Cullinan Diamonds and Pretoria

In 1905 a manager at the mine outside Pretoria saw something catching the light in the wall of the pit and dug out the largest gem-quality diamond anyone has ever found. It was named after the mine’s owner, Thomas Cullinan, and cut into a set of stones, the two biggest of which, the Stars of Africa, sit in the British Crown Jewels. The village beside the mine already carried his name, and in time the mine took it too.

The visit starts with a short film and then goes inside the secure perimeter, past the headgear and the machinery, to the edge of the open pit. It is an enormous hole, far bigger than you are ready for, with the working mine carrying on around it.

Then the cutting works, where you watch rough stones cleaved, cut and polished on the wheel, a slow and exact craft. Loose diamonds and jewellery are laid out if you want to look. Nobody has to buy anything.

After lunch the road goes on to Pretoria, the seat of government, a city of wide streets planted with jacarandas that turn it purple in spring. The Voortrekker Monument stands on a hill above it, a granite block built to remember the Great Trek. Inside, a marble frieze tells that story from the Voortrekkers’ side, and once a year at noon the sun through the dome lands on the cenotaph below. It is worth seeing for exactly the story it chooses to tell.

The Kruger Museum is the modest house of Paul Kruger, president of the old Boer republic, with his furniture and the railway carriage he travelled in. Then the Union Buildings on their hill, where Nelson Mandela was sworn in as president in 1994. A bronze of him stands in the gardens, arms wide, looking out over the city.

Put Soweto on another day of the same stay. The Union Buildings mean something different after it.

Good to know

• The mine sets its own entry rules for visitors. We confirm them for your party before booking.
• Wear closed shoes. It is a working mine site.
• Buying at the cutting works is entirely your choice.
• It is a long day with real driving. The Pretoria half needs its time, so we do not squeeze it.
• Jacaranda season is spring and it moves from year to year. We will tell you if your dates catch it.