Diamonds have been a source of fascination for centuries. They are the hardest, the most imperishable, and the brilliant of all precious stones. The word "diamond" comes from the Greek word adamas, meaning"unconquerable".

A diamond is a transparent gem made of carbon, one of the earth'smost common elements. The formation of diamonds began very early in theearth's history, when the condensation of solid matter into a spherecaused the centre of the planet to become subjected to incredible extremes of temperatures and pressure.

It was these conditions that caused deposits of carbon to begin tocrystallise deep in the earth. As the earth's surface cooled, volcanic activity forced streams of magna (liquid rock) to the surface, carryingwith it the diamond crystals. Later, the diamond-bearing rock hardened,encasing the diamonds in vertical volcanic "pipes".

But not all diamonds are found where they first came to the surface.Subsequent erosion of the topsoils over millions of years washed someof the diamonds into streams and rivers, and sometimes as far away asthe sea. It is highly probable that they were first discovered in areassuch as these, far away from their original location.

The atomic structure of a diamond gives it the property of being thehardest substance known to man, natural or synthetic. The diamond isthousands of times harder than corundum, the next hardest substancefrom which rubies and sapphires are formed. Even after many years ofconstant wear, diamonds will preserve their sharp edges and cornerswhen most other stones will have become worn and chipped.