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benvalmores

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Gem stones, Diamonds and related gems discussed here
« on: April 17, 2011, 01:56:39 AM »
But mind you, is this much greater than diamonds?---TANZANITE!!!

Tanzanite Gemstone Is Africa's Rarest Treasure not A Diamond!

Imagine a gemstone so exquisite that it radiates a hundred hues of velvet blue and sensual violet from every facet. A gemstone so precious, it is found only in one place on earth. So extraordinarily rare, that in a single generation, there will be no more. Tanzanite stones are used in all forms of jewelery and in some cases it has been chosen to replace diamond earrings, rings and necklaces.

My first encounter with the beautiful blue stone called Tanzanite was in March 2005 whilst on holiday at Sun City in South Africa. Apart from its rarity, its beauty and the price of Tanzanite I was captured by the fact that unlike a diamond where you would have a point 35 of a carat diamond in a ring, with Tanzanite the shop keeper spoke in terms of 1, 3, 5 or 9 carat sizes.

Wow! Bling really was Bling when you owned Tanzanite. The Bigger the tanzanite stone and the higher the grade of the stone you were buying in terms of its colour, its clarity, the cut of the stone and carat size the better. This relatively new stone from Afrika, really did punch outside the conventional diamond arena in terms of size.

Needless to say we acquired a piece of Afrika in the way of a AAA 3.98 carat, Pearl cut with a clarity of IF = Internally flawless and just to add the killer punch our stone was from the Tanzanite Foundation and we had a certificate from them, we even knew where in the mine our stone was found originally. Wow! this was our investment for the future!


benvalmores

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Re: diamond discovered
« Reply #1 on: April 17, 2011, 02:00:39 AM »
It took 550 Million Years to Create Tanzanite Gemstone!
It unique geology
The only known source of Tanzanite is situated in the foothills of Africa's tallest mountain, the legendary Mount Kilimanjaro on the Tanzania side, lying hidden is a tiny cache of the unique and precious gemstone. Created hundreds of millions of years ago when the continents collided, tanzanite owes its existence to a cataclysm little short of a geological miracle.

Today, tanzanite is buried within a labyrinth of complex folds beneath the earth's surface. Tanzanite is to be found only in a thin strip of approximately 5 km long. Geology experts on gems believe that this is the only source in the world. And it will be exhausted in about 15 years.

Could mother earth ever produce tanzanite again? It could only happen again if the continents collided again under the same precise conditions and if we waited another 550 million years it took to create tanzanite the first time. It is hardly surprising that tanzanite should be as individualistic as it is when you consider where it has come from.
Tanzanite Foundation
Setting the Standards
The Tanzanite Foundation **, is regarded as the premium endorser for tanzanite, cuts and polishes, grades, certifies and hallmarks premium quality tanzanite, to assure owners that their tanzanite is natural, that it has been cut to exacting standards and that it is accurately graded.

Furthermore the Tanzanite Foundation's Declaration of Practice promises that its tanzanite has made the journey from mine to market with complete integrity and strict adherence to social and environmental ethics.

Selecting a tanzanite gem worthy of the Foundation's endorsement is an intricate process, in which only one in a hundred passes muster and displays the right mix of colour, clarity and quality of cut.

Tanzanite that passes this rigorous selection system is microscopically inscribed with the Tanzanite Foundation's hallmark of quality. In addition, each stone inscribed in this way is sold with corresponding certificate that identifies it, describes the colour, clarity and cut and guarantees that the stone is natural.

**The Tanzanite Foundation is a trademark of the AFGEM Group
American Gem Trade Association (AGTA) named tanzanite as a December birthstone in 2002
Distinctive beauty has earned this gem its status
American Gem Trade Association (AGTA) named tanzanite as a December birthstone in 2002

In recognition of tanzanite's growing desirability, the American Gem Trade Association (AGTA) named tanzanite as a December birthstone in 2002, amending a list that had not been changed since 1912.

