Alluvial diamonds of the Namibian coast
Diamantes aluviales de la costa de Namibia
- Date
- abril de 1908 · confidence high
- Place
- Kolmanskop, Lüderitz, ǁKaras, Namibia
- Credited to
- Zacharias Lewala (railway worker) and August Stauch
- Field
- Cosmos & Earth
What was discovered
In 1908 the worker Zacharias Lewala found a diamond in the desert sand near the Lüderitz railway line; his boss, August Stauch, recognised the find. It opened exploitation of some of the world's richest diamond placers.
The diamonds come from inland kimberlites, carried by the Orange River to the coast and concentrated by waves; Lewala's authorship was acknowledged late.
What it led to
- a diamond rush and the founding of Kolmanskop
- the Sperrgebiet restricted zone
- marine diamond mining off the Atlantic coast