- Hunt Valley Jewelers
Diamond Fun Facts
Updated: Aug 23, 2019
Diamonds are defined as colorless gemstones composed of pure carbon, but diamonds come in all colors of the rainbow: blue, green, orange and red naturally-colored diamonds are considered extremely rare
Most diamonds are 1 to 3 billion years old
They are the hardest naturally-occurring substance on Earth
The word "diamond" is derived from the ancient Greek root adamas, which means proper, unalterable, invincible
Ancient Romans and Greeks thought that diamonds were the tears of gods, or remnants of fallen stars
Romans also believed that the tips of Cupid’s arrows were coated in diamond
Diamonds were first discovered in India, around 300 BCE. Here, myths that diamonds could ward off evil developed
In thirteenth-century France, only Kings were permitted [by law] to wear diamonds
Upon the arrangement of their marriage in 1477, the Archduke of Austria gave Mary of Burgundy a diamond ring. This is our earliest record of a diamond engagement ring
Diamonds were not discovered in South America until around 1725 (they were found in Minas, Gerais, Brazil)
North American diamonds weren't discovered until the 1840s
'The Great Diamond Rush' began in the early 1870s, after diamonds were discovered in Africa
In 2004 scientists discovered the largest diamond to date: a collapsed star with an estimated width of 4,000 km and weight of 10 billion trillion trillion carats ( 5 million trillion trillion pounds)
The collapsed star was nicknamed Lucy after a Beatles songs, and it's located about 50 light years from Earth
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