Everything you need to know about Diamond Gemstone
As the Roman naturalist Pliny put it in the first century AD, "Diamond is the most valuable, not just of precious stones, but of all things in this world."
When compared to other jewels, the diamond is the one that is both idealised and promoted the most. Whether the shop sells other gemstones, you can buy or sell a diamond at practically any jewellery shop.
Global diamond output hovers at about 10 tonnes per year. A fraction of this is gem quality, but high-quality diamond is not nearly as rare as equivalent high-quality ruby or emerald.
Graphite is another mineral that includes carbon but has a radically distinct crystal structure and creation method. Graphite is so soft you can write on it, whereas diamond is so hard you can only scratch it with another.
Description
It's no secret that people have lusted after glittering diamonds for centuries. Diamond is the most rigid natural material known to man; its name comes from the Greek word Adamas, which means "the most rigid steel." Diamond is a superior member of the mineral kingdom due to its distinctive chemical makeup and crystal structure.
Getting a diamond to the jewellery store's showcase begins its long journey. Under high temperatures and pressure, it forms pretty deep in the earth. It's shot upward at high velocity and eventually lands on or very close to the planet's surface. Either natural or human-made forces coerce it out of its hiding location. Then, it undergoes a process of cleaving, cutting, and polishing to bring forth its inherent attractiveness.
Diamond is the only jewel that is entirely composed of carbon. The average carbon content is 99.95%. Trace elements, sub-atomic particles that aren't fundamental to the diamond's chemistry, can make up the remaining 0.05%. However, the presence of trace elements may modify its hue and crystalline structure.
The process by which a mineral crystallises can provide clues as to what kind of mineral it is. There is a narrow window of time and depth (about 100 miles) where the right combination of heat and pressure can produce a diamond.
To this day, April's traditional birthstone is the diamond, also commonly used as a wedding or engagement ring. Additionally, diamonds are often given to honour 60th and 75th wedding anniversaries.
Facts
| Mineral | Birefringence | Birthstone |
| Diamond | None | April |
| Chemistry | Fracture | Heat Sensitivity |
| C | Conchoidal, splintery | No |
| Luminescence Present | Lustre | Mohs Hardness |
| Yes | Adamantine. | 10 |
| Optics | Pleochroism | Refractive Index |
| Isotropic, index very constant; N= 2.417. | None. | 2.417 |
| Special Care Instructions | Specific Gravity | Transparency |
| None | 3.515; Carbonado 2.9-3.5 | Transparent to opaque. |
| Varieties | Variety of | Wearability |
| Nano-Polycrystalline Diamond | Best Known Gemstones | Excellent |
| Absorption Spectrum | Luminescence | Cleavage |
| Absorption spectra can distinguish irradiation-hued diamonds from natural ones. Sequences of diamond colours can be drawn: Cape Series diamonds are colourless to pale yellow and glow blue. Strong support near 4155, 4785, 4650, 4520, 4350, and 4230. Most lines are hard to read. Brown Series diamonds are brown, green, or bluish-yellow and glow green under UV light. Weak lines at 5320 and 4980, and a strong line at 5040. Series Yellow has fluorescing, brownish, and yellow colours. This set contains genuine "canary" yellow diamonds. There is no spectrum, but occasionally a weak line at 4155. Il-B blue: Absorption spectrum insufficient. Pink diamonds absorb at 4150 and 5500. This band's strength indicates the diamond's colour. | Many diamonds have blue-violet fluorescence (often a result of twinning). The illusion sometimes appears in the daytime. Yellow stones sometimes glow yellow-green. Orange-flashing Indian pink gems The Hope diamond flashes blazing red and deep blue. SW fluorescence is weaker and identical to LW. SW diamonds glow blue-white. Blue diamonds can shine yellow (an "afterglow" reaction). UV transparency classifies diamonds. Type 1: Nitrogen-based Types Ia and Ib. Type 1 transmits all wavelengths below 3000. Most diamonds are Type La, and nitrogen is in platelets. Only 0.1% of Type I diamonds are type lb, nitrogen distributed throughout the crystal. Type II: Transparent to 2250 and contains aluminium. Type IIa is nitrogen-poor and does not phosphoresce in SW. Type lIb has bluish SW phosphorescence and conducts electricity. These diamonds lack nitrogen. | A+, one-way perfect (octahedral). A diamond can be easily cleaved along octahedral planes despite its impressive hardness. Cleaving a huge diamond saves weeks of hard sawing. Hence this property is useful in cutting. On the other hand, diamonds can be chipped because of their cleavage, which occurs after regular use. |
| Crystallography | Dispersion | Enhancements |
| Isometric; crystals can take on many shapes, including octahedra, dodecahedra, and others. Crystals with unique triangular pits on their octahedral faces (previously thought to be the product of etching; now thought to be a result of the growing process). | 0.044. This high dispersion in a colourless diamond creates the "fire" that is the source of the diamond's attractiveness. | Some colours produced by irridation are standard. Laser drilled to remove inclusions, common. Cracks filled with glass, occasional. |
| Colours | Typical Treatments | Formula |
| Colourless, grey, shades of yellow, brown, pink, green, orange, lavender, blue, black; rarely red | Fracture/Cavity Filling, High-Pressure High Temp (HPHT), Infusion/Impregnation, Irradiation, Laser Drilling, Surface Coating | C (carbon). Essentially pure with only minor traces of impurities. |
| Luminescence Type | ||
| Fluorescent, Phosphorescent, UV-Long, UV-Short |
History
Mining diamonds from India's rivers and streams in the fourth century BC sparked a global obsession with precious stones. Only the upper classes in India could afford them due to the scarcity of the country's resources.
