History of Diamonds
Learn about the history of diamonds; where they are mined and how diamonds were discovered.
The Diamond History
Diamonds were originally thought to be mined in India. The earliest form of these minerals were recorded in Buddhist text and Sanskrit text around the time of 296 B.C., the texts described the diamond's hard surface, the shine and the light dispersion. At that time, diamonds were associated with divinity and they began using various diamonds as religious icons (remember a scene from Indiana Jones - The Temple of Doom?). Diamonds and other precious stomes were believed by many that they were symbols that brought good fortune for the people who had them. The only people allowed to have diamonds were people of different social status and the Rulers were the only persons allowed to have the colored diamonds in their possession.
Diamonds were traded to the east and the west of India and were only recognized by some cultures for their gemology and their uses. There has been archeological evidence coming out of Yemen, saying that diamonds were most likely to be used as drill bits as early as the 4th century. They all but disappeared for 1,000 years after the rise of Christianity. The Christian rejected diamonds because of their past uses as amulets and the Arabic traders has stopped the flow of traders between Europe and India.
A major contributing factor to the rise of the diamond is that the 19th century saw a different economy for the world; where diamonds were seen as something tangible - they became the objects of many creative advertising campaigns. Diamonds are judged based on their clarity, carat, color and cut, this method is also known as the four C’s. Natural diamonds, extremely precious and costly, takes a very long time to produce (besides the need for very high pressure and heat) and were mined from the deep under Earth's crust. As such, synthetic diamonds were invented and they were ready for sale a lot faster. There were six original cuts of diamonds; the Point Cut, Table Cut, Old Single Cut, Mazarin Cut, Peruzzi Cut and the Old European Cut.
Diamonds were originally thought to be mined in India. The earliest form of these minerals were recorded in Buddhist text and Sanskrit text around the time of 296 B.C., the texts described the diamond's hard surface, the shine and the light dispersion. At that time, diamonds were associated with divinity and they began using various diamonds as religious icons (remember a scene from Indiana Jones - The Temple of Doom?). Diamonds and other precious stomes were believed by many that they were symbols that brought good fortune for the people who had them. The only people allowed to have diamonds were people of different social status and the Rulers were the only persons allowed to have the colored diamonds in their possession.
Diamonds were traded to the east and the west of India and were only recognized by some cultures for their gemology and their uses. There has been archeological evidence coming out of Yemen, saying that diamonds were most likely to be used as drill bits as early as the 4th century. They all but disappeared for 1,000 years after the rise of Christianity. The Christian rejected diamonds because of their past uses as amulets and the Arabic traders has stopped the flow of traders between Europe and India.
A major contributing factor to the rise of the diamond is that the 19th century saw a different economy for the world; where diamonds were seen as something tangible - they became the objects of many creative advertising campaigns. Diamonds are judged based on their clarity, carat, color and cut, this method is also known as the four C’s. Natural diamonds, extremely precious and costly, takes a very long time to produce (besides the need for very high pressure and heat) and were mined from the deep under Earth's crust. As such, synthetic diamonds were invented and they were ready for sale a lot faster. There were six original cuts of diamonds; the Point Cut, Table Cut, Old Single Cut, Mazarin Cut, Peruzzi Cut and the Old European Cut.
