DIAMOND
PURE CARBON, DIAMONDS ARE the hardest mineral on Earth. Diamonds form in the earth’s mantle layer and are transported to the surface in volcanic rocks known as kimberlites. The most common colors are brown and yellow, and most are semitransparent. However, diamonds can be black and opaque as well as completely transparent and colorless. Rare “fancy colored” diamonds can occur in almost any color of the spectrum. Attractive “canary” yellows are the most common, while pinks and blues are rare and highly valued. Pure greens, oranges, violets, and reds are exceedingly rare. Some diamonds used in the gem trade are heat-treated to remove color from unattractive browns. Others are irradiated and heated to mimic natural “fancy” colors. Due to the overwhelming and seemingly endless demand for this most precious stone, many mines in Africa have been depleted, leaving the largest working mines in Congo, Angola, Botswana, Canada, and Australia.
While diamonds have been highly revered throughout history, it was not until jewelers in fourth century BCE India made the clear distinction between diamonds and crystal quartz that the diamond began its reign as the “King of Gems.” Until the eighteenth century, India was the sole source of diamonds, and some of the most prized specimens in the world, including the legendary Hope Diamond, were found there. Believed to be great sources of magic and protection, diamonds’ mythology was linked to their rarity and extreme hardness. Ancient Greeks believed diamonds were the tears of the gods (and how often do gods cry?), while ancient Chinese myths held that the gems grew beneath the sea and could be found only in the bellies of fish. More recently, they have been linked to fidelity and everlasting affection—though this is more of a marketing effort than folklore.
Though the high cost of these gemstones keeps them from being widely used in gem therapy, practitioners believe that they have the power to connect the wearer to divine energies and attest that that is the reason they have been prized by kings and nobles for thousands of years. They are believed to enhance inner vision and induce a spiritual lightness. Diamonds are the modern and ayurvedic birthstone for April and are associated with tenth, thirtieth, sixtieth, and seventy-fifth wedding anniversaries.