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Royal Asscher photo

A ring from The Star of Africa collection by Royal Asscher

Royal Asscher Diamonds

Royal Asscher's Star of Africa Collection

Diamond mining has a less than sparkling history.

But Lita Asscher hopes to help change that. In 2008, she created a charity to raise funds for education and self-sufficiency in Sierra Leone.

Now, Asscher is launching the Star of Africa collection of rings to help fund the charity. The designs incorporate the idea of a snow globe, with diamonds floating freely in fluid under a transparent dome. The white, yellow and pink gold rings come in two sizes and retail for between $4,950 and $7,900 U.S. A portion of each sale will go to the charity.

The collection will be available at Neiman Marcus. Rose Byrne and Cat Deeley both wore Star of Africa rings to the 2009 Emmy awards.

The  Netherlands-based Royal Asscher Diamond Company was founded in 1854.  The company has an illustrious heritage and client list - Japan's Emperor Hirohito, Great Britain's Queen Elizabeth II, and Queen Juliana and Prince Bernhard of The Netherlands have all visited the company headquarters. In 1902, Joseph Asscher created the Asscher cut. Six years later, he cut the largest diamond ever found, the 3,105 carat Star of Africa (Cullinan) diamond.

That remarkable stone has given this collection and the charity its name. But the real star of Africa, Asscher feels, is its most precious resource, its people.