Origin of name
"Trisakti" was one of the largest diamonds discovered in
the island of Borneo (Kalimantan), in Indonesia, in 1965. The named "Trisakti" was given
to the diamond by officials of the Indonesian government, which in the
Indonesian language Bahasa Indonesia means "three principles," which
obviously refers to the motto of the Indonesian Republic, Nationalism,
Religion and Unity. The word trisakti can also have a different connotation.
It could also mean "three times sacred."
Characteristics of the
diamond
The rough diamond that weighed 166.75 carats was cut by
J. I. Asscher & Co. Amsterdam. The diamond was cleaved into several parts
and the largest part was fashioned into an 50.53-carat emerald-cut pink
diamond. The exact color and clarity grades of the diamond are not known.
The diamond being pink is most probably a plastically
deformed Type IIa diamond. It is Type II, because it is nitrogen-free or
contain undetectable quantities of nitrogen. Diamonds that contain nitrogen
are called Type I, and nitrogen imparts a yellow color to diamonds. The
diamond is Type IIa, because it is free of all chemical impurities. Diamonds
that contain boron as impurities are known as Type IIb.
Type IIa diamonds can be either structurally perfect,
structurally imperfect, or naturally irradiated.
Structurally perfect Type IIa diamonds are absolutely
colorless, as factors that cause colors are totally absent. They constitute
about 1-2 % of all naturally occurring diamonds.
Structurally imperfect Type IIa diamonds contain plastic
distortions caused by the twisting and bending of the crystal units, either
during the formation of the crystal in the earth's mantle or subsequent rise
to he earth's surface. Such plastically distorted areas change the
absorption spectrum of the diamond, imparting rare fancy colors to the
diamond such as pink, red, purple, brown etc. The Trisakti diamond belongs
to this group. However they constitute less than 0.1 % of all naturally
occurring diamonds.
Naturally irradiated Type II diamonds have been
exposed to natural radiation such as alpha, beta, and gamma rays over a long
period of time after their formation, while still deep inside the earth's
crust. Such exposure causes changes in the crystal structure that impart a
green color to the diamonds. Their occurrence is much less than 0.1 % of all
naturally occurring diamonds.
History
The "Trisakti" diamond was discovered on 26th August 1965
in the alluvial diamond deposits of Cempaka district of Martapura, the
capital of Banjar Regency, which is 36 km south-east of Banjamarsin,
the capital of South Kalimantan (Borneo) Province. Martapura is also known
as the "City of Diamonds."
Diamonds of South Kalimantan are classified into four
groups 1) black diamonds. 2) colorless diamonds. 3) petrous diamonds - low
quality yellow diamonds. 4) pink diamonds of high brilliance. The Trisakti
diamond was a pink diamond.
The diamond was discovered by a diamond digger by the
name of Haji Shukri, who was one of a team of several diggers who were
working at the bottom of a 12 meter deep trench. Such deep trenches usually
get flooded with water and needs continuous draining using motorized water
pumps. Shukri picked up the stone at the bottom of the trench, and put it in
his pocket. He didn't have the slightest idea that the stone was indeed a
diamond. He thought probably it was one of the semi-precious stones, which
were also quite common in these deposits.
Haji Shukri then came out of the trench as he was feeling
thirsty, and went to the nearby boutique for a cup of tea. At the boutique
he showed the stone to a friend who was also a member of his team, and he
too was of the opinion that it might be a semi-precious stone. Later Haji
Samlan another friend and team mate saw the stone and positively identified
it as a diamond. Haji Samlan grabbed the stone and ran towards his house
shouting diamond! diamond! followed by Haji Shukri and others. When a
diamond is discovered every member of a team of diggers get an equal share
from its sale, after a percentage is deducted for the pump owner and the
supplier of the tools.
