre and the Imperial State Crown, are kept in the Tower of London. A replica of the Cullinan diamond is displayed at the Cape Town Diamond Museum.
Johannesburg resident Mohamed Abdulahi believes the diamond should be returned because it was taken during a time of oppression. Others, like Dieketseng Nzhadzhaba, don’t feel strongly about it and believe times have changed, making the issue irrelevant.
The value of a diamond depends on many factors, including its carat weight, cut, colour, and clarity. However, the 530-carat diamond known as the Star of Africa is considered priceless due to its historical significance and rarity. It is one of the largest and most famous diamonds in the world and has been estimated to be worth billions of dollars.