Dec 6 2011
Diamonds: An in-depth account
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Diamonds were not yet regarded as things of value before the modern ages as what they were known for are objects that can drive away evil spirits because they have refracting capabilities. The Greeks and Romans believed them to be tears of the gods or a fragment from a star coming from the heavens.
People considered diamonds to have mystical powers. They were admired because of their beauty and were sought after by many for their commercial value.
800 B.C. – 1500s
Diamonds were introduced to Europe by Alexander the Great as he brought with him a stash when the gem was first discovered in India. But it was not until 1074, when a first sample of diamond jewelry was included in the creation of the crown of the queen of Hungary. Since that time, diamonds have then become known to be a valuable gem.
In the 1150s, a legendary 90.38 carat diamond named the Briolette of India was said to have beentransported by Eleanor of Aquitaine to England. And it was in Paris, almost 300 years later, when the first recorded art and history of cutting these precious jewels came into view.
There were many diamond cutters who lived in “la Courarie,” a special district. It was there where Lodewyk (Louis) van Berquem of Bruges, Belgium made the first ever cut diamonds upon discovering that diamonds could be cut using their dust. He invented the “scaif”; a wheel made for polishing diamond and was the one to introduce the process of using complete or absolute symmetry inpositioning facets on the stone.
1500s 1700s
The first woman to receive studs diamond earrings for her engagement was Mary of Burgundy, given to her by the Archduke Maximilian of Austria in 1477; hence, the start of the tradition and history of the engagement ring. The pink diamond from India was acquired by Babur during these times while almost a decade later, the Sancy diamond was brought to Constantinople less than a century later by Nicholas Harlai, a French ambassador.
Jean Baptist Tavernier, the author of the book “The Six Voyages of John Baptiste Tavernier”, made six continued voyages to India and purchased the Hope diamond and the Koh-i-Noor for his benefactor King Louis XIV of France. But as the French revolution was going on, the Hope Diamond was stolen from French crown jewels.
1800s to the present
It was shocking to hear that two years after founding the Tiffany Diamond Company in 1837 that the Hope Diamond came into public attention, in a gem catalogue owned by Henry Philip Hope.
A stone-cutter from Amsterdam re-cut the Koh-i-Noor Diamond as well into 105 carats for the Empress of India, Queen Victoria. It is now a part of the British Crown jewels. In this particular era, the Star of the South was discovered from the mines at Bagagem in Brazil.
Other diamond related activities in South Africa includes the cutting of the Eureka Investment Diamond in 1866 and 11 years later, the Tiffany Yellow was found. The Iranian Yellows that were bought by Nasseridin Shahde in 1889, were in reality African diamonds.
The present sees diamond stud earrings as more precious than it had been and has not failed to bewilder all the people in the world. Things that have been made with a diamond can be considered as things of excellence and great value.
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