Diamond Rings

Diamond Rings: The Multi-Facetted Diamond

A diamond is the hardest natural substance known to man. Created at depths of almost 400 km below the mantle of the earth under immense heat and pressure, it eventually finds its way to the surface through the agency of volcanic eruptions, taking millions of years in the process. By the time a diamond is actually located, it is already between 1 billion to 3.3 billion years old.

Diamond Rings: Ornamental

The earliest diamonds were talismans against the evil eye, ill health, and the many woes of humanity. They were concealed secretly on one's person, hoping to engender strength, courage and virtue by their proximity. Once the first diamonds were polished, the fire within came to light, and diamonds began to be used as ornaments.

It was in the 1400s that new cuts and polishing techniques were introduced, and diamonds gained immense popularity as jewellery. At first they adorned royal crowns, sceptres, shields and armour, but once direct sea routes were established to India (the primary source of diamonds at the time), they became available in quantity and the diamond centres of Europe were established. The exquisite crowns, sceptres and other crown jewels of the past may be displayed in museums now, but the diamond is as much sought after, valued and cherished today as it was then. Designing diamond jewellery has become an art form, the cutters and designers displaying as much genius and skill as any Renaissance artist.

Diamond Rings: In Industry

The primary qualities of the diamond, namely its hardness and resistance to heat, make it of exceptional use in industry. The hardest diamonds come from New South Wales in Australia and were called "can-ni-fare" (cannot be cut) by the diamantaires in Antwerp in the 1870s. Diamonds are used mainly in the manufacture of cutting, grinding, drilling and polishing machinery, equipment and tools. 80% of the diamonds mined around the world are not "gem quality"; they have too many "inclusions" (internal marks or flaws), the colour is cloudy or they are just too small to use. One of their uses in industry is the making of machinery and tools to cut and polish other diamonds and gems. Diamond dust is a natural and high grade abrasive and is used to coat saws, blades or grinding wheels which are then used to cut easily through unyielding substances like concrete, ceramic, granite, metals or glass. Drill bits used in the drilling of oil wells have tiny grains of diamond embedded in the metal of their cutting tips, cutting through all kinds of rock easily as the bits spin. They make superior dental drills too.

Diamond Rings: In Science and Technology

Diamonds are transparent and they have a high resistance to heat and abrasion. Technology today allows diamonds to be made into thin membranes for foils, films and windows, which are used in the manufacture of optical, infrared, microwave, x-ray and laser equipment and instruments. Computer scientists are exploring a "diamond chip" – all indications pointing to it being more efficient than the silicon chip in use today. And geophysicists are going back billions of years, studying the inclusions in the diamond to trace the history of the origins of the earth.