Trifter

The Big Hole is located in the city of Kimberley which is the capital of the Northern Cape of South Africa. Thought to be the biggest hand made hole in the world at one time, the Big Hole today is generally recognised as the second largest hand made hole in the world behind the Jagersfontein Mine. Why was the Big Hole created?

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In 1871, the cook of a prospecting party in the area got drunk and as punishment was sent to dig on the Colesberg Hill. He found a 83.5 carat diamond on the hill and the diamond rush was on. The town of New Rush sprang up and was soon changed to Kimberley to honor the Earl of Kimberley who was the British Secretary of State for the Colonies at the time.

From 1871 until 1914 an estimated 50,000 plus miners dug into the Colesberg Hill and created the Big Hole in search of diamonds. And did they ever find them. Almost 6,000 lbs or nearly 3 tons of diamonds were found in the Big Hole. 

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Today the Big Hole is some 1,500 feet wide and over 42 acres in surface. When above ground mining stopped at the Big Hole in 1914, it was some 785 feet deep. Today it is still over 700 feet deep and water has filled up the hole to around 570 feet leaving some 130 feet open and exposed.

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Underground mining below the Big Hole led to the discovery of ancient volcanic pipes known as Kimberlite Pipes. A Kimberlite Pipe is a carrot shaped mass formed deep within the earth (100 to 300 miles deep) and then erupted near to the surface by violent and volatile gaseous components. The eruption to the surface happens so fast that diamonds are sealed into the pipe and survive the trip. The first such diamond containing pipe was found under the Big Hole and named after the city of Kimberley.

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It is hard to underestimate the importance of the Big Hole in South Africa’s history. It was here that the De Beers company started and grew and made owner Cecil John Rhodes rich as Kimberley became the largest diamond producer in the world.

Image via Wikipedia (Created the Rhodes Scholarship in his 1902 will)

The diamonds found at the Big Hole brought about South Africa’s Industrial Revolution. The first stock exchange in South Africa was formed in Kimberley in 1881 and the Boers laid siege to the town and the Big Hole during the Second Boer War. 

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Underground mining along the Kimberlite Pipe continued at the Big Hole until around 2006 and today the Big Hole and surrounding area has been turned into a tourist attraction still run by De Beers. A large viewing platform with the dimensions of an old mining claim (30 feet by 30 feet) has been built above the Big Hole.

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An old town area has been reconstructed to show visitors what life was like when the Big Hole was being dug.

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The Star of the West pub near the Big Hole has been serving miners and tourists since 1870. Named for a ship that wrecked off the West Coast of South Africa after the survivors carried the ships timber to Kimberley and the pub was built from the wood.

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Visitors can also go underground and see how diamonds are mined out of a kimberlite pipe. Some Diamonds taken from the Big Hole are on display including the 616 Diamond, named for its large carat size which is the 14th largest gem-quality rough diamond ever discovered.

Source (616 Diamond courtesy of De Beers Group)

South Africa is pushing for the Big Hole to be registered as a World Heritage Site. To see a Roman gold mine from 2,000 years ago that is a World Heritage Site see Las Medulas. To view another diamond mining town turned into a tourist attraction see Kolmanskop Ghost Town. For more great sites in South Africa please view Beautiful Waterfalls of South Africa and Blyde River Canyon the 3rd Largest Canyon in the World.