Diamonds, Lord of the Rings!

Happy New Year to One and All!

My blog is all about Travel but as I have been indoors most of the time due to the cold weather, I have decided to write about Diamonds, My Mom's best friend; Marilyn's(Monroe) best friend. Let's face it, every girl loves a diamond, and every guy knows it.

Sure, emeralds, rubies and sapphires have their appeal, but nothing wows like a diamond, or delivers quite the same message - whether on a ring, adorning the neck - in a form of necklace, encrusted on a watch, on the fleshy pendulous part of the external man or woman's ear, or used creatively in clothing and shoes.

As far as precious gems go, diamonds are the ultimate gem and for good reason.

Did you know that over 250 tonnes of earth has to be blasted, dug, crushed and sorted to get a one-carat diamond? While other gems simply look good, diamonds also have real world use. Its name comes from the Greek word 'Adamas' which means 'impossible to tame' - a suitable name for the hardest of all known minerals. Many of you may have seen the diamond ring cut through a pane of glass on celluloid, but it's no TV trick, they really are that tough and are used for a variety of applications besides jewellery.

Diamonds can be used to polish, cut or wear away any material, including other diamonds. Common industrial uses include diamond-tipped drill, bits and saws or the use of diamond powder as an abrasive. It is even used for the cosmetic procedure, derma-abrasion. Other specialised applications also exist or are under development, including their use as semi-conductors. Diamonds being the hardest mineral, can only be scratched by other diamonds. It maintain its shine and polish and remains lustrous over long periods of time. This makes diamonds ideal for day-to-day wear and in all probability has contributed to their popularity as the preferred choice of gem for an engagement or wedding ring.

Diamonds have a strong ability to disperse light into its component colours and this is an important facet of their attraction as a gemstone. It is this feature that leads to the description of 'fire' in a well-cut stone. Some diamonds also exhibit fluorescence of various colours under long wave ultraviolet light.

Diamond rings have been the ultimate sign of true love for centuries, a tradition sparked by Archduke Maximillian of Austria who gave a diamond ring to his bride-to-be, Mary of Burgundy in 1477. The idea quickly caught on.

Diamonds have always been associated with rarity and beauty but right up until the Middle Ages, only the wealthiest and most powerful of the nobility were permitted toown them. In fact, it wasn't until the 15th century that women of other classes started to wear diamonds.

Just imagine the size of the Cullinan, discovered in South Africa in 1905. Before being cut, it weighed 3,106 carats and after cutting, produced 105 gems of which the most famous of these is the 530.2 carat Star of Africa - the largest cut diamond in existence and is part of the British Crown Jewels.

In the United States alone, Diamonds continue to symbolise everlasting love and therefore, nearly two million bride-to-be wear diamond engagement rings.

Diamonds occur in a variety of transparent hues - colourless, white, steel, blue, yellow, orange, red, green, pink, brown or coloured black. They contain impurities or structural defects that cause the coloration, while pure or nearly pure diamonds are transparent and colourless. The most common impurity, nitrogen, causes a yellowish or brownish tinge.

History - Diamonds have been treasured as gems since their use as religious icons in India at least 2.500 years ago but their popularity has risen since the 19th century becauuse of improved cutting and polishing techniques.

Until diamond fields were discovered in Brazil in 1726, India was for a long time the world's only known source and their first recorded mention is by the Romans in the 1st century AD. Then, in 1866, a pebble found by a child in South Africa was identified as a 21-carat diamond, unearthing an even greater source of the precious gems.

In 1889, Cecil Rhodes and Barnett Barnato merged their interest in De Beers Consolidated Mines, Ltd, establishing a monopoloy of the diamond trade that still continues. The compnay produces around 45% of the world's diamonds.

Diamonds deposits were subsequently found in other parts of Africa, as well as Canada, Russia, Venezuela and Guyana. Australia is the world's largest source of natural diamonds.

Finding Diamonds - Diamonds are generally mined from volcanic pipes, which are deep in the earth where the high pressure and temperature enables the formation of the crystals. Diamonds that have come to the earth's surface are generally very old, rangring from under 1 billion to 3.3 billion years old. No wonder, they are such a precious commodity and a girl's best friend and mine!

Tips for Buying Diamond Jewellery:

Always, try on jewellery for the correct size before buying. Necklaces and earrings should also be checked for length and that you absolutely like it.

Different diamond shapes and their combinations make jewellery look more beautiful. Cut Diamonds comes in different sizes and shape. Like the round, pear, marquise, heart, oval, triangle, baguette, princess and emerald are the most popular ones.

Loose diamonds can be bought with certification or without. In case of uncertified loose diamonds, ask for a retailer's certificate of authenticity.

Ensure diamonds are mounted and set properly - a weak or improper setting may loosen the diamond.

The pricing of loose diamonds is based on four major factors used for grading - commonly known as "4C's". The Carat, Colour, Clarity and Cut.

Colour grading starts from 'excellent White D' and deteriorates through to 'Z'.

Diamonds have natural inclusions (traces of other minerals). Fewer inclusions mean better Clarity and higher price.

Flawless diamonds are rare. Clarity grading starts from Flawless, VVS1, VVS2 (with exceedingly small inclusions) and decreases to the lowest grade PK3.

Ensure you collect the invoice carrying the description of diamond from the Jewellery and Retailer's Certificate of Authenticity.

I hope you find this blog informative and may this help you appreciate the girl's best friend even more.

Mom, there you go!

Take care of yourselves and God Bless!

Alan Aldana