DIAMONDS ARE AMAZING

Let me give you a little bit of background on amazing diamonds.

Diamonds really are amazing. So symbolic. So beautiful. So incredible.
Each diamond is the result of an amazing natural journey which has turned an ancient element into the world’s most precious and mystical gem. Diamonds were pure carbon crystallised at high temperatures and pressures, 100 miles beneath the earth’s crust. There they remained, keeping their precious secrets, until powerful forces carried them upward within volcanic molten lava, only to be concealed again by falling ash and rock.

Over millions of years, the wrath of nature in the form of winds, water, heat and cold would rework the landscape time and time again. Only a small number of diamonds managed to survive this remarkable journey. Of those that did, only a tiny proportion that have been found are of a size and quality that can be cut, polished and set into jewellery.
The diamond is a true miracle. The diamond is forever.

Every diamond is immensely old, formed long before dinosaurs roamed the earth. The youngest diamond is 900 million years old. The oldest known diamonds are more than 3 billion years old, which is older than many stars in the sky.
For thousands of years the only source of diamonds known to man was an area close to Hyderabad in south India, where diamonds were first appreciated for their capacity to disperse light. New but modest discoveries were made in Borneo in the 7th century and in Brazil in the 18th century.
Celebration came in 1866 when, at last, a truly significant source of diamonds was discovered in South Africa. A farmer’s child was playing with some brightly coloured stones beside a river, one of which was recognised as a diamond. This diamond was appropriately named ‘Eureka’.
Despite modern methods, diamonds are still very difficult to find – from the frozen tundra of Siberia and Canada to the parched deserts of Africa, at least enough earth to fill a house must be carefully sifted to find a single diamond.
Today, the main sources of commercially available diamonds are South Africa, Botswana, Angola, Russia, Canada and Australia.

The magic and mystery of diamonds has fascinated and intrigued mankind for centuries.
No tool could cut them and no fire could burn them which led many to believe that diamonds had unique supernatural powers.
To the Greeks they were tears of the Gods, while Romans believed they were shards from the stars. For the Indians they were good-luck charms warding off illness, thieves and forces of evil. To others they were stones that would heal and bestow knowledge.

Diamonds became eagerly sought after by the world’s most wealthy and powerful people. In fact it was a common belief among Kings that wearing a diamond into battle would magically protect the wearer. It was not uncommon to see royal armouries glittering with diamond-embellished weapons.

Diamonds are amazing and will always be amazing.