'Affordability and distinctive beauty has earned this gem a status that rivals that of sapphire. Although the Tiffany & Co connection gained the newcomer worldwide publicity, tanzanite has won international popularity on its own merit in the last decade.
Your Guide to Buying Tanzanite
Ensure you meet the 5 C's
In a similar way to buying diamonds, the Tanzanite Foundation grades Tanzanite according to the FIVE C's; Colour, Clarity, Cut and Carat Weight. The higher the combination of these characteristics, the rarer and more valuable the tanzanite stone. Understand and check all 5 C's before buying your tanzanite

COLOUR - Intensity of colour and saturation of blue to violet

Color refers to color quality and its degree of saturation. The depth of color ranges from Exceptional to Pale, with a 'B' or 'V' indicating a predominance of blue or violet hues. The deeper the color, the more valuable the tanzanite.

CLARITY - Description of natural flaws and inclusions

Clarity refers to any natural flaws and inclusions in a tanzanite. Tanzanite's ranges from Eye Clean to Heavily Included. The more flawless the tanzanite, the more valuable it is.

CUT - Proportions and brilliance

Cut refers to a tanzanite's brilliance, proportions and finish. An 'Excellent' cut ensures that the stone's facets reflect liught to create maximum brilliance. The more precise the craftsman's cutting, the more vlauable the tanzanite.

CARAT - A weight management, equivalent to 1/5th of a gram

Carat Weight is the term used to measure a tanzanite's weight. One carat has 100 points and weighs 1/5 of a gram. Two seemingly identical tanzanite's will have different Carat Weights if they vary in depth.

CONFIDENCE - The 5th C

The 5th C is Confidence and is only applicable to tanzanite which is accompanied by the Mark of Rarity Tm. The Mark of Rarity Tm is the icon of the Tanzanite Foundation and is synonoymous with Confidence. It is assurance that your tanzanite has followed an ethical route to market.


benvalmores

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Re: diamond discovered
« Reply #2 on: April 17, 2011, 02:12:54 AM »
World's Biggest Tanzanite Gem Found Near Kilimanjaro

The reporter on this story: Mark Cobley in London at mcobley@bloomberg.net
The world's biggest piece of tanzanite, a blue-violet gem rarer than diamond, was unearthed near Tanzania's Mount Kilimanjaro. Shares in TanzaniteOne Ltd., which found the rock, rose the most in almost 10 months.

The stone weighs a record 16,839 carats and is the size of a brick, company spokeswoman Renata Da Silva said by phone today from Johannesburg. TanzaniteOne hasn't valued the rock yet and doesn't know how many polished carats will be made from it.

``It's a pretty amazing find; this thing is huge,'' said Kevin Tomlinson, director of natural resources at ING Groep NV's Williams de Broe stockbrokers in London. ``There are collectors out there that will pay a big premium for this sort of stone.'' He declined to guess its value. Read More...
Time Magazine - Romancing A New Stone
Article Written by Sarah Laurenaudie/Merelani
Most gems are found in several places in the world. Emeralds come from Colombia but also from Zimbabwe; there's amethyst on almost every continent; and diamonds-although associated with Africa-are mined in Russia and Australia, among other places.

Not tanzanite. The stone, which is often likened to blue sapphire but is more brilliant with violet overtones, was discovered only 40 years ago, and geologists are convinced that it occurs in only one place in the world: Africa's Rift Valley, 25 miles from the base of Tanzania's Mount Kilimanjaro, in a little place called Merelani.

Twenty minutes down a dusty unpaved road, about 30 miles east of Arusha, past Masai herdsmen in traditional dress, is the guarded entrance to the mines. Ahead, teams of donkeys are carrying drinking water to the miners. At a glance, you can take in the entire four-mile stretch where the tanzanite is buried in maddening folds deep below the earth's surface. It's hard to get an exact fix on how much is there-geologists recently updated their models and project a 15-year supply. Of course, it depends on all sorts of variables. Whether the biggest companies produce to capacity; whether hundreds of small local miners, without the sophisticated machinery or the credit lines of the big guys, can continue to tunnel ever deeper to follow the vein. Whether plucky independent owners like Money A. Yousuph-who hasn't pulled out any tanzanite since 2002, when he sold a 2.2-lb. chunk for $275,000 at a Las Vegas trade fair-get lucky. "I'm about to," he says confidently.

