Diamonds are perhaps the most loved of the precious stones. They are known for their brilliance, their beauty and of course their color. They have other properties too such as their low reactivity to chemicals, their electrical resistance and of course their hardness. They are the hardest known natural mineral so have many industrial uses.
Diamonds have been highly sought after since they were used as religious icons in ancient India and they have also been used as cutting tools since ancient times. Their modern popularity however is relatively recent as they have become more commonplace since the 1800's. This due to greater availabilty and increased prosperity, not to mention some clever marketing.
A large part of the diamond supply comes from the African continent, though countries like Canada and Russia are prominent too. Some diamonds come from Australia including most of the highl prized natural pink diamonds.
Diamonds are in fact just another form of carbon as is the lead in that pencil on your desk. Most natural diamonds are billions of years old formed deep in the earth under great pressure. There are some surface diamonds but they are generally very small, formed sometimes by the intense pressure caused by meteorite impacts. Some diamonds are believed to have originated in outer space and were left here after asteroid impacts.
They come in many shapes courtesy of the skilled diamond cutters who craft the finished diamonds from the rough stones they start with. You may have heard of the four c's when it comes to describing diamonds: cut, color, clarity and carat. The cut refers to the shape the diamond has been cut in. The color tells us how the jeweler sees the color, whether clear or pink for example. The clarity refers to whether the diamond is free of internal faults that dull its brilliance and lastly the carat refers to the weight of the diamond where one carat equals 200 grams.
Diamonds come in different cuts and settings. Popular cuts include the princess cut, the brilliant cut and the round while popular settings include prong settings, bezel settings and pavé settings
Good diamond jewelry is expensive. The everlasting demand for diamond engagement rings helps to keep their value higher than other forms of jewelry. Diamond necklaces and earrings are also popular jewelry items and diamonds set in platinum or gold pieces will never go out of style. Of course these days we sometimes see other uses for diamonds to with everything from sandals to swimsuits being blinged up for specialty designer pieces.
While an extremely hard material, diamonds can be chipped by sharp enough knocks so they should not be worn if there is any chance of rough treatment. They can be cleaned with a detergent or jewelry cleaning solution and a soft brush such as a soft toothbrush and dried with a lint free cloth.
These days diamonds are perhaps a little more commonplace than in years past but are still considered to be a beautiful, everlasting and special gift for special occasions.
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