It was at the heart of the deposit mined in Karowe, Botswana, that this exceptional stone was discovered a year ago. Born of the volcanic rock known as kimberlite, formed at high temperatures and pressures across endless ages, this diamond enshrines a sense of permanence and the strength of the ties that bind human beings to the earth. 342 carats, an extremely rare size for a diamond of such absolute purity and perfect colour. The Queen of Kalahari combines D colour, the most beautiful, with grade F (Flawless) clarity. “The energy and emotional charge emanating from this gem are truly incomparable”, enthuses Caroline Scheufele, co-president of Chopard, who immediately travelled to the open-air Karowe mine to admire this diamond. It was love at first sight. Since then, she has personally supervised each stage in its development, guiding it towards its luminous interpretations and thereby giving rise to the most prestigious jewellery ever to emerge from the Chopard High Jewellery workshops.
As a pioneer of sustainable development in jewellery, Caroline Scheufele actively encouraged the Karowe mine to engage with Eco-Age’s independent Green Carpet Challenge validation criteria, which mirrors best international practices in environmental and social justice. Caroline and the owners of the Karowe mine agreed to the visit of the Eco-Age team to independently assess all elements of its mining activities. The Karowe mine is continuing in its own journey to sustainability by moving towards the fulfilment of the standards necessary to achieve the RJC certification.
The discovery of The Queen of Kalahari, this exceptional 342-carat stone of perfect colour and absolute purity, has given rise to a set of 23 diamonds – The Garden of Kalahari – of which five weigh over 20 carats. Each of the main stone cuts – cushion, brilliant, heart, emerald and pear – is represented.
It is around these stones that an extraordinary collection of six jewellery models has been dreamed up, testifying to the creative wealth and peerless expertise of the artistic crafts cultivated in the Chopard workshops. The collection alone represents almost a full year’s work: thousands of hours lavished on this endeavour by the eyes, heart and hands of the Chopard jewellery artisans and gemsetters.
The collection is enriched by an astonishing secret watch. This delicate piece is set with two exceptional D-flawless pear-shaped and brilliant-cut diamonds and fully set with brilliant-cut and pear-shaped diamonds. The Garden of Kalahari collection is entirely built around the idea of a jewellery lacework like diamond guipure lace with a luminous cut-out motif which has become Chopard signature in High Jewellery as initially developed in the Precious Chopard collection.
