“You know the earth is a magical place, when Mother earth grows its own jewellery!”

If you are anything like us, chances are you’ve been buying diamond jewellery just because they sparkle with sheer joy (no judgment - we like sparkly things, and we’re not sorry!) 

Diamonds Rich History

However, on our ‘journey’ of setting up Isle of Her, we’ve had the glorious opportunity of digging a bit deeper into the depths of diamonds and the more we’ve uncovered, the more we’ve understood it’s rich, extremely peculiar and multi-faceted history (ha - see what we did there?).

Top ten list of fun diamond facts

So, here’s our top ten list of fun facts that we simply had to share. If you already knew some of these, kudos to you, you clever girl, but if not, well, now you know! 

1. Did you know that humans have existed for about 200,000 years, however the oldest diamonds are around 3.3 billion years old? If you already own natural diamonds, chances are they have been around since the dinosaur age. You have fossils in your possession!
   
   
2. The ancient Romans and Greeks believed that diamonds were tears cried by the Gods. The Romans even believed that Cupid’s arrow was tipped with diamonds. You see, it all makes sense now – you get struck by cupid, you fall in love, get a diamond and get married – the Romans clearly knew what they were talking about.
   
   
3. Have you heard of the galaxy’s largest diamond 50 light-years away from Earth? It’s called Lucy and astronomers believe it’s a 10 billion trillion trillion carat diamond star (we can’t even begin to imagine) twinkling in the sky. The diamond was actually named after the Beatles song “Lucy in the sky with diamonds”
   
   
4. Did you know scientists can now turn the remains of a loved one into a man-made diamond? DeBeers may have said Diamonds are forever, but now, so are YOU!
   
   
5. This one’s our favourite – did you know that under extremely high pressure, diamonds can be made from peanut butter? We always knew it was so much more than just a great source of protein, however, we would not advise trying this at home.
   
   
6. Thought all diamonds are white or colourless? It’s a common assumption but the extremely rare diamonds actually come in different shades of red, blue, pink, yellow, brown, black, orange and green.
   
   
7. Did you know the Toussaint Cartier necklace featured in Ocean’s 8 was based on the actual piece created in 1931 for the King of Nawanagar? The weight of all of the diamonds was approximately 500 carats (to be worn by the King himself). It has, however, since been taken apart to create other jewels.
   
   
8. This may be an obvious one but did you know diamonds do not float? This is why diamonds aren’t found on river beds and why in the movie Titanic, Rose’s ‘Heart of the Ocean’ blue diamond necklace sank right down to the bottom of the ocean, only to be retrieved decades later! Remember that the next time you wear your jewellery at the beach.
   
   
9. Did you know that the word ‘Diamond’ is originally derived from the Greek word ‘Adamas, which translates to unconquerable and indestructible? Although it’s known to be one of the hardest substances on earth, if you were to hit it with a hammer, it will most likely shatter. Again, we would not advise trying this at home.
   
   
10.  Contrary to its name, the Hope diamond is known to be cursed, bringing misfortune and tragedy to the person who owns or even wears it. One of the most famous jewels in the world, it weighs approximately 45.25 carats and its ownership dates back almost 4 centuries. Evalyn McLean, an American mining heiress, and socialite, famous for being the last private owner of the Hope diamond, believed it to be her good luck charm. However, her life states otherwise; after possession of the gem, her young son died in a car accident, her husband divorced her and died insanely, and her daughter committed suicide. Yikes.
    

Have any more fun facts that we may have missed? Drop us a comment below and we’ll add it to our list!