Womens Jewelry

This is a multi part article and is strictly for educational purposes.

The Centenary

The Centenary was found on July 17th, 1986 at the Premier Mine. Only a handful of people knew about it and all were sworn to silence. On March 11th, 1988, the centenary celebrations of De Beers took place in Kimberly and a banquet was held to close the Kimberly Mine also known as the Big Hole. Over 400 people were in attendance. Representatives of several national governments of diamond-producing countries and dignitaries from various sections of the industry listened as the chairman, Julian Oglivie Thompson, declared; we have recovered at the Premier Mine a diamond of 599 carats, which is perfect in color. Indeed it is one of the largest top-color diamonds ever found. Naturally it will be called the Centenary Diamond.

This extraordinary mine has produced several outstanding diamonds of the most superb color, which have been cut into famous gems: The Cullinan in 1905; the Niarchos in 1954; the Taylor-Burton in 1966 and the Premier Rose in 1978. The Premier Diamond Mine has produced close to 300 stones weighing more than 100 carats each, and 25 percent of the world’s diamonds weighing more than 400 carats each.

Conde Pink Diamond

Louis XIII are said to have bought the stone in 1643 after which the King presented it to Louis de Bourbon, Prince of Conde, and Commander of the French Army during the Thirty Years War. It is a light pink pear-shaped diamond that weights 9.01 carats. The stone is currently on display in the Musee de Conde in Chantilly, France.

Cullinan Diamond

The Cullinan 1 also called the Star of Africa, is a pear shaped diamond weighing 530.20 carats. It is called the Cullian 1 because it was it was the largest of 9 stones cut from the Cullian Diamond. The Cullian 1 is the 2nd largest cut diamond in the world and is part of the Crown Jewels of England. It is currently on display in the Tower of London.

The famous blue diamonds come in different shapes including pear shaped and octagon shaped. The cut of these valuable gems is especially important for large, colored stones and the cut must enhance the natural beauty of these wonderful gems. Sometimes the largest stones that are found with a blue color are studied extensively before any cutting is begun…. Famous Diamonds continue …

De Beers was founded in South Africa in 1888 and today is the largest producer and seller of diamonds. Almost from the beginning the De Beers company has had a strangle hold on the diamond industry and a huge advertising budget. Diamonds are not as rare as the advertiser would have you to believe. De Beers keeps a huge stockpile of diamonds and tightly controls supply.

De Beers started the very successful advertising campaign A Diamond Is Forever in 1947. The Advertising Age magazine has voted this to be the most recognizable advertising line of the twentieth century. This advertising campaign was designed to discourage diamonds owners from putting their old diamonds back into the market. The success of this campaign turned diamond into the symbol of eternal love and dramatically increased demand for the gems.

The ability to create cubic zirconium happened in the 1950 but it was not until 1979 that it became economically feasible to mass-produce and use them as a diamond substitute. Only a gemologist can tell the difference between a diamond created by nature and a diamond created in a laboratory.

There are several companies that are investing a lot of time and money in developing a laboratory-grown diamond process and are doing quite well. Because of the diamonds optical, thermal, chemical, and electronic properties, laboratory-grown diamonds have a lot of potential to affect many industries and not just the Jewelry industry.

Gemesis is a company founded in 1996 and based in Sarasota, Fla., that is growing diamonds in high-pressure, high-temperature crystal growing chambers. Each chamber starts with a tiny diamond crystal or diamond seed that is bathed in a molten solution of graphite and a metal-based catalyst at about 2,600 degrees Fahrenheit and 58,000 atmospheres of pressure. The diamond begins to grow, molecule by molecule and in about three and a half days a gem-quality 2.8 carat rough diamond has been created…. Man Made Diamonds continue …

The Gemological Institute of America (GIA), the American Gem Society (AGS), and the International Gemological Institute (IGI) are the three most widely known and respected diamond grading laboratories in the world. Each of the grading laboratories have developed a very similar nomenclature for identifying the 4 C’s of diamonds.

Color grading scales used by the internationally recognized laboratories (GIA & IGI for example), ranges from totally colorless (D) to pale yellow or brown color (Z). Brown diamonds darker than K color are usually described using their letter grade, and a descriptive phrase, for example M Faint Brown. Diamonds with more depth of color than Z color fall into the fancy color diamond range.