The news of the discovery spread like wildfire in the
surrounding villages, and people flocked in to have a look at the enormous
diamond. Traders who saw the diamond were genuinely shocked by its size, for
it was much bigger than any thing they had seen before. Villagers poured in
to see the miracle with their own eyes and at times the queue extended
beyond a kilometer. That night Haji Samlan was restless and could hardly
sleep. He could not still reconcile himself to what transpired during the
day. He was still in a state of shock and lay awake in bed till dawn.
The next day in the afternoon a delegation from Cempaka
which included Haji Samlan carried the stone to the city of Martapura the
capital of Banjar regency to show it to their regional leader the Bupati,
who was very pleased by the discovery of the enormous diamond in his area.
The police chief of the area suggested, that the rare diamond should be
taken to Jakarta, to be examined by the chief executive of the country
himself, the President of Indonesia. This suggestion was accepted and the
very next day a delegation of eight prominent persons from the area together
with two miners flew to Jakarta with the diamond. Haji Samlan who was also
invited could not make the trip that day, because as a villager who had
never flown before, he fainted at the airport due to fear of flying. However
the next day he was able to overcome this fear and flew to the capital city,
accompanied by four other persons.
It so happened that on 26th August 1965, the day the
enormous diamond was discovered a coup plot against the government was
uncovered and the President and his cabinet of ministers were too busy in
the attempts to suppress the coup. As such the delegation was not able to
see the President. However, they were able to see other officials who
accepted the stone on behalf of the government, and part payment was made
for the diamond, with the promise of full payment after the stone was
processed in Amsterdam. The money was divided equally between the miners and
Haji Samlan was just able to build a new house with his share of the
money. After six months the government also paid Haji Samlan and his family
the passage to perform the annual Haj pilgrimage to Mecca and also took care
of their expenses in the holy land.
The Trisakti was sent to the famous diamond cutting firm
of Amsterdam J. I. Asscher & Co. for processing, who had a reputation for
cutting the world's first and second largest rough diamonds, the 3,106-carat
Cullinan and the 995-carat Excelsior. Joseph Isaac Asscher undertook
the job of cleaving the diamond into several pieces before faceting and
polishing. The largest piece was eventually transformed into a 50.53-carat
emerald-cut diamond and carries the name "Trisakti".
History of diamond
discovery in Kalimantan, Indonesia.
Diamonds were first discovered in Kalimantan in the 14th
century. Thus the diamond mining industry in Indonesia is the second oldest
in the world after the most ancient diamond mining industry of India, which
dates back to 4th century B.C. By the
17th century when the Dutch had colonized the country the industry was
already well established. The Dutch East India Company was also involved in
the diamond trade and large quantities of diamonds were exported to the
Netherlands by them, which laid the foundation for the development of
Amsterdam as an international diamond cutting and trading center. The output
of diamonds in the 18th century was more than 50,000 carats annually, and
the Kalimantan diamonds were well known for their clarity and brilliancy.
However, all diamonds discovered in Kalimantan, Indonesia are from
alluvial deposits, in the Landak/Kapuas drainage basin and the Banjarmasin
drainage basin, in western Kalimantan, and the Barito, Murung, and Negara
river basins, in southern Kalimantan. The diamonds had been washed down from the hills over
millions of years ago and deposited in these basins. But, no Kimberlite or
Lamproite pipes have ever been discovered in Borneo, possibly because of
their continuous erosion over millions of years. Thus all diamond production
in Kalimantan is from secondary alluvial deposits.
Some of the more important findings from the Cempaka
district over the years are as follows :-
1) Three diamonds weighing 12.0, 13.3, and 20.0 carats
discovered in 1846.
2) Two diamonds weighing 106.67 and 77.0 carats
discovered in 1850.
3) The 166.75-carat Trishakti diamond and a 29.0-carat
diamond discovered in 1965
4) A 13.0 carat diamond discovered in 1970.
5) Three diamonds weighing 14.0, 33.0, and 50.0 carats
discovered in 1987.
