april birthstone

Created by: www.birthstonebrilliance.com

The birthstone for the month of April is the Diamond.

The diamond was first discovered around 800 BC in India and that country continued to be the major source of diamonds for many years.

The word diamond comes from the Greek word adamas, which means unbreakable, proper and unalterable.



Diamond Country Mining

The first large scale diamond mine to open in the modern era was in the 1860s in South Africa.

Diamonds are also mined in Russia, Canada and United States.

They were discovered in Australia in the mid-nineteenth century, and the country starting mining in the 1970s.


About Diamond

The richest diamond deposit in the world was found near Australia’s Lake Argyle, which turned the area into the world’s largest volume producer of diamonds. The site produces over a third of the world’s diamonds annually.

Diamonds were said to possess many powers including:

Bringing victory to those who carried it bound on the left arm,

The removal of panic

Pestilences

Enchantments

And could remove the power of lodestone and magnets to attract iron.



Diamonds in the Dark Ages

Used as medical aids and were believed to cure illness if swallowed.

Diamonds in the Middle Ages

Focus on diamonds shifted from mystical powers to their worth which increased public awareness.

At one point rumours circulated that diamonds were poisonous. The rumours came from mine owners trying to prevent workers from smuggling diamonds by swallowing them.


As diamonds are such valuable gemstones a number of characteristics are used to determine the price and they are generally referred to as the Four Cs.

1. The first C is Carat.

2. The second C is Colour.

3. The third C is Clarity.

4. The final C is Cut.


The first C is Carat

The mass of the diamond is measured as carat weight.

200-milligrams is one carat and the value of the diamond increases in direct relation to the carat weight.


The second C is Colour

A colour scale grades diamonds from D (colourless) to Z (dark yellow).

The value of a diamond is enhanced or detracted depending on the hue and intensity of colouration.


The third C is Clarity

An inclusion is a flaw inside a diamond.

It could be a tiny crack or a crystal of foreign material that creates the inclusion.

The clarity of a diamond is influenced in different ways by the number, size, colour, location orientation and visibility of inclusions.


The final C is Cut.

The cut relates to the way a diamond has been shaped and polished from a rough stone to the final gem.

The shape of a diamond and the quality of workmanship are both described by the cut.

Variations of cuts, such as the emerald, round or pear shapes are used for different kinds of jewelry.


The ten richest diamond mines in the world are:

1. Kimberley, South Africa (100,000 carats in 2010) which first opened in 1871

2. Letlhakane, Botswana (1.2 million carats in 2010) which opened in 1975

3. Finsch, South Africa (1.3 million carats in 2010) which opened in 1978

4. Ekati, Northwest Territories Canada (3 million carats in 2010) opened 1998

5. Venetia, South Africa (4.3 million carats in 2010) opened in 1992.


The ten richest diamond mines in the world are:

6. Diavik, Northwest Territories (6.5 million carats 2010) opened in 2003

7. Catoca, Angola (7.5 million carats 2009) opened 1997

8. Orapa, Botswana (9.53 million carats 2010) opened 1971

9. Argyle, Australia (9.8 million carats 2010) opened 1985

10. Jwaneng, Botswana (11.5 million carats 2009) which began mining operations in 1982.

april birthstone

Lifestyle