DiAmond

Diamonds are the most cherished and highly valued of gemstones. Throughout history, they have been admired by Kings and worn as a symbol of strength, courage and invincibility. Over the centuries the diamond acquired unique status as the ultimate gift of love, in myth and reality. The word 'diamond' comes from the Greek adarnas, meaning unconquerable. It is the hardest mineral known to man, yet it has the simplest chemical composition being crystallized carbon.

The exact origin of diamonds is still something of a mystery even today. It is known that diamonds were created by Nature more than 3 billion years ago. The elemental forces of heat and pressure miraculously transformed carbon into diamonds deep below the surface of the earth. The volcanic mass in which this crystallization took place then thrust upwards, broke through the earth's surface to cool in kimberlite or lamproite pipes where most diamonds are found today. It is not an easy task to recover gem-quality and industrial diamonds and approximately 250 tonnes of ore must be mined and processed from the average kimberlite pipe to produce a one carat polished gem-quality diamond. Thus, it is easy to understand why diamonds are so rare and valuable.

Facts & Legends

Legend has it that Europeans first discovered African diamonds in a Shaman's leather pouch. The African Shaman used his diamonds as Shamans of the world use quartz crystals. Anciently, diamonds were worn as unpolished stones. They were treasured for their beauty and powers.

The diamond is an ancient symbol of the perfected man whose divine spirit shines forth. As the rough diamond is dull and lifeless when first removed from the earth, so the spiritual nature in its "earthly" state reveals little of its inherent luminosity. In the hands of the skillful lapidary, the diamond is transformed into a sparkling gem from whose facets pour streams of rainbow colored fire, so upon the lathe of the Divine Lapidary, the spirit of man is ground and polished until it reflects the glory of its Creator from every atom.

Kings, in old days, led their men on the battle fields. They wore heavy leather breast plates studded with diamonds and other precious stones. It was believed that diamonds were fragments of stars and the tear drops of the Gods. They were said to have possessed magical qualities of the Gods and had powers far beyond the understanding of the common man. The warriors stayed clear of the Kings and those who were fortunate enough to have the magical diamonds in their breast plates. So, they survived the wars by the magic of the diamonds and were blessed by the Gods and had lives of good fortune. Diamonds were worn throughout the ages to give a person strength, invincibility, courage, and magical powers over the dark side of life. The rainbows of color given off by the stones magical powers was said to protect the wearer from the evil eye of the sorceress and magicians.

No one knows exactly when, where and who made the first attempt to cut diamonds. It is assumed that the first diamond cutting styles originated in India. However, it was only limited to chipping or grinding.

In ancient times diamonds were valued more for their magical and mythological properties. By modifying the natural state of a diamond in any way would alter its magical properties and render it useless. The cleaving techniques used on diamonds attempted to get flat faces on diamonds.

The European travelers visiting India for its diamond treasures transported diamonds from the Golconda Mine to Europe for cutting. They then made the jewelry and sent them back to India to the treasuries of the Kings, Moghuls and Maharajas.

Experimentation with diamond cutting did not yield any significant results until the seventeenth century. The early diamond cutters were unable to polish the rough octahedral diamonds. However, they found out that they could polish or grind diamonds into a point by polishing almost parallel to the diamonds rough faces, at an angle lesser than the diamond rough faces.