Diamond History

The word "Diamond"

The word "Diamond" comes from the Greek word adamastos meaning "unrelenting, unconquerable", which originally meant a state of being to which every man should aspire. Adamas was the name of the strongest metal with which the weapons of the gods are forged, and adamas came to also apply to diamond.

The history of diamonds

The history of diamonds is almost as long as the history of civilisation, and is deeply interwoven into many cultures and traditions.


Ancient Age


Diamonds were first mined in India, and it is from there that the first known reference to diamond is made in a Sanskrit manuscript, the Arthsastra ("The Lesson of Profit") by Kautiliya, a minister to Chandragupta of the Mauryan dynasty (322 BC - 185 BC) in northern India. Plato even wrote about diamonds as living beings, embodying celestial spirits.


It was'nt until the Middle Ages that diamonds first began appearing in European regalia and jewellery, often set among pearls in splendid wrought gold. However, only men wore them!


Middle Ages


In the Middle Ages and the Renaissance period rings set with precious stones were not seen so much as jewellery, but more of an amulet that bestowed magical powers like fearlessness, invincibility and sexual prowess and ability to attract others.


Not only was it believed that diamonds could bring luck and success, but also that they could counter the effects of astrological events. These myths laid the groundwork for monarchs to begin wearing diamonds as symbols of power.


King Louis IX of France (1214-1270) valued diamonds so highly that he established a law reserving diamonds for the king alone. However, Within 100 year’s diamonds appeared in royal jewellery of both men and women, then among the greater European aristocracy.


16th - 19th Century


It wasn't until the 16th century that Diamond could first be cut and polished; thereby yielding it's beauty. The Ancient Greeks wore Diamonds into battle on their shields believing the stones could lend them their invincibility. In medieval times, uncut octahedron Diamond crystals were set into rings, and their exposed points earned these rings the name "Glass Cutter Rings."


By the 18th century, the diamond came to represent the ultimate symbol of wealth and power. It was not until the mid-nineteenth century Agnes Sorel, mistress to King Charles VII of France, began wearing diamonds, which began a new fashion for women.


In the 17th and 18th centuries the diamond presided as the ultimate in representing all that was wealth, prestige and power, and the huge import of diamonds during this period was nothing short of revolutionary.