My first encounter with tanzanite, however, was not in Africa but in Jaipur, India, where many of the world's colored gems are cut and polished. After merrily emptying canisters of emeralds, a local dealer there, Ashok Chordia, abruptly signaled his assistants to close the wooden shutters overlooking his competitors' offices. In the dark, he flipped the lids of two metal boxes filled with nuggets he identified as tanzanite. "Very, very rare," he said mysteriously. "More precious than diamonds."

benvalmores

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Re: diamond discovered
« Reply #3 on: April 17, 2011, 02:16:28 AM »
Worn by the Famous and Celebrities around the world

Make sure you buy the highest grading you can afford!
Tanzanite was an exciting new discovery, so new, in fact neither the original prospector nor the Maasai Warrior had any idea that they had stumbled upon a gemstone that up until then had never been seen and, of course, had no name.

Halfway around the world, the significance of the discovery was plain to Henry B Platt, great grandson of Louis Comfort Tiffany and later president and chairman of New York's Tiffany & Co. It was Henry B Platt who named the stone tanzanite and who, at the gem's debut at Tiffany in October 1968, remarked that it was 'the most beautiful blue stone discovered in over 2,000 years'.

Tanzanite's most outstanding feature is that it radiates different colours simultaneously. When cut and polished, the stone reflects a variegated blend of indigo, royal blue and lilac. This range of tones and hues offers jewellery designers a rich palette from which to create their pieces. Stones with the deepest intensity of colour fetch the highest prices.

Tanzanite stones are bought by celebrities all over the world and they have chosen to replace their usual diamond earrings, rings and necklaces with Tanzanite. This has further enhanced Tanzanite s' reputation as one of the rarest gemstones on earth


benvalmores

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Re: diamond discovered
« Reply #4 on: April 17, 2011, 02:18:56 AM »
Reported Tanzanite Terrorist Links

In the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks
On November 16, 2001, in the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks, a front-page Wall Street Journal (WSJ) article by Daniel Pearl and Robert Block alleged that significant al-Qaeda funding was generated through illicit trade in tanzanite. "According to miners and local residents, Muslim extremists loyal to bin Laden buy stones from miners and middlemen, smuggling them out of Tanzania to free-trade havens such as Dubai, Jamaica and Hong Kong." The Tanzanian Mineral Dealers Association insisted there was no connection between al-Qaeda and their industry, while a Tanzanian government investigator insisted there was a connection. The article suggested that as much as 90% of tanzanite was thought to be smuggled out of the country. Later statements proved the math conducted by the Wall Street Journal to be based on comparisons with the sales of rough gems in Tanzania to the sale of cut gemstones in the US, two different products in two different markets. The smuggling problem charges were not new; a 1990 New York Times article reported that "Economists say much of the country's bountiful natural wealth - gold, rubies, tanzanite - is smuggled across the border into Kenya with the collusion of Government officials.... read the rest of the Wikipedia article !

benvalmores

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Re: diamond discovered
« Reply #5 on: April 17, 2011, 02:39:00 AM »
Tanzanite by Peter Bancroft

Zoisite was the mineral name for a series of opaque to translucent varieties, of which only two are used as gemstones: massive pink colored thulite and a brilliant apple-green zoisite (which also occurs in grayish-white, gray, yellowish-brown, and greenish-gray). Named for Czechoslovakian Baron Zois von Edelstein, zoisite never really achieved prominence as a gem material.
Then in March 1966, an Arusha tailor named Sousa discovered a deep blue gemstone at a place later known as the Merelani mine. Using sophisticated equipment experts found that the gem was not “sapphire” as suspected, but an astounding variety of zoisite. Tiffany and Company, in a vigorous sales promotion, named the stone “tanzanite” after the country of origin, and the name has since been generally adopted.
The Merelani deposit was difficult to reach in the Usumburu Mountains that border the Umba Valley of northern Tanzania. This region, a vast arid plain broken by hills and small mountain peaks, is inhabited by the pastoral Masai people. The Merelani lies between two landmarks just south of the Kenya border – Mt. Kilimanjaro and the Olduvai Gorge made famous by paleoanthropologist Louis Leakey. (Stanzanite fig. 1)
 The nearest town of any consequence is Arusha, about 50 kilometers to the northwest.
In 1975 the author met A.H. (Brick) Stange who provided a pilot and a single-engine airplane for the flight from Nairobi to Arusha. We planned two trips – first a visit by plane to the ruby mine near Longido and the second in jeeps to the tanzanite mine in Merelani.

