A small scale Tanzanian miner has become overnight millionaire upon discovering what are believed to be the two most largest tanzanite gemstones ever found.
Tanzanite is found only in a small northern region of the East African nation.
The first gemstone weighed 9.27kg (20.43lb) while the second weighed 5.10kg (11.25lb), a government spokesperson said.
The Bank of Tanzania paid Saniniu Laizer 7.7 billion shillings ($3.3 million) for the stones, which weighed 9.2 kilograms (20.3 pounds) and 5.8 kilograms. Laizer, clad in the traditional red and white checkered robes of the Maasai community, received the payment at an award ceremony in the northeastern Manyara region and broadcast on national television on Wednesday.
Tanzania is the world’s only source of tanzanite, a blue-purple gem that’s found at the foot of Mount Kilimanjaro.
–
Source: GHM News Network