The coloration of diamonds can be caused by several factors. Impurities trapped in the diamond during its formation, the crystal lattice structure of the diamond, and the exposure to radiation can all lead to the wide verity of colors available in diamonds.

Yellow Diamonds

Yellow diamonds are colored because of the impurities that are trapped inside diamonds when they are created. If a few of the millions of carbon atoms have been replaced by nitrogen atoms, then structure of the diamond will not be significantly altered but the clarity will be changed. The amount of color displayed is dependent on the amount of nitrogen involved.

When we see color it is because the object we are looking at reflected a specific wavelength of the light spectrum. A good example of this is a yellow flower. The flower absorbs all of the light except the yellow light, which is reflected by the yellow flower.

Blue Diamonds

In the case of a blue colored diamond some of the nitrogen has been replaced by Boron. Boron will reflect the blue wavelength of the light spectrum. The higher the concentration of boron the more color will be showed. At a level of one or a few boron atoms for every million-carbon atom, an attractive blue color results…. Colored Diamonds continue …

White diamonds are produced by mines all over the world in a wide variety of shapes and sizes. With the rise in popularity of the colored diamonds the term White is misleading. A white diamond is considered to be totally colorless.

Color grading scales used by the internationally recognized laboratories (GIA & IGI for example), ranges from D which is totally colorless to Z which is a pale yellow or brown color. Brown diamonds darker than K color are usually described using their letter grade, and a descriptive phrase, for example M Faint Brown. Diamonds with more depth of color than Z color fall into the fancy color diamond range.

One thing that will remain a constant and that is that white diamonds are classic. The simple beauty of a white diamond is magnificent. There are so many jewelry possibilities that include the use of white diamonds. There are necklaces, bracelets, anklets, earrings, rings, and even toe rings and belly button rings. Nothing is off limits when displaying the sheer beauty of white diamonds.

Choosing a piece of jewelry is not always as simple as visiting the jeweler and choosing something that looks pretty under the glass. Diamonds are expensive and knowledge is needed to make a wise purchase that will retain or even increase in value over time. This means understanding how diamonds are classified.

There are the “4 C’s” of diamond classification and they stand for cut, color, clarity, and carat. Each has its own set of very precise rules when grading a diamond. The first is the cut of the diamond.

The act of polishing a diamond and creating flat facets in symmetrical arrangement brings out the diamond’s hidden beauty in dramatic fashion. There are mathematically proven algorithms involved in creating the perfect cut. When diamonds are cut properly they will enhance any piece of jewelry. They are stunning to look at, and when the sun catches them, they flash like miniature suns…. White Diamonds continue …

The Beau Sancy

Also called The Little Sancy is a rounded pear shaped and weights about 34 carats and has been confused with its counter part called The Sancy which is 54 carats. This diamond was bought by Prince Frederick Henry of Orange the grandfather of King Fredrick I of Prussia, who died in the year 1647. The Beau Sancy is now in the possession of the head of the house of Hohenzollern, Prince Louis-Ferdinand of Prussia, grandson of William II, the last Emperor of Germany

The Beluga

The Beluga diamond weighs over 103 carats and is the largest standard oval brilliant cut diamond in the world. This diamond was featured in an article about Blood Diamonds in the March 2002 issue of National geographic magazine.

The Black Orlov

The Blace Orlov is said to have derived its name from the Russian Princess Nadia Vyegin-Orlov who owned it during the mid 1800s. It is a cushion cut stone weighing 76.50 carats and is a very dark gun metal color. It has also been rumored to have been cut from a 195 carat stone that belonged to a shrine near Pondicherry, India in the 1900s. There is no evidence of a Russian princess by that name nor has India ever produced any large black diamonds of note. In 1969, the stone was sold for $300,000.

The Blue Empress

The Blue Empress is a rare blue pear shaped diamond that weights about 14 carats and is part of a necklace valued at around $16,000,000. The necklace is made from 18K white gold with smaller white diamonds surrounding the blue empress.

