This is to certify that R. Goldman of Victoria West is the Registered Proprietor of 34 shares (numbered 66221–66264), valued at one pound each, fully paid up.
Certificate number 1282.
Registered: 1st May 1895.
Single sheet printed in blue on sturdy bond paper with a decorative side vignette, in very good condition with folds. 235 x 300 mm.
The Monastery Diamond Mines and Estate Company, Limited, operated in the Winburg/Marquard district of the Orange River Colony. It was named after the farm 'The Monastery,' because of a nearby rock formation that early settlers thought resembled a monastery. The mine briefly prospered during a mining boom in 1905 but foundered during the 1907 financial crisis because it lacked sufficient financial capital. There were several attempted rounds of refinancing but it eventually went into liquidation or was absorbed by other interests in 1910. It was revived in the 1970's when a massive 244-carat diamond was discovered. This remains one of the largest gem-quality diamonds ever found in the Free State. Robert Goldman was part of a small but influential group of Jewish families who settled in Victoria West. They were instrumental in building the town’s commercial district, many of the Victorian-era buildings of which still stand today.
