DIAMONDS

Because of their extraordinary beauty, diamonds have always been appreciated through the centuries for their splendour, their rarity and their unsurpassable hardness. The emotion that they evoke with their brilliance is fused with the sense of magic and mystery that they emanate. History is rich in episodes and legends linked to the diamond, a gem to which wealth, mystical power and status have always been attributed. The ancient Greeks claimed they were fragments of fallen stars and, up till the 15th century, only sovereign rulers and military commanders were permitted to wear them as symbols of strength and invincibility.In fact, the word “diamond” derives from the Greek term “adamas” meaning invincible. Only later did diamonds become a symbol of love. It has been said that their “fire” reflected the flame of passion and that Cupid’s arrows were diamond-tipped, because diamonds were considered stones of exceptional magical power. It is their rarity that upholds the characteristic value of diamonds and everything that is rare is also very precious. Of all the diamonds mined in the world, only 20% of the stones extracted possess the qualities required for their use in jewellery. To obtain a single one-carat fine quality gem, more than 250 tons of mined rock must be sieved and processed. Only after precision-cutting by a competent and expert diamond cutter will the rough diamond reveal its exceptional beauty and brilliance.