Diamonds were first mined in India over 4 000 years ago. Before the 15th century, diamonds were relatively insignificant as precious stones. This changed in 1456 when Louis de Berqueur discovered how to cut facets of a diamond. Until the 18th century India was the only known source of the stones, believed to be found only in the fabled mines of Golconda, though Golconda was in fact only the market city of the diamond trade and gems sold there came from a number of mines. Brazil then became the main producer after diamonds were found there in 1726.

It was not until the 1867 discovery of diamonds near Hopetown, south of Kimberley in South Africa, that the modern diamond industry was born. The 1870s and 1880s in the Northern Cape saw a frenzied rush to the newly discovered diamond fields.

Diggers and prospectors came from all over the country and abroad. Soon the terrain was transformed into a landscape of ever-deepening pits, as diggers burrowed their way into the diamondiferous rock. Claims even collapsed into one another, and the holes grew larger until the 'Big Hole' at Kimberley became, and remained, the largest hand-dug excavation in the world.It ceased production in 1914 after having produced 14 504 566 carats of diamonds from 22,6 million tons of ground. It was mined to an open-pit depth of 240 m and has a surface area of more than 15 hectare. The mine went underground to a depth of 820 m. The 'Big Hole', has been declared a national monument, and a museum depicting the history of diamond mining in the country has been established near the site.

Two companies emerged from the rush, the Kimberley Central Mining Company and the De Beers Mining Company, named after the De Beers brothers, owners of the land where the rush began. In March 1888 the companies merged to form De Beers Consolidated Mines Limited. The money and expertise gained on the Kimberley diamond fields were invaluable in opening up the new Witwatersrand goldfields in 1896. Single-channel marketing developed from this company and existed then through what was known as the 'London Syndicate', precursor to the current Central Selling Organisation (CSO).

The world's largest gem quality diamond, the Cullinan, was found in South Africa in 1905. Uncut, it weighed 3 025 carats. The Centenary, found in 1986, was polished from a 599 carat gem. The rough diamond was cut into various stones, the largest of which bears the name Centenary and, at 273 carats, is the largest modern cut, top colour, flawless diamond in the world.