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Thursday, September 02, 2010
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Diamonds: The 3 C's

  • Conflict Diamonds - A UN Report Conflict diamonds are diamonds that originate from areas controlled by forces or factions opposed to legitimate and internationally recognized governments, and are used to fund military action in opposition to those governments.
  • Diamonds | American Museum of Natural History This exhibition appeared at the Museum November 1, 1997 – August 30, 1998.
  • Nova The Diamond Deception The efforts of researchers around the world to create synthetic diamonds, some of which have become so indistinguishable from natural diamonds as to fool experts.
    Some interesting properties of Diamond:
  • Diamond is the hardest substance known
  • Diamond is the greatest conductor of heat
  • Diamond has the highest melting point of any substance (7,362° F - 4,090° C)
  • Diamond has the most dense atomical configuration
  • Diamond is transparent over the greatest number of wavelengths
  • 80% of all rough diamonds are handled in Antwerp
  • Half of all polished diamonds passes through Antwerp
  • Birthstone For April

Diamonds as Beads

Yes, a few companies out there do create these. There are pricey and if you buy them be sure that the diamonds do not touch, they will scratch each other.
  • Diamond Rough.com Offers Diamond beads. This is an American company, based out of Las Vegas Nevada. I have talked to him myself he seems like a reasonable person. He sells his Diamond Beads by the Carat Weight.
  • Diajewels Offers Diamond beads. Mostly Black and Brown (Champagne) This is an Indian company, based out of Mumbai. They seem to sell their beads by the strand.

COLOR Diamonds range in color from faint yellow or brown to very rare pinks, blues, greens, and other colors known as "fancies." The best color for a diamond is no color at all unless of course you are wanting a fancy diamond. A totally colorless diamond allows light to pass through it easily, resulting in the light being dispersed as the color of the rainbow. Colors are graded from totally colorless to light yellow. The differences from one grade to the other are very subtle and it takes a trained eye and years of experience to color grade a diamond.

CUT The cut of a diamond allows it to make the best use of light. When a diamond is cut correctly, light is reflected from one facet to another, then dispersed through the top of the stone. If the cut of the diamond is too deep, some light escapes through the opposite side of the pavilion.

CLARITY A diamond's clarity can be determined by using a 10-power magnifying glass and a trained eye. Most diamonds contain very tiny birthmarks know as "inclusions." An inclusion can interfere with the light passing through the diamond. The fewer the inclusion, the more beautiful the diamond will be.

CARAT-WEIGHT This is the weight of a diamond measured in carats. One carat is divided into 100 "points," so that a diamond of 75 points weights .75 carats. The carat-weight of a diamond is the easiest measurement to determine. Most importantly, two diamonds can be of equal carat-weight, but their value can differ greatly due to their cut, color, and clarity.

The Valley of the Diamonds: This Hellenistic legend was allegedly brought west after Alexander the Great (356--323 BCE) conquered Persia and invaded what is now northern India; it roughly coincides with early trade contact. The following is a blending of Aristotle and al-Kazwini:

Aristotle says that no one except Alexander ever reached the place where the diamond is produced. This is a valley, connected with the land Hind. The glance cannot penetrate to its greatest depths and serpents are found there, the like of which no man hath seen, and upon which no man can gaze without dying. However, this power endures only as long as the serpents live, for when they die the power leaves them . . . Now, Alexander ordered that an iron mirror should be brought and placed at the spot where the serpents dwelt. When the serpents approached, their glance fell upon their own image in the mirror, and this caused their death. Hereupon, Alexander wished to bring out the diamonds from the valley, but no one was willing to undertake the descent. Alexander therefore sought counsel of the wise men, and they told him to throw down a piece of flesh into the valley. This he did, the diamonds became attached to the flesh, and the birds of the air seized the flesh and bore it up out of the valley. Then Alexander ordered his people to pursue the birds and to pick up what fell from the flesh.

Other versions of this tale come from the Arabian "Tales of a Thousand and One Nights," and from Marco Polo's (1254? -- 1324?) "Book of Marvels" (1298). It has been described as a deterrent to treasure seekers. The adherence of diamonds to flesh has been linked to diamond's property of sticking to fat or grease, and suggests that diamonds were the true subject.
The World's Largest Polished Diamonds
NAMECARAT-WEIGHT CUT COLORLOCATION 2004
Golden Jubilee545.67 Cushion Shape Yellow-brown Crown Jewels of Thailand
Cullinan I or Star Of Africa530.20 Pear Shape Colorless British Crown Jewels
Incomparable407.48 Pear Shape Yellow Diamond Dealer, USA
Cullinan II317.40 Cushion Cut Colorless British Crown Jewels
Great Mogul280.00 Rose Cut Colorless Unknown Location
Nizam277.00 Dome Cut Colorless Private Collection, India
Centenary273.85 "Modern Fancy Cut" Colorless British Crown Jewels
Great Table250.00Rectangular Cut Pink Unknown Location
Indien250.00 Pear Cut Colorless Unknown Location
Jubilee 245.35Cushion Cut Colorless Private Collection, France
De Beers 234.50 Round Yellow Private Collection, India
RedCross 205.00Square Cut Yellow Unknown Location
A Disclaimer:  Effort has been made of including information that is found in at least two sources. I can make no claim on the accuracy of this information. I am not a Geologist or Gemologist. I make no guarantees and infer no warranties. For more information, please refer to the bibliography.
Copyright Information:  Although I have included a bibliography, but no attempt has been made to give credit to individual passages. If you are an author and feel that I have infringed on your copyrighted material please let me know. With that in mind, all material and information, retain their respected Copyrights.
I encourage the reader to pursue the further study of any topic that they find particularly interesting. A good place to start is your local library.

Bibliography: 

  • The curious lore of precious stones - Author Kunz, George Frederick, 1856-1932.
  • Gem identification made easy - Matlins, Antoinette Leonard.
  • Gems: Their Sources, Descriptions and Identification - By Robert Webster, Peter G. Read (Editor).
  • Gemstone Enhancement: history, science and state of the art - by Kurt Nassau.
  • Gemstones of the world - Walter Schumann ; translated by Evelyne Stern.
  • Gems, Minerals & Lapidary Links
  • Have you ever sent he inside story of a modern bead factory in India? I asked one of my suppliers to send me back some pictures. Check out the Tour.