Travels in India (Tavernier) 89: Journey of the Author to the other Mines, and concerning the method of searching for Diamonds.
Travels in India (Ball) 89
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Journey of the Author to the other Mines, and concerning the method of searching for Diamonds.
89.1
At seven days’ journey eastwards from Golconda there is another diamond mine, called Gani in the language of the country, and Coulour in the Persian tongue. It is close to a large town on the same river which I crossed when coming from the other mine, and at a league and a half from the town there are high mountains which are in the form of a cross. The space which intervenes between the town and the mountains is a plain where the mine is situated and the diamonds are found. The nearer one searches towards the mountains the larger the stones which are found, but when one ascends too high nothing is found. It is only about 100 years since this mine was discovered, and it was by means of a poor man, who, digging a piece of ground where he purposed to sow millet, found a point naive weighing nearly 25 carats. This kind of stone being unknown to him, and appearing to him something special, he carried it to Golconda, and by good luck addressed himself to one who traded in diamonds. This trader having ascertained from the peasant the place where he had found the stone, was much surprised to see a diamond of such a weight, especially because, before that, the largest that had been seen did not exceed 10 or 12 carats.
89.2
The noise of this new discovery quickly spread abroad throughout all the country, and some persons of wealth in the town commenced to mine in this land, where they found, and where they still find, large stones in greater abundance than in any other mine. There are found here at present, I say, a quantity of stones from 10 up to 40 carats, and sometimes indeed much larger; but among others the great diamond which weighed 900 carats before cutting, which Mir Jumla presented to Aurangzeb, as I have elsewhere related, was obtained from the mine. But if this mine of Kollur is of importance on account of the number of large stones which are found there, it is a misfortune that, as a rule, these stones are not clear, and that their water contains indications of the quality of the soil where they are found. If the soil is marshy and humid, the stone tends to blackness ; if it is reddish, it tends to red, and so with the other conditions, sometimes towards green, sometimes towards yellow, just as there is diversity of soil in the area between the town and the mountain. Upon the majority of these stones, after they are cut, there always appears a kind of grease which necessitates one always carrying a handkerchief in the hand in order to wipe them.
89.3
As regards the water of the stones, it is to be remarked that instead of, as in Europe, where we employ daylight for the examination of stones in the rough (brutes), and, so, carefully judge of their water and any flaws which they may contain, the Indians use the night ; and in a hole which they excavate in a wall, one foot square, they place a lamp with a large wick, by the light of which they judge of the water and the cleanness of the stone, holding it between their fingers. The water which they term “celestial” is the worst of all, and it is impossible to ascertain whether it is present while the stone is in the rough. But little though it may be apparent on the mill, the never-failing test for correctly ascertaining the water is afforded by conveying the stone under a leafy tree, and in the green shadow one can easily detect if it is blue. The first time I was at this mine there were close upon 60,000 persons who worked there, including men, women, and children, who are employed in diverse ways, the men in digging, the women and children in carrying earth, for they search for the stones at this mine in an altogether different manner from that practised at Ramulkota. After the miners have selected the place where they desire to work, they smooth down another spot close by, and of equal or rather greater extent, around which they erect an enclosing wall of two feet in height.
89.4
At the base of this little wall they make openings, at every two feet, for the escape of the water, which they close till it is time for the water to be drawn off. This place being thus prepared, all who are about to engage in the search assemble, men, women, and children, together with their employer and a party of his relatives and friends. He brings with him a figure in stone of the god whom they worship, which being placed standing on the ground, each prostrates himself three times before it, their priest, however, offering up the prayer. This prayer being finished, he makes a particular kind of mark upon the forehead of each one with a paste composed of saffron and gum, in order that it may sustain seven or eight grains of rice, which he places upon it. Next, having washed their bodies with the water which each of them carries in a vessel, they place themselves in ranks to eat that which is presented at the feast given by their employer at the beginning of their work, in order to give them courage and induce them to acquit themselves faithfully. This feast merely consists of a portion of rice to each, which is distributed by the Brahmin, because every idolater can eat what is served to him by the hands of the priests. There are among them some so superstitious that they will not even eat what is prepared by their own wives, and prefer to cook for themselves. The plate upon which the rice is placed is made of the leaves of a tree attached together;
89.5
to some extent they resemble our walnut leaves. To each there is also given about a quarter of a pound of melted butter in a little cup of copper, with some sugar. The repast being finished, each commences to work, the men to excavate the earth, and the women and children to carry it to the place which has been prepared as I have above said. They excavate to 10, 12, or 14 feet in depth, but when they reach water there is nothing more to hope for. All the earth being carried to this place, men, women, and children raise the water with pitchers from the hole which they have excavated, and throw it upon the earth which they have placed there, in order to soften it, leaving it thus for one or two days, according to the tenacity of the clay, until it assumes the condition of soup. This being done, they open the holes which they made in the wall to let off the water, then they throw on more, so that all the slime may be removed, and nothing remain but sand. It is a kind of clay which requires to be washed two or three times. They then leave all to be dried by the sun, which is quickly effected on account of the great heat. They have a particular kind of basket made something like a winnowing fan, in which they place the earth, which they agitate as we do when winnowing grain. The fine part is blown away, and the coarse stuff which remains is subsequently replaced on the ground.
89.6
All the earth having been thus winnowed, they spread it with a rake and make it as level as possible. They then all stand together on the earth, each with a large baton of wood like a huge pestle, half a foot wide at the base, and they pound the earth, going from one end to the other, always pounding each part two or three times; they then again place it in the baskets and winnow, as they did on the first occasion, after which they spread it out again and range themselves on one side to handle the earth and search for the diamonds, in which process they adopt the same method as at Ramulkota. Formerly, instead of using wooden pestles for pounding the earth, they pounded it with stones, and it was that method which produced so many flaws in the diamonds. As for the royalties which are paid to the King, the annual wages to the miners for their work, and the presents which are given to them when they find any large stone which they carry to the master whom they serve, all are the same as at the Ramulkota mine. No one hesitated formerly to purchase diamonds which had a green crust on the surface, because when cut they proved to be white and of very beautiful water.
89.7
About thirty or forty years ago a mine situated between Kollur and Ramulkota was discovered, but the King ordered it to be closed on account of fraud, as I shall explain in a few words. Stones were found in it which had this green crust, beautiful and transparent, they were even more beautiful than the others, but when one attempted to grind them they broke in pieces. Whenever they were ground by another stone of the same quality which had been found in the same mine they submitted to the grinding without breaking, but were unable to bear the wheel, upon which they immediately flew into pieces. It is on this account that one is careful not to buy those which have been ground in this way, through fear of their breaking, and it is, as I said, on account of the deceptions which have been practised with these stones that the King ordered the mine to be closed.
89.8
While the Messrs. Fremlin and Francis Breton were Presidents at Surat on behalf of the English Company, a Jew named Edward Ferdinand, a free merchant, that is to say not subject to any Company, combined with these two gentlemen to purchase a stone, a short time after the mine was discovered. This stone was clean and of good form, and weighed 42 carats. Edward went to Europe, and Messrs. Fremlin and Breton placed the stone in his hands to sell to the best advantage, and render an account to them. On his arrival at Leghorn he showed it to some Jew friends, who offered him 25,000 piastres for it. But as he asked 30,000 he was unable to let them have it, and took it to Venice to get it cut. It was well cut, without any injury, but upon being put upon the wheel it was immediately broken into nine pieces. I myself was on one occasion deceived by one of these stones, which weighed 2 carats ; it broke into small pieces on the wheel when it was only half finished.