The History of Color Diamonds

History of Color Diamonds

The mystique of diamonds has fascinated mankind since these precious stones were first discovered, probably as early as 3000 B.C.

Collected, treasured, and sought-after even to the point of malice, they became symbols of power and wealth. Their beauty and glamour is desired more than any other gemstone. Much has been written about diamonds, designers of diamond jewelry, and prominent owners of such beautiful objects of desire. Most of this literature focuses on colorless diamonds (often referred to as white diamonds), by far the most abundant variety of this precious stone; in fact, when most people say 'diamond,' they mean colorless diamond. Far less known because they are the rarer, colored diamonds and have remained in the shadow of their colorless siblings until relatively recent times.

Scarcity

Natural colored diamonds are exceedingly rare: 1 colored diamond for every 10,000 colorless diamonds. For a beautiful 1 carat or larger fancy colored diamond, the relationship is more like 1 for every 1 million colorless diamonds.

Value & Investment

As the stock market has recently shown us, there is no such thing as a sure investment. However, the values of natural colored diamonds have appreciated substantially over the last twenty years. This is especially true when compared to other precious gemstones like rubies, sapphires, emeralds, and colorless diamonds. They are a portable store of value and a liquid asset in any country in the world. While no one can predict the future, the combination of growing awareness, demand, and limited resources suggest the long term potential for fancy colored diamonds as an investment alternative. Asia Precious, October 1994