The Alluring Effect Of Diamonds
Many women have been affected by the magical allure of diamonds for many centuries. This is because they are one of the premier gem stones within the jewelry world.
In 1477, the Archduke Maximilian of Austria gave Mary of Burgundy a diamond ring as a romantic gesture of his love for her, which resulted in the tradition of giving a diamond for an engagement ring. However, the wearing of diamonds can be dated even as earlier as the fifteenth century.
Diamonds were long worn by kings as a symbol of their strength, courage, and invincibility. Even the Greek word 'Adamas' from which the name of diamond is derived, means unconquerable and hence suggests the eternity of love.
The question that needs to be asked is why does tradition emphasize wearing an engagement diamond ring on the third finger of the left hand? The answer to this question dates back all the way to an early Egyptian belief, which indicated that the vein of love, which was known as Vena Amoris, runs directly from the top of the third finger on the left hand straight to the heart.
Another question that may need to be asked is how did diamonds become so valuable? The answer is simply that any thing that is extremely rare, like diamonds, is also precious.
Diamonds are rare in that only a few survived the hazardous journey from the great depths within the earth to the surface. Although diamonds are the hardest of gemstones, they are still the simplest in composition, because they are made primarily of carbon molecules.
Billions of years ago, the natural forces of high pressure within the earth's crust and the intense heat within the earth transformed these carbon particles into diamonds, within a cauldron of burning magma deep below the earth's surface. Once the diamonds have crystallized into a specific form, the diamond crystals were forced upwards with a volcanic-like pressure, which then broke through the earth's surface to cool in a rock like material, known as Kimberlite, and then pushed into pipes. It is in these pipes that diamonds are mined even today.
With respect to our question on rarity and value, there are approximately two hundred and fifty tons of ore that must be mined and processed from the kimberlite pipes in order to produce a one carat polished diamond of gem quality. Another interesting fact to consider is that only twenty percent of the diamonds mined are gem quality, while the rest are suited for industrial purposes only.
Diamonds are certainly the most international of all gems, then a diamond will probably touch at least four continents before reaching a retail jewelry store. The top four diamond producing countries are Australia, Zaire, Botswana, and the former Soviet Union, which account for approximately eighty percent of the world's supply of diamonds.
Though diamonds were first originally mined in India over twenty-eight hundred years ago, it was not until the discovery of the Brazilian diamond pipes in the early part of the eighteenth century that diamond mining became such an important industry. During the late nineteenth century, the discovery of extensive diamond deposits in South Africa triggered our modern-day diamond industry, which became the result of much better cutting methods.