The Blue Heart

This diamond weights 30.82 carats and is of a rare deep blue color. In 1910 Cartier purchased the diamond and sold it to an Argentinean woman named Mrs. Unzue. Van Cleef & Arpels bought the stone in 1953 for an estimated $300,000. The Blue Empress is on exhibit in the Smithsonian Institution in Washington D.C. Along with the Hope diamond and the Heart of Eternity, it is one of the world most famous blue diamonds…. World Famous Diamonds continue …

Agra Diamond

The first recorded history of the Agra Diamond in 1526 when Babur the first Mogul emperor was reported to have received the diamond from the family of the slain Raja of Agar. Many stories surround the diamond from the mid 1500 to 1891 including one story where a horse was forced to swallow the diamond so it could be smuggled out of India to England. None of the stories can be validated until 1891 when the diamond was documented to be in the position of Edwin Streeter.

Today the Agra Diamond has been graded as a naturally colored Fancy Light Pink and weighs 28.15 carats. It was last sold for about $6,900.000 to the SIBA Corporation of Hong Kong.

Ahmadabad

The Ahmadabad Diamond is named after the capitol of the Indian State of Gujarat and it is believed to have been purchased by a French gem merchant called Jean Baptiste Tavernier in the 1600s. The Ahmadabad Diamond has been graded by the GIA a D-color and weighs 78.86 carats, and is cut in an antique-pear shape. It was purchased in1995 by Robert Mouawad, for $4,324,554.

Allnatt

This 101.29-carat cushion cut its color having been certified by the GIA as Fancy Vivid Yellow, VS2 clarity, is named after its former owner, Alfred Ernest Allnatt.

The American Star

The EightStar company of California wanted to prove that optical perfection of the round brilliant diamonds could be obtained by using an exclusive light-tracking instrument called a FireScope which allows a diamond cutter to align facets so precisely that the flow of light into and out of a diamonds can be completely controlled. In 2001 this diamond was slowly cut from 14.89 to 13.42 carats over a six-week period. The key to a beautiful diamond is by cutting the diamond for maximum light output and not size and in the case of the American Star this was achieved.

The Amsterdam - No Picture

The Amsterdam is reported to be a synthetic black diamond weighing 33.74 carats and is completely black. It was sold in 2001 for $352.000 setting a world record for the highest price paid for a black diamond.

The Archduke Joseph

Named after the Archduke Joseph August of the Hapsburg dynasty is a 76.45 carat diamond from India. It was sold in Geneva in November of 1993, for $6,487,945.

The Arcots

Named after the town of Arcots the diamonds were reported to have been given to Queen Charlotte in 1777 by Nawab of Arcot. The largest was 38.6 carats and was re-cut in 1959 to 30.99 carats and the smaller was re-cut to 18.85 carats to gain greater clarity and brilliance. They largest of the Arcots was set in a pendant and later sold in 1993 to Sheik Ahmed Hassan Fitaihi, the Saudi Arabian dealer…. World Famous Diamonds continue …

Affordable Antique Engagement
Rings are starting to become very popular, which
means that more and more people are driving up the cost. Here you will
find some great information on the best places to purchase your
sweatheart’s ring. Most people know a little something
about antique engagement rings but don’t think they are affordable.
Here are some basic facts.

http://www.allabout-antiqueengagementrings.com

Yellow diamonds were once thought to be inferior. Paler yellows, such as canary yellow, are more common but are not as desirable as their darker counterparts. Intense fancy yellow diamonds are the most rare and valuable of the yellow diamonds. A tiny .25-carat yellow diamond can be priced as high as 10,000 dollars depending on its clarity and cut. Several larger 6 carat Fancy Vivid Yellow diamonds have just recently been sold for $57.000 per carat.

Yellow diamonds are colored because of the impurities that are trapped inside diamonds when they are created. If a few of the millions of carbon atoms have been replaced by nitrogen atoms, then structure of the diamond will not be significantly altered but the clarity will be changed. The amount of color displayed is dependent on the amount of nitrogen involved.

When we see color it is because the object we are looking at reflected a specific wavelength of the light spectrum. A good example of this is a yellow flower. The jeans absorb all of the light except the blue light, which is reflected by the yellow flower.

