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Known by the Ancient Greeks as "the tears of the Gods," Diamonds are possibly one of the most timelessly renowned gems in the world. For centuries they have charmed and captivated, not only for their brilliance and rarity but also for their durability. They have become tokens and indications of wealth, status and more recently of love, spawned legend and tragedy alike and are today one of the most highly prized possessions on the planet.

History: India is the oldest known commercial trader of Diamonds, although the gems themselves were formed over millions of years; a combination of carbon gases and immense heat and pressure deep within the earth. The first diamond deposits were alluvial, found in river beds and soil which became referred to as "diamond fields" in the 1600's, although diamonds had been used in jewellery as far back as the 11th Century. In 1725 after stumbling upon diamonds whilst prospecting for gold, furious mining began in Tejuco, Brazil which in turn caused a sharp decline in their value in Europe as supply increased. The next discovery was in the 1800's in Africa, by which time the Tejuco supply had been all but exhausted. It was here that some of the worlds largest and most famous diamonds were discovered. Around this time Diamonds were also discovered in Russia's Ural Mountains. Throughout the 20th Century, diamonds have been found in China, Australia and America, the former sourcing diamonds of such size and quality that their position as the foremost producer of diamonds is awaited by many. A total of 20 countries have yielded diamonds since records began, yet fewer than 20% of diamonds mined are actually suitable for use in jewellery.

The first known link between diamonds and engagement rings was in 1477 when the Archduke of Austria presented a diamond ring to Mary of Burgundy. This tradition was resurrected by De Beers during the early 20th Centry via what resulted in being the most successful advertising campaign in history.

In 1939 De Beers determined that there were four factors indicative of quality (and therefore value) of a Diamond, thus introducing The 4 C's to the world of diamonds. These are as follows:

Carat Weight: Ill-defined until the 1870's at which point a recommendation was made that the weight should be standardised at 0.2053 grams. In 1914, presumably for matters of convenience, the US, UK and other European countries decided to introduce the metric carat which weighed 0.2 grams. This remains the standard to this day, therefore 0.2 grams are equal to 1 Carat, and there are 100 "points" in 1 Carat (hence smaller diamonds weighing 10 points which is equal to 0.10 carats.)

Cut: One of the first known cuts of diamond is the Rose Cut, which was introduced during the 16th Century and remained popular until the early 1900's - particularly in smaller diamonds. Unlike any other diamond cut this has no pavillion, instead resembling a faceted cabochon with every facet covering the rounded top and featuring a flat base.

Old Mine Cut or "Cushion Cut"diamonds were the first step towards the type of cut we recognise today. As open settings came to fruition, diamonds with greater refraction and also greater weight were developed. However unlike modern diamonds, the emphasis was focused heavily on weight rather than refraction. These diamonds feature high crowns, generous pavillions and a cullet which appears to have been severed rather than forming a more modern point.

As studies into the refractive qualities of diamonds improved, cutters altered the formations of the facets and changed the shape of the girdle from square to circular to create a cut now termed Old European. Still, the emphasis remained on retaining as much weight as possible. Settings which required a scattering of small diamonds, too tiny to be accurately cut into either a Mine or European shape were sometimes Single or "Eight Cut" which consisted of the basic profile but with only 8 facets to the crown and pavillion.

During the 20th century, mainly due to the work of Marcel Tolkowsky and the availability of machine cutting rather than hand, Diamond cutting became the focus of geometric calculations with an emphasis on creating the ideal cut to maximise fire and brilliance. From this came the modern Brilliant Cut, which remains the most popular cut to date. In fact, many of the Fancy Cuts now experimented with and used in jewellery are based on the same principles of the Brilliant, just using a different shaped girdle.

A few examples of Fancy Cuts are:

These cuts command varying prices per carat, mainly depending upon the fashions of the time and quality of the cut. However recent years have brought about a resurgence in the demand for old or antique cut diamonds and as they are in limited supply, prices are continuing to soar year on year. Whilst they may not be ideally proportioned for refraction, and are hand rather than laser cut they possess a timeless character and romantic radiance which simply cannot be captured by modern cuts.

Clarity: This has been given increasing importance over the past 100 years. Typically, commercial antique diamonds were valued purely on their weight and many surviving examples have wide ranging clarity. Less emphasis was placed on hiding the inclusions or "feathers" in the cut of the gem and for this reason it is rare to find an eye clean antique cut diamond. With the birth of the ideal cut, so too came a revolution in the way diamonds were judged and graded. No longer was their ability to sparkle under candle light decreed the number one priority and as more people found themselves in the position of owning diamonds, interest in the best clarity also began to grow. The following are the levels by which all modern diamonds are judged and graded for clarity:

IF - Internally Flawless; No internal imperfection visible to a trained eye under 10 x magnification.

VVS1/VVS2 - Very Very Slightly Included; Minute inclusions which are extremely difficult to detect under 10 x magnification.

VS1/VS2 - Very Slightly Included; Very small inclusions which are difficult to see under 10 x magnification.

SI1/SI2 - Slightly Included; Small inclusions, fairly easy to see under 10 x magnification but not visible to the naked eye.

I1/P1 - Pique 1; Inclusions visible with difficulty to the naked eye.

I2/P2 - Pique 2; Inclusions easily visible to the naked eye.

I3/P3 - Pique 3; Inclusions easily visible to the unaided eye.

Many organisations are able to give their opinion of a clarity grading, and many even offer certificates to support their estimates. However, the only certificates which are deemed "official" by the jewellery trade are issued from GIA, EGL, JC and HRD. Diamonds with certificates from these organisations can increase the cost and value of a diamond considerably.

Colour; Diamonds come in many colours, the most rare being red and most common a yellowy-white. Vivid fancy colours such as pink, blue, green, canary yellow and orange command exceptional prices, and to find a natural unenhanced diamond exhibiting the above hues is incredibly rare. Tinted diamonds are sought after in their own right, with some tints more desirable than others. A diamond with a blue tinge will normally be more prized than that with a faint yellow, and a golden cognac is generally more appealing to the majority than a muddy brown. However modern trends seem to have divided the buying public into those who appreciate a hint of colour and those who demand pure white.

Similarly to vivid colours, natural White diamonds are incredibly rare and are therefore very expensive; therefore the "whiteness" of a diamond is graded in a similar way to clarity, ranging from D (Exceptional/Blue White) to Z (Tinted Colour 4):

Quantity V's Size; I will never forget overhearing a lady boasting to a colleague that she owned 10 diamonds, the sum total of an eternity and engagement ring. Her colleague promptly responded that she would rather have 10 of Elizabeth Taylor's.

This rather contrite response highlights the true essence of the quantity versus size confusion, possibly brought about by the marketing techniques of various media groups. In short, a 1 carat diamond ring will be infinitely more expensive if set with a single stone, than one set with 10 diamonds of comparative quality. Therefore, regardless of the advertising techniques employed, it is always better to purchase the highest quality affordable with a greater carat weight per stone than one scattered with dozens of smaller diamonds of comparable quality.

Like all jewellery, and particularly in terms of the romantic notions the Diamond inspires it is always important to take into account your own feelings towards a particular stone. Increasingly diamonds are purchased on the basis of clarity or colour rather than the individual, if somewhat fanciful allure the stone elicits. It is true that an informed decision is always better than a shot in the dark, but to retain the true essence of diamonds, their turbulent history and infinite magnetism it's fair to say that such important purchases should involve both the heart and the mind.