Diamond valued at £2m 'almost thrown away' Register for free to continue reading

A woman in her 70s found the 34-carat diamond while cleaning her Northumberland home, but thought it was a trinket stone.

Auctioneer Mark Lane of Featonby's Auctioneers in North Shields, North Tyneside, told the BBC the owner, who wished to remain anonymous, came close to putting the stone "in the bin".

He couldn't remember where or when he found it, but Lane said he frequented car boot sales, "buying trinkets."

"She told us she had done a cleanup and [the diamond] almost went in the trash before her neighbor suggested bringing the items to us for an appraisal," Lane said.

The woman had brought a bag of jewelry, including her "wedding band and a number of low-value trinkets" to auctioneers while passing through town for another appointment.

"We saw a pretty big stone, bigger than a pound coin, and I thought it was a CZ," Lane said, referring to cubic zirconia, a synthetic stone often used to imitate diamonds.

He said he left the stone on his desk for several days before using a diamond testing machine and then sent it to the auctioneers' partners in London.

It was later certified by experts in Antwerp, Belgium, who confirmed it to be a 34-carat diamond, making it the most valuable item Lane had ever dealt with.

"The color, the clarity, the size ... to find a 34-carat diamond is off the scale," he said.

The diamond is currently being stored safely in London's Hatton Garden jewelery district, where it will remain until it goes up for auction on November 30.

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A description of the diamond on Featonby's website, reads: “The Secret Stone”, reads: “A truly magnificent and rare 34.19 carat round brilliant natural diamond.

“H color, VS1 clarity with triple excellent cut grade and laser inscription. The stone has been certified by the HRD Diamond Grading Laboratory in Antwerp."