The increase the popularity of the Yellow diamonds has been caused by several factors. Celebrities are increasingly purchasing the very rare but beautiful Fancy Vivid Yellow Diamonds. Johnny Damon, the Red Sox baseball star, married Michelle Mangan last year, everyone was dazzled by the brilliant yellow diamond engagement ring she was wearing, so the yellow diamond has begun to take over the spotlight.

Many other celebrities jumped on the bandwagon, most notably Dennis Quaid’s main squeeze, Kimberly Buffington, supermodel Heidi Klum, cover girl Varonica Varekova, hockey player Petr Nedved, producer Rodney Jenkins, and singer Joy Enriquez. Celebrities may be adopting yellow diamonds as the newest hot diamond trend due to their extreme rarity.

Yellow diamonds are rarely found in diamond mines. Only estimated 1/10 of 1 ppercent of diamonds mined have an intense yellow color. It is fortunate for the general public that lab created yellow diamonds are more common, more affordable, and just as beautiful…. Yellow Diamonds continue …

The Argyle Diamond Mine is located in a remote corner of North West Australia and it produces over 90 percent of the world supply of pink diamonds and yet less that 1/10 of 1 percent is classified as Pink in color.

The pink diamonds comes in shades ranging from a pastel rose, such as the Pink Orchid to intense purple-reds of the Moussaieff Red, and the price is determined by the intensity of the color. Pink diamonds have sold for up to $1,000,000 a carat. Unlike the Type I diamonds that derived their color from impurities imbedded in the diamond, Pink diamonds are considered a Type II and get their color from a process known as Plastic Deformation.

Type II diamonds have very few if any nitrogen impurities in them. They get their coloration due to structural anomalies caused by Plastic Deformation during the crystal growth. The intense pressure changes the lattice structure of diamonds and has led to the formation of Pink, Red, and Brown colored diamonds.

Only 1 out of the top 66 largest diamonds in the world is pink. When Ben Affleck gave Jennifer Lopez a pink diamond solitaire engagement ring, traffic to web sites that had pink diamonds increased from 300 to 400 percent. Although not normally large in size they have become very popular and over the years many have become world famous.

Probably the most famous pink diamond in the world was the Pink Panther Diamond that was made famous by the 1964 file release of The Pink Panther. Peter Sellers as Inspector Clouseau was on the trail of the jewel thief also known as The Pink Panther…. Pink Diamonds continue …

Diamonds are composed of carbon atoms that have been subject to extreme pressure and heat. If the diamond contains no impurities then the color will be crystal clear. Nature rarely creates anything that does not have any impurities in it. Most diamonds will contain some amounts of nitrogen atoms. If a few of the millions of carbon atoms have been replaced by nitrogen atoms, then structure of the diamond will not be significantly altered but the clarity will be changed.

When sunlight, which contains all colors, passes thought a diamond some of the light waves will be reflected by the nitrogen. The amount of color displayed is dependent on the amount of nitrogen involved. When we see color it is because the object we are looking at reflected a specific wavelength of the light spectrum. A good example of this is a pair of blue jeans. The jeans absorb all of the light except the blue light, which is reflected by the jeans.

In the case of a blue colored diamond some of the nitrogen has been replaced by Boron. Boron will reflect the blue wavelength of the light spectrum. The higher the concentration of boron the more color will be showed. At a level of one or a few boron atoms for every million-carbon atom, an attractive blue color results. Natural diamonds of this color are rare and highly priced, such as the Hope diamond. The Gemological Institute of America (GIA) has developed a color chart for grading diamonds.

GIA Color Chart.

D, E, F = Colorless
K, L, M = Faint Color
N, O, P, Q, R = Very Faint Color
S through Z = Light Color

Colored diamonds are very rare and very expensive. The Blue diamond is one of the rarest, and in my option the most desirable of the colored diamonds. The Hope diamond, which can be viewed in the Smithsonian Institution in Washington D.C., is the most famous blue diamond in the world, and at 45.52 carats the largest.

The Hope Diamond is more than a billion years old and it is the worlds’ largest deep blue diamond. It was first found in Golconda, India in the early 1600s and has had a very checkered pasted ever since. It has crossed oceans and continents many times, has been owned by Kings and Commoners, has been stolen and recovered, sold and resold, cut and re-cut…. Blue Diamonds continue …