Royal gift or ‘stolen’ gem? Calls for UK to return 500 carat Great Star of Africa diamond to Zimbabwe
A black box from the Royal Air Force, known as HMS Diamond, with a white diamond, was stolen from an RAF hangar on June 18, 1957
The diamond, weighing 515.5 carats, was valued at £1 million
The box was taken to South Africa where it was bought by a dealer and displayed at the country’s diamond centre in Cape Town
A woman, Susan Cooper, who was in the Royal Air Force (RAF) and who sold a diamond to a dealer in South Africa believes she should get her share of the treasure.
A woman, Susan Cooper, who was in the Royal Air Force (RAF) and who sold a diamond to a dealer in South Africa believes she should get her share of the treasure.
The diamond, weighing 515.5 carats, was valued at £1 million.
Her argument is that it was stolen, sold on the black market and then passed down through the generations.
She has now taken the case to the High Court, which will hear a ruling on Thursday morning.
She brought a claim of ownership of the diamond to the High Court in Edinburgh on Wednesday.
HMS Diamond, launched in 1953, was launched on the shipyards at Portsmouth.
It was purchased by Charles Tregear and was then commissioned as HMS Diamond, and was later renamed HMS Beagle.
The British navy began work on the warship in 1946.
HMS Diamond was sent to South Africa to help with diamond mining, and was the first ship in the UK to use the diamond drill to mine rocks in the Witwatersrand area of South Africa.
The warship left South Africa in 1957 to return to Britain, carrying the Great Star of Africa diamond with it.
The diamond was the first of what would become a series of millions
