On 2 June 2023, The MaxProf Kimberley office went back in time where it all started for Kimberley, The diamond City. Kimberley is well known for its diamonds but most people don’t know the history of Kimberley and how the name came about. Our first stop and also the biggest part of the history of Kimberley was the Big hole. From here on out we were accompanied by our tour guide Hein Knoke.
The Big hole
150 years ago the big hole was just a flat hill. When it was discovered that there are diamonds, thousands flocked to Kimberley and created the largest hand dug hole. The first diamonds were found in 1971. The mine closed down in August 1914 and is now a World Heritage site.
At the Big Hole we got to learn about the story of diamonds, this includes the life of the people that came looking for diamonds, the tools they used and wealth they generated. Here we had a look at all old tools and equipment used for the digging and also the lifestyle of the people back then.
We could also enter the diamond vault where we could see the biggest diamond found in Kimberley which is called the Eureka. This diamond was discovered in 1967 and was later bought by De Beers. De Beers the donated it to the big hole where it is being kept under surveillance with many other beautiful gemstones discovered. Unfortunately no pictures are allowed to be taken in the vault.
We then moved outside to get a view of the Big Hole itself. This was such a beautiful sight to see. This hole is 240m deep. After viewing the big hole we moved down to the unground tunnel which was used for mining activity’s. With the sound effects and lights to give you a real life experience of working in a mine.
Breathtaking view of the big hole
Our next destination was the Kimberley Africana Library. This is the original Kimberley library. This public library first opened on 23rd July 1887. Many travellers from all over the world visited this library bringing different kinds of books and maps. It also contains all the original newspapers of Kimberley of the DFA, the local newspaper of Kimberley, as well as newspapers from other countries brought there years ago from all the abroad travellers. That was the means in which they could see what is happening in other countries. All of which is still kept in this library. This library has so much history of Kimberley. The library is still operation but no longer to the public, but is being used for research.
MaxProf employees in the Kimberley Africana Library
On our way to our last destination we stopped at the Kimberley club. The Kimberley club was founded in August 1881, by Cecil John Rhodes. He was part of the diamond trade in Kimberly. This was originally a gentleman’s club for Cecil and his friends back then. Now it is a boutique hotel with most of the original features and furniture.
Our final stop was at KDJI, Kimberley diamond hub. Here the tour guide took us to see how they work with raw diamonds. We got to learn the different steps in which they prepare the diamond and make them into jewellery. This was very educational and interesting. They have jewellers on the premises they work with which to make custom jewellery.
MaxProf employees pictured in front of the diamond hub
This was such an enriching experience. One which we will always remember.