However, Indian diamonds were among the unique products brought to Western Europe by caravans visiting Venice's mediaeval markets. Therefore, European nobility started donning diamonds as jewellery around the 1400s.
In 1700, prospectors in Brazil discovered diamonds while panning for gold in the gravels of local rivers. After finding the diamonds, Brazil's diamond industry remained unmatched for over 150 years.
Around the same time as the demand for diamonds grew, exploration efforts in South Africa turned up their first significant resources in the late 1800s. When diamonds were discovered at Kimberley, South Africa, in 1866, it marked the beginning of the African modern diamond industry.
South African suppliers impacted a wide range of the diamond trade. South Africa, Zaire (now renamed the Democratic Republic of the Congo), and the Soviet Union were the world's three most significant rough diamond producers by the late 1970s.
A new, extremely productive mine opened in Botswana in 1982, increasing global output. After significant new deposits were found in northern Canada in the year 2000, the global diamond mining industry experienced a period of rapid expansion.
To sum up, the market changed considerably after 1990, after the discovery of diamonds in South Africa and De Beers' founding in 1866.
Stone Size
The Cullinan (3106 carats, white, South Africa, 1905); the Excelsior (995.2 carats, white, South Africa, 1893); the Star of Sierra Leone (968.8 carats, white, Sierra Leone, 1972); and the Great Mogul (787.5 carats, white, India, 1650) are the biggest rough diamonds ever found.
The Mine Museum in Kimberley, South Africa, has a 616-carat yellowish octahedron discovered in 1975. The Zale Corporation has an 890-carat "fancy vivid golden yellow" rough diamond, making it the largest uncut diamond in the world.
The stone's provenance is unknown, but it is believed to be from Africa. If it were to be cut, it would produce a polished diamond of 600 carats, making it the largest stone. The rough diamond found in Zale is the fourth biggest ever discovered.
Great Mogul (280.0 carats, white, dome shape, unknown location), Nizam (277.0 carats, white, table cut, India in 1934), Jubilee (245.35 carats, white, cushion shape, privately owned, Paris), and the Orloff (189.6 carats, white, rose cut, Russian Diamond Fund, Kremlin) are among the largest cut stones.
Care
It's not hard to keep a diamond sparkling. Use some hot water, gentle soap, and a soft toothbrush. Clean your diamonds with a soft-bristled toothbrush after soaking them in soapy water for a few minutes. Keep the diamond's back as spotless as its polished surface. Once it's clean, dry it off with a lint-free microfiber cloth.
FAQs
1. Why are diamonds so expensive?
As mines reach the end of their useful life, the production of diamonds decreases. The high cost of mining and transporting diamonds to market, the scarcity of high-quality diamonds, and the high demand from consumers worldwide all contribute to the high price of the precious stone.
2. Is black diamond real?
There are indeed diamonds that are black in hue. Like colourless diamonds, black diamonds are composed entirely of carbon; however, the presence of trace amounts of certain minerals in the diamond is what gives it its distinctive black hue. Graphite inclusions are the most prevalent type seen in black diamonds.
3. Which diamond is costly?
Known for its exceptional quality and high price, the Koh-i-Noor is considered the world's most valuable diamond. Named Koh-I-Noor, which translates to "Mountain of Light," this diamond is the most famous precious stone in the world. When first mined, it weighed 793 carats, but after being cut and polished, it is now just 105.6 carats.
4. What is the rarest diamond colour?
Approximately twenty to thirty red diamonds exist in the entire globe, making them the rarest of all coloured diamonds. The unique forming method that gives them their stunning red hue involves altering the diamond's crystal structure in a way that changes how light travels through the stone, making it appear red rather than colourless.