The diamond gets its name from the town of origin of the finder/owner of the diamond, Mr. W.W. Johnson of Amarillo, Texas, who discovered the 16.37-carat rough diamond in 1975, at the world's one and only diamond mine open to the public, the Arkansas Crater of Diamonds State Park, where one could search for diamonds after paying a nominal fee and keep what he finds.
The Amarillo Starlight diamond is a 7.54-carat, marquise-cut, white diamond of unknown color and clarity grades.
If the white diamond is an absolutely colorless diamond also known as a D-color diamond, it is a Type IIa, which are said to be chemically pure and structurally perfect diamonds. Factors that can cause color in diamonds are absent in these Type IIa diamonds. Hence their absolutely colorless nature. Two important factors that can cause color in diamonds are presence of trace quantities of impurities in the crystal and plastic distortion of the crystal.
If on the other hand the diamond is near colorless or has at least a tinge of yellow, the diamond becomes a Type Ia diamond, in which the color is caused by trace quantities of nitrogen atoms being present in the crystal. Nitrogen atoms present as aggregates of odd numbers can impart a pale to medium yellow color to diamonds. Such diamonds are known as Type Ia. If nitrogen atoms are scattered as single atoms in the crystal they impart an intense yellow color to the diamonds such as canary yellow. These diamonds are known as Type Ib.
The Amarillo Star coarse diamond, a 16.37-carat white stone was revealed in 1975 by W. W. Johnson of Amarillo, Texas, whereas he was on trip with his family, at the Crater of Diamonds State park, in Arkansas.
f the diamond is an extremely colorless diamond also known as a D-color diamond, it is a Type IIa, which are supposed to be chemically clean and structurally wonderful diamonds. Factors that can grounds color in diamonds are lacking in these Type IIa diamonds. Hence they are entirely colorless in nature. Two essential features that can cause shade in diamonds are presence of trace measures of dirtiness in the crystal and plastic twist of the crystal.
The 16.37-carat white rough diamond grown to be the largest diamond ever discovered by a park visitor subsequent to the Crater's organization as a state park in 1972. The diamond still grasps this record up to date. In trusting with the park's policy that "finders are keepers" Mr. Johnson turned out to be the owner of the diamond. Consequently he got the diamond cut into a marquise-shape evaluating 7.54 carats, with the predictable loss of 8.83 carats. Such victims are regular in the dispensation of diamonds, in the efforts to reach the best quality diamonds, with the highest fire and brilliance.
Mr. Johnson was a janitor who had taken an early retirement due to a heart condition. He first visited Crater of Diamonds State Park with his wife in August 1975.
Johnson and his wife had been surface searching at the park for about an hour when they decided to sit under a shade tree to cool off. While resting, Johnson saw the sun glinting off something about 30 feet away and walked over to see what it was. According to him, the tip of the stone was uncovered, but most of it remained buried. Johnson dug the stone out with his finger and took it to the visitor center for identification. After a few tests, his stone was confirmed to be a diamond. According to Jim Cannon, who was park superintendent at the time, Johnson didn’t realize the significance of what he had found until he was told it was larger than the 15-carat Star of Arkansas Diamond which had been found here in 1956!
The Amarillo Starlight diamond is a 7.54-carat, marquise-cut, white diamond of unknown color and clarity grades.
If the white diamond is an absolutely colorless diamond also known as a D-color diamond, it is a Type IIa, which are said to be chemically pure and structurally perfect diamonds. Factors that can cause color in diamonds are absent in these Type IIa diamonds. Hence their absolutely colorless nature. Two important factors that can cause color in diamonds are presence of trace quantities of impurities in the crystal and plastic distortion of the crystal.
If on the other hand the diamond is near colorless or has at least a tinge of yellow, the diamond becomes a Type Ia diamond, in which the color is caused by trace quantities of nitrogen atoms being present in the crystal. Nitrogen atoms present as aggregates of odd numbers can impart a pale to medium yellow color to diamonds. Such diamonds are known as Type Ia. If nitrogen atoms are scattered as single atoms in the crystal they impart an intense yellow color to the diamonds such as canary yellow. These diamonds are known as Type Ib.
The Amarillo Star coarse diamond, a 16.37-carat white stone was revealed in 1975 by W. W. Johnson of Amarillo, Texas, whereas he was on trip with his family, at the Crater of Diamonds State park, in Arkansas.
f the diamond is an extremely colorless diamond also known as a D-color diamond, it is a Type IIa, which are supposed to be chemically clean and structurally wonderful diamonds. Factors that can grounds color in diamonds are lacking in these Type IIa diamonds. Hence they are entirely colorless in nature. Two essential features that can cause shade in diamonds are presence of trace measures of dirtiness in the crystal and plastic twist of the crystal.
The 16.37-carat white rough diamond grown to be the largest diamond ever discovered by a park visitor subsequent to the Crater's organization as a state park in 1972. The diamond still grasps this record up to date. In trusting with the park's policy that "finders are keepers" Mr. Johnson turned out to be the owner of the diamond. Consequently he got the diamond cut into a marquise-shape evaluating 7.54 carats, with the predictable loss of 8.83 carats. Such victims are regular in the dispensation of diamonds, in the efforts to reach the best quality diamonds, with the highest fire and brilliance.
Mr. Johnson was a janitor who had taken an early retirement due to a heart condition. He first visited Crater of Diamonds State Park with his wife in August 1975.
Johnson and his wife had been surface searching at the park for about an hour when they decided to sit under a shade tree to cool off. While resting, Johnson saw the sun glinting off something about 30 feet away and walked over to see what it was. According to him, the tip of the stone was uncovered, but most of it remained buried. Johnson dug the stone out with his finger and took it to the visitor center for identification. After a few tests, his stone was confirmed to be a diamond. According to Jim Cannon, who was park superintendent at the time, Johnson didn’t realize the significance of what he had found until he was told it was larger than the 15-carat Star of Arkansas Diamond which had been found here in 1956!