One of the original claim holders who lost his property when the Tanzanian government nationalized the mine. Photo: Edward Swoboda (1967)--(

The trip to the ruby mine was uneventful except for a painful bite from a tsetse fly. Even though my seat belt was fastened, I jumped hard enough to bang my head on the cockpit ceiling and the pilot lectured me on how dangerous it was to make such a violent movement while flying at a low altitude. Just as he concluded his rebuke, a fly bit him on the neck. There was an immediate plethora of epithets, somewhat superior to mine, but no more lectures! Upon reaching the mine we noticed a great wall of schist marked by green streaks of zoisite. Closer inspection revealed bright red, nearly opaque 2 to 4-centimeter ruby crystals imbedded in the zoisite. Large chunks of the red and green material were blasted loose for shipment by truck to Arusha.
A few days later our party left in two jeeps for Merelani. Our route passed through a brushy countryside dotted with trees, and from time to time, we passed Masai villages and herds of Brahman cattle tended by one or two small boys. Upon reaching the mine, we were admitted by armed guards. The tsetse flies were replaced by numerous non-biting flies that landed upon any part of the body which exuded moisture – the corner of the eye or mouth and exposed parts when relieving oneself. They were a constant irritant and a real nuisance.

Guards armed with rifles and shotguns were conspicuously posted at vantage points about the workings. Digging was by the open-pit method, with a few veins being explored by short tunnels. A small padlocked iron box sat nearby. When a miner discovered a crystal or segment, he was to drop it into the box. However, the chances are that many were swallowed or thrown into a bush for recovery later. Miners were paid next to nothing, and this provided the incentive to high-grade stones.

Masai family near Merelani mine. Photo: Peter Bancroft
Tanzanite crystals occur sparsely in a heavily metamorphosed zone of tough rock. They are prismatic, heavily striated and often possess good terminations. The mineral is fairly soft (6 to 6.5 on Mohs’ hardness scale) and fractures rather easily. It is common to expose a fine crystal deeply imbedded in rock, then watch it break into small pieces during removal. The search for crystals is accomplished with picks, iron bars, shovels, and compressed-air jackhammers, a system that takes a high toll of fine gems. Clean stones which will facet 2-carat or larger gems are quite rare, and days pass between discoveries.

Miner examining tanzanite crystal. Photo: Edward Gübelin
Tanzanite occurs in colors of gray, brown, violet, blue, reddish-purple, and tints of green. The gem is of interest because of its exceptional pleochroism. Rotated in different directions a single stone will exhibit three outstanding changes of color, from reddish purple to blue to deep purple. When placed in ovens and heated to 620°C, the reddish purple crystals alter to a rich violet-blue; some turn to a deep blue resembling sapphire. But heating reduces pleochroism.

Miner breaking tanzanite from mother rock. Photo: Edward Gübelin
Tanzanite in large flawless sections appeared with some regularity during the early days of mining. Lovely gems of 20 to 50 carats were not unusual. One of the largest stones, a splendid faceted flawless gem weighing 122.7 carats, is part of the Smithsonian Institution's collection.

Following tanzanite vein into hill.
Photo: Peter Bancroft
When first mined, fine stones could be purchased in Tanzania, Kenya, and the United States for as little as $20 a carat. By 1984 clean gems wholesaled at better than $1000 a carat, an indication of increasing interest in a gem already in short supply. In 1978 a massive cholera epidemic struck northern Tanzania and interrupted production of rubies, garnets, sapphires, chrome tourmaline, chrysoprase, and tanzanite. In addition, most of the known gem deposits were playing out. As a result, decreasing production has caused a scarcity of quality gemstones and a rapid rise in their value.

benvalmores

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Re: diamond discovered
« Reply #6 on: April 17, 2011, 02:49:39 AM »
pics

benvalmores

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Re: diamond discovered
« Reply #7 on: April 17, 2011, 02:51:48 AM »
more tanzanite pics

benvalmores

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Re: diamond discovered
« Reply #8 on: April 17, 2011, 02:56:37 AM »
Tanzanite Buying Guide
By Richard W. Hughes


.Tanzanite is the name
given to the rich blue-violet variety of the epidote-group mineral, zoisite. The gem was first discovered in Tanzania in 1967 and was named after its country of its origin, Tanzania, by the famous New York jeweler, Louis Comfort Tiffany.
Color. Tanzanite has what many would consider the finest blue hue in the world of gemstones, a color which often leaves even the finest sapphires lacking. The gem is strongly trichroic.
A chromium-colored green tanzanite is also found in Tanzania.

