One of the perks of being super-wealthy is that you can buy pretty much anything your heart desires. Rich Russians are known for their over the top purchases like private jets, luxury yachts (see Kerimov’s Ice) and diamond encrusted sports cars. It must be a near impossible feat to select an appropriate gift for one of these fabulously wealthy individuals.
How About a Weird Russian Rock With 30,000 Diamonds Inside It?
Should you find yourself with the unfortunate quandary of ‘What to buy that Russian oligarch?’ you may want to consider the sparkly lump of rock that was recently unearthed at one of Russia’s biggest diamond mines Udachnaya. Measuring 30mm, the rock is red and green and contains a staggering amount of perfectly formed octahedrons (shaped like two pyramids joined at the base) instead of a single large diamond.
A Girl’s Best Friend
Although we are now able to create diamonds in a laboratory, exactly how the sparkly stones are naturally formed remains one of the world’s greatest mysteries. Scientists know that diamonds are mostly forged deep underground, between the crust and the core of the earth and that volcanic eruptions bring these mantle rocks to the surface. Micro-diamonds (ideal for encrusting glitzy Russian billionaires’ cars) are also formed in meteor and asteroid impact craters. However, the chemical process is still as much of a mystery as the peculiar Udachnaya rock.
Not for Sale
The sad news is that, even if you were hard pressed for a present for a very rich Russian, the Udachnaya multi-diamond rock is not for sale. The mine has recognised its scientific potential and has donated the peculiar rock to the Russian Academy of Sciences. Perhaps the 30,000 perfect octahedrons formed in this remarkable lump of rock will shed some light on how diamonds are naturally formed.