Travels in India (Tavernier) 89.1

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.