Digging for diamonds in South Kalimantan

By Alex Abraham

BANJARMASIN, South Kalimantan (JP): Cempaka is a small town 38 kilometers out of Banjarmasin on the road to the coast of South Kalimantan. The town has neither famous landmarks nor any inspiring touristic monuments. The market place is not crowded with visitors. But this is the land that many adventurers come to in search of priceless treasures hidden under the ground. They come again and again to explore and to dig in the hope of finding hidden wealth. For this is the land of gold and diamonds.

The best locations to begin the search are the "secrets of the elders" sites. Customarily, prospectors drill close to other successful finds. It is common to see eight to 10 derrick-like structures in one valley. The exploration starts with drilling up to 10 meters below the ground and pumping out a muddy mixture of sand, rocks and water. The piles of separated stones are then sorted to isolate potential agate- and diamond-bearing rocks. The mixture of water and fine sand, which has run into a carefully dug pit is panned for gold dust.

It was Friday and all was quiet in the valley. Only one site was being worked as everyone else was at jemaah (communal prayer). Acacia and durian trees and elegant tall grasses cover the hillsides. Swaying young paddy painted the pretty valley green. Iyuth and Yadi were patiently panning for gold and little stones that glistened and showed promise of potential diamonds.

They were using a uniquely Kalimantan technology: flattened conical vessels made of wood with serrated surfaces to help hold back fine particles as the water flowed away. When held up against brilliant sunlight, there was indeed a faint glitter -- but, said Iyuth, it was too faint and too little to be profitably collected. Yadi has been laboring in these mines for four long years. He likes the sense of adventure and of the hope of a big find, the promise of fortune.

"That is the hope that keeps us going through heat and rain. There are some weeks when all that the panning produces is mud. But one good day, one good dig, and we can make as much as a hundred thousand rupiah," he said, his eyes glowing.

"Last year, Parlin, who had toiled for months with no luck, found a nugget the size of a pigeon's egg. They say he got five million (rupiah) and he's gone to the big city. Anyway, we have not seen him since then."

Iyuth is a more recent explorer, having heard from a cousin in his village of the opportunity to make wealth in these diggings.

"Yadi has sharper eyes, that can locate the smallest glitter and that's so important in this work," he said.

They just cannot afford to miss any tiny particle. Every little bit counts because they find so little after long hours of work.

"Anyway, I'm better at selling to the dealers who come from Cempaka," he said.

He said he knows that the city price for 24-karat gold is Rp 150,000 per gram and for diamonds it is more than Rp 50 million for a pure carat. But since they are dealing with raw stones, their recovery is less than 10 percent for gold and even less for the stones.

Suddenly, and as if from nowhere, Pak Syahbuddin appeared. He was tall, elegantly clad for these surroundings in faded tan trousers and a pale-blue shirt. He sported a natty felt hat that had seen better days. Deep-set eyes, bushy eyebrows, long nose and sharp chin gave him a professorial air. A brown bag hung lazily from his shoulder.

"Persistence, hard work, dedication and most of all patience," he said, "is the secret of successful mining. It is a demanding job and fortune does not smile on you each day."

His deep-set eyes, weather-beaten face and leathery hands spoke volumes of the hard life he had led and underlined the authority of his revelation. "People talk of the wealth of the ancients," he said, almost secretively. "The grandeur of the Singosari era, Airlangga and even Adityawarman.

"What few realize is that before even Tarumanegara, there flourished on this island a greater empire. Greater in wealth, in extent and in glory. Much of that wealth and greatness came from the mines around Cempaka."

Ever the optimist, he was sure his big find was yet to come.

Those stones, he said, pointing at the pile near where Iyuth and Yadi were hard at work, would become diamonds after cutting and polishing.

Then, with a gleam in his eye, he pulled out of his bag an envelope of gems. Not only were these stones of inestimable value he said, but they each had in them their own mysterious power to make all my wishes come true.

He was now in his element. He offered gems that would ensure boundless marital bliss, love, money, children and peace. As he saw the potential buyer hesitate, he pulled out more stones and added the promise of harmony, health and happiness.

A superior salesman, Pak Syahbuddin would not give up even after the visitor said he had it all: happiness, love, two wonderful children.

Putting his hands into the deep depths of his bag, he pulled out a little brown agate. "This," he declared authoritatively, "will give you your youth!"

This time, he won.

The stone was handed over for Rp 15,000 -- half of his asking price.

A month has passed. The brown agate sits at the center of the writing desk. It might not work, even if it is being polished everyday, but it surely helps us remember Cempaka and of the vigor for life.