The Cape Town Diamond Museum

A must-visit hidden gem

“Do you know why the engagement ring is worn on the left ring finger?” asks Avashin Naiker, diamond expert at the Cape Town Diamond Museum.

I shake my head. “The first man to propose with a diamond, Archduke Maximilian,” he explains pointing to a portrait in the museum’s diamond timeline, “believed there’s a vein that runs directly from that finger to the heart. He then presented a diamond engagement ring to his wife-to-be, Maryof Burgandy, in 1477.”

The Cape Town Diamond Museum, tucked away in the V&A Waterfront’s Clock Tower precinct near the Gateway to Robben Island, has black marble floors injected with flecks of sparkle, and spinning underneath our feet are projections of diamonds. Like some kind of subliminal seduction, the closer people move to each other, so do the diamonds on the floor.

The land of wine and diamonds

Past the timeline is a wall splashed with the words to a Marilyn Monroe song: …diamonds are a girl's best friend…., and just around the corner from this is a display of a mine.

“Families love this,” says Avashin. “The kids dress up and play miner.” Indeed next to the makeshift shaft are boots, jackets, helmets and spades for just this purpose.

Not just for kids though, the museum sees a lot of traffic from international visitors, as Avashin says: “when people think of South Africa; they think of wine and diamonds.”

But aside from an educational and historic role, the museum, and the people that work in it, understand that buying a diamond is an investment – one that’s better appreciated after a tour. “People want to know more about the diamonds, it’s not just about buying a product off a shelf.

“We have a lot of guys coming through here before they get engaged, and once they are, they bring their fiancé to do the tour too."

Replicas of the world’s most famous diamonds, South Africa’s Cullinan, the Hope and Taylor Burton included, spin lazily in their display cases casting brilliant flashes of light. At this point a video of the 4Cs – cut, colour, clarity and carat weight - plays, marking the end of the museum, but not of thetour.

Watch the video:

The jewellery workshop and diamond cutting factory

We push through a door into bright light. Along the passageway, through glass windows, you can see into the jewellery workshop. Designers sit at their stations fashioning timeless masterpieces from platinum and fine gold. 

In this diamond cutting and polishing factory we witness the magical transformation of a rough stone into a polished diamond. Expert diamond cutters polish facets on a diamond using a scaife impregnated with diamond dust and oil that revolves 3,500 times per minute.

Next we find ourselves in the dazzling Shimansky showroom–complete with a bar; guests are offered drinks while they peruse the collection. If you don’t find what you’re looking for here, there are designers on hand to help create your perfect ring, which can be manufactured within 24 hours if you find yourself pressed for time.

Engagements aside, simply come and discover the story of the South African diamond industry at the only museum of its kind in Cape Town.

Find out more about Shimansky’s patented designs, or read about what you should consider before buying a diamond.

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