A stunning 45-ct. tanzanite from Pala International. Photo: Wimon Manorotkul; Gem: Pala International

Lighting.

Tanzanite is extremely light sensitive, with incandescent lighting tending to shift its color to the violet side. The best pieces show an intense blue under any light.

Clarity.

 In terms of clarity, tanzanite does occur in reasonably clean crystals. Thus when buying, the standard is eye-clean stones.
Cut. In the market, tanzanites are found in a variety of shapes and cutting styles. Ovals and cushions are the most common, but rounds are also seen, as are other shapes, including emerald cuts, trillions, etc. Cabochon-cut tanzanites are not often seen.

Prices.

 Tanzanite prices probably fluctuate more than any other gem, largely due irregular production at the mines. For extremely fine stones of less than 50 cts., prices sometimes top $1000/ct. at retail.
Stone Sizes. Tanzanites sometimes occur in extremely large sizes, with faceted gems of hundreds of carats in existence. The most popular sizes for jewelry use are those below 20 cts.

Sources.

 The only locality for tanzanite is Merelani in Tanzania.

Enhancements.

Virtually all gem tanzanite of a blue color has been heat-treated to enhance the color.

Imitations.

 Tanzanite has never been synthesized, but a number of imitations exist. The most common is blue-violet glass. A synthetic fosterite has also been used as an imitation.

benvalmores

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Re: Gem stones, Diamonds and related gems discussed here
« Reply #9 on: April 17, 2011, 05:50:42 AM »
Ok thank you very much Janner,

This is much more appropriate, so when fellow members might encounter something they thought as gemstones, this thread could come in as a ready reference just in case.
Perhaps other points raised by other members about evaluation of diamonds could best be transferred here as well.

Let's begin a trivia about some famous mined diamonds;

Though i'm a gold miner, i have some bits of facts about how diamond is mined. Yes,
diamonds also comes from mining, first things first, diamond miners try to locate and find a "pipe", then they also try to find some host rocks (diamond minerals bearing rocks) such as for example the sperrylite.
However tru history, so far these are the,,,

TOP TEN LARGEST AND RAREST DIAMOND EVER FOUND

The Blue Heart diamond

 is 30.82 carats.  The gem was cut into its distinctive shape in 1909-1910 and was bought by Cartier shortly thereafter. Since then it has bounced around from a wealthy Argentinian woman, Van Cleef and Arpels, a European family, Harry Winston, Marjorie Merriweather Post, and, finally, the Smithsonian, where The Blue Heart has resided since 1964. And although it may look like it inspired the fictional Heart of the Ocean from the 1997 Leonardo DiCaprio epic, it didn’t - the Heart of the Ocean was actually based on the infamous Hope Diamond.

2. The Centenary Diamond

On March 1, 1988, De Beers was having a big bash to celebrate their 100 years in business. Chairman Julian Oglivie capped off his speech with a little tidbit that stunned the crowd - De Beers’ Premier Mine had recently uncovered a diamond that was perfect in color and weighed 599 carats. It had been found nearly two years before; the company kept it quiet for the sole purpose of flaunting it at their 100th anniversary.

3. The Cullinan Diamond
 
At an insane 3,106.75 carats the Cullinan is the largest diamond ever found. It was split into nine big chunks, 96 small ones and 9.5 carats of unpolished pieces. They’re all part of the Crown Jewels or belong in the private collection of the royal family:
Cullinan I, AKA the Star of Africa, is 530.20 carats and resides in the Sovereign’s Royal Sceptre.
Cullinan II, AKA the Lesser Star of Africa, is a bit smaller at 317.40 carats and is mounted in the Imperial State Crown.
Cullinan III is a 94.40-carat pear-shaped diamond that can be mounted in Queen Mary’s Crown or worn with the Cullinan IV as part of a pendant. Versatility is so important, don’t you agree?
Cullinan IV, 63.60 carats, can either be part of the pendant or set in Queen Mary’s Crown as well.
Cullinan V is a measly 18.80-carat triangular-pear cut diamond and can either be in a brooch or mounted in the circlet of Queen Mary