DIAMONDS

HISTORY

A man presents his prospective bride with an engagement ring upon acceptance of his marriage proposal. Anthropologists believe this tradition originated from a Roman custom in which wives wore rings attached to small keys, indicating their husbands' ownership.

In 1477, Archduke Maximillian of Austria commissioned the very first diamond engagement ring on record for his betrothed, Mary of Burgundy. This sparked a trend for diamond rings among European aristocracy and nobility.

The sentimental Victorians popularized ornate engagement ring designs that mixed diamonds with other gemstones, precious metals and enamels. Often these rings were crafted in the shapes of flowers and were dubbed “posey rings.” Diamond rings crafted during the Edwardian era continued the tradition of pairing diamonds with other jewels, commonly mounted in filigree settings.

I In 1947, De Beers launched its now classic slogan, "A Diamond is Forever." This campaign spurred even more sales. The implied durability of a diamond

conveyed the meaning in the American psyche that marriage is forever. A diamond's purity and sparkle have now become symbols of the depth of a man's commitment to the woman he loves in practically all corners of the world.The opening of the DeBeers mines in Africa made diamonds more accessible. In the 1930s, when demand for diamond rings declined in the U.S. during hard economic times, the De Beers Company began an aggressive marketing campaign using photographs of glamorous movie stars swathed in diamonds. Within three years, the sales of diamonds had increased by 50 percent.

It was perceived in these times that the diamond would reflect the light and warn off any evil forces sent out to destroy the couple.

In Africa in the 1870's there was a diamond rush in after a young South African boy, a few years earlier had discovered a transparent rock on his fathers farm. Over the next fifteen years, South Africa yielded more diamonds than India had in over 2000 years. India prior to this discovery was the major supplier of diamonds. South Africa was a land of opportunity, Cecil John Rhodes at age 17 followed his brother to South Africa. There he became a business entrepreneur and eventually bought up many diamond claims and then finally went on to form De Beers consolidated Mines.

As we know in today's "diamonds are a girl's best friend," but what do we know about them? Since diamonds were first discovered in India 3,000 years ago they have been put to many uses. They have been used in trade and barter, for healing properties, used for magic and adornment and even in industry. What makes a diamond so unique is not only its beauty but its properties which are unrivalled by any other natural material for its scarcity, abrasion resistance, value, resistance to chemical attack and hardness. Did you know that no other stone has been graded like diamonds? When you buy a diamond you look for the 4C's- CUT, COLOUR, CLARITY, and CARAT (or size).

This process was first introduced in the 1930's as there was a surplus of diamonds and it was realised that more money could be asked for certain stones. Until this point in time, diamonds were really just priced on their size.

MINING

Diamond crystals are brought closer to the Earth's surface through volcanic activity. Diamonds can be found in shallow alluvial deposits where the crystals settle after being transported away from the kimberlite pipes by geologic activity and rivers. Around 30 percent of the diamonds mined worldwide are gem-quality.

The chemical composition of diamonds is Carbon and they have the highest thermal conductivity of any mineral. The fact that they are also very strong makes them the most sought after mineral. There are 5 different types of diamonds and they are mined using two different methods.

Where are alluvial diamond deposits found? Alluvial diamond deposits are found on the Atlantic coast of South Africa and Namibia, as well as in some riverbeds in Angola, Sierra Leone, Democratic Republic of Congo, Central African Republic, Cote d’Ivoire, Guinea, Ghana, Liberia, Tanzania, Togo, Brazil, Venezuela, Guyana and South Africa.

Primary- such as Kimberly Argyle mine in Western Australia.

The discovery of the African diamond deposits in 1867-1871 was the single most important event to influence the development of a grading system. With the increasing quantity of diamonds hitting world markets, their rarity and value was diminishing therefore a criteria was set up for: colour, cut & then inclusions (clarity).

Harding Black sources their diamonds from one of the UK's leading specialists in certified diamonds, Henig Diamonds go to great lengths to ensure that each of the diamonds it sells has been ethically sourced. They guarantee that every diamond they sell has not been used to fund wars or insurgencies (stones that are known as conflict, or blood diamonds) and has been scrutinized by our very own, highly skilled gemologists.

In 2002 governments around the world implemented the Kimberly Process; an agreement that controls the trade of rough diamonds to ensure they are not used in areas of conflict. These controls ensure that every shipment contains only certified diamonds, is numbered and sealed.

As a British Jewellery Association (BJA) member, Henig Diamonds are committed to eliminating the trade in conflict diamonds and have an auditable means by which we can prove that all the diamonds we sell comply with the Kimberley Process.

DIAMOND TREATMENTS

Currently there are treatments that are done to diamonds to make them appear more valuable then they are. A lot of these treatments are unstable & unpredictable making them less desirable then untreated diamond.

These treatments are

Clarity enhancement

* Laser Drilling
* Fracture filling
Colour enhancement

* Irradiation
* Coatings
* High pressure high temperature treatments.

The clarity, or purity, of a diamond refers to internal inclusions of the diamond, and is one of the 4-C's in determining a diamonds' value. Common inclusions that appear inside diamonds are black carbon spots and small cracks, commonly referred to as fractures or "feathers", due to their feathery whitish appearance when viewed from above or through the side. Diamonds may also have other inclusions such as air bubbles and mineral deposits such as iron or garnet. The size, color, and position of the inclusions are factors in determining the value of a diamond, especially when the other gemological characteristics are of a higher standard.

Another form of diamond treatments that is currently on the market is laser drilling. This is done by using a laser to drill down into a mineral inclusion and filling it up with acid that dissolves the mineral inclusion. The diamond is not affected by this, only the inclusion which is susceptible to the acid. This treatment can "improve" the diamond by ½ to full grade i.e. taking a PK stone with a visible inclusion to a grade of SI, small inclusion. Then there is a drill hole left by the laser, this can be left as an empty void or be filled up with glass. Diamonds that are treated with the glass filling have a lower melting point and cannot be exposed to heat such as any repair work that needs to be carried out, washing up in extremely hot water or even sitting too close to a heater can cause the glass filling to come out. If left unfilled by glass, dirt and dust can fill up the void making it look very dirty and impossible to clean, also leaving it susceptible to cleaving (knocking or bumping it can spilt in half). The drill hole can be seen under a microscope by a trained professional diamond grader as seen in the photo above.

At Chilton's we protect you against this by having our diamond graders check all stones, regardless of what is stated on accompanying certificates.

The four C's for diamonds are the main features to be aware of and discussed when buying your ring.

CUT

Too shallow: Light is lost out the bottom causing the diamond to lose its brilliance.

Too Deep: Light escapes out the sides causing the diamond to become very dark and dull in appearance.

Given the example of two stones both of the same colour, clarity & size, one of which has a lot of sparkle and is better able to handle light, the other being badly cut with all the wrong proportions, which diamond would you want? Badly cut stones may be disguised by numbers and percentages in Valuation Certificates. The average person could easily misinterpret the implications and chose an inferior cut stone. The ideal percentages are all different they depend on the stone's shape which will determine its fire and its brilliance. The best way to work out whether a diamond is well cut is to be able to hold it near light and make sure it looks bright or to seek advice from professional diamond dealers such as Chilton's where we take all the worry and stress out of buying a diamond.

DEVELOPMENT THOUGH THE AGES OF THE DIAMOND CUTTING TECHNOLOGY.

ANTIQUE DIAMOND CUTS

ROSE CUT

Rose cuts were invented in the mid 16th century, it was also known as the Antwerp rose, Crowned Rose Cut, Dutch Cut, and the Full Holland Cut. The Rose cut forms a single hemisphere for a total of 24 facets or it can be two back-to-back hemispheres (Double Dutch Rose) forming a total of 48 facets. This cut was also often foiled from behind to create more dispersion.

OLD MINE CUT - 1700S

The "old mine" cut is the earliest form of the "brilliant cut" diamond.

This Old Mine cut is basically square with gently rounded corners and "brilliant" style facets. The crown is typically tall, resulting in a smaller table. The culet cut off leaving an eye effect (hole in the middle) that is visible when looking down into the stone from the table.

OLD EUROPEAN CUT - 1800S

The "Old European" cut was the prototype of the modern Brilliant Cut. The Old European diamond cut has a very small table, a heavy crown, and very tall overall depth. Like the modern round brilliant, the old European diamond has a circular girdle.

THE MODERN ROUND BRILLIANT CUT

The modern round brilliant cut diamond was developed by Belgian diamond-cutter Marcel Tolkowsky in 1919. This cut is also known as the "Tolkowsky Cut" and "Tolkowsky Brilliant." Even with modern techniques, the cutting and polishing of a diamonds resulted in a loss of as much as 50% of the stone's total weight. The round brilliant cut was a partial solution to this problem. This cut came into prevalence between the 1950's- 1960's when technology advancements had improved we now know it as the modern brilliant cut diamond.

COLOUR

Diamonds come in a wide range of colours. The main scale is the colourless scale D-Z. Diamonds are graded on this scale from colourless to yellow with a letter from the alphabet allotted to each colour grade. The colour scale starts at D and descends to Z. Lower than Z in colour is termed fancy diamond & the price begins to soar again due to their rarity .The most expensive diamonds in this series are colourless stones. The less colour in a diamond, the more white light can pass effortlessly through and be dispersed as rainbows of colour on top.

What causes the yellow colour in diamonds? Nitrogen in the earth causes that yellowness in the stones. Obviously there are many yellow stones on the market and this makes the white stones highly sought after and maintains their price-because they are rarer. Australia produces 40 million carats per year: 52% for industrial use (saw blade tips, cutting devices etc) and 40% is near gem quality, with only 5% actual gem quality. In the current market today unfortunately most of the so called "bargain" diamonds found on the internet and in the chain "low cost stores" are of industrial quality.

Harding Black recommends you look no lower than H-I grading.

CLARITY

The observation of internal features and faults in diamonds for commercial purposes began at the beginning of the 20th century in Paris. Paris at the time was the centre for the trade in diamonds. In the 1930's the GIA bought in the first quality grading system. A perfectly clear diamond which is free from inclusions is a very rare find. Most diamonds contain very tiny inclusions that like fingerprints make each diamond unique and identifiable. Diamonds can really have there own ‘DNA' (characteristic set of markings), Mother Nature's finger print. The fewer the inclusions, the more the diamond will sparkle. A diamond's clarity can only be determined by using an x10 magnification and a trained eye. Letters are used to denote clarity grades: FL, IF indicate a flawless or internally flawless diamond or LC (loop clean); VVS means very, very small inclusions that are not visible to the naked eye these can be 1 or 2 type inclusions; VS simply means very small inclusions, again not visible to the naked eye; SI means small inclusions and I or PK means that inclusions can be detected by the naked eye and indicate a poorer quality diamond. Diamonds are only put into these sub grades of 1 & 2 over the size of 0.40cts.

Harding Black recommends the grading from VS to SI Clarity.

CARAT

Carat refers to the weight of the diamond. One carat is divided into 100 points and generally if a client wants a larger size diamond they sacrifice some clarity and colour to achieve size. If you want the best of the 4 C's be prepared to pay a premium for this. There is no substitute for quality.

There is plenty to think about before buying a diamond ring and the best advice that can be given to anyone buying a diamond is to do just that- get the best advice. Go to someone who is knowledgeable, trained and reputable and who is prepared to take the time to explain the diamond you are buying. Unlike many other large purchases like cars or even houses diamonds are usually kept for the lifetime of the wearer because of their sentimental value and are looked at every day by the wearer, so getting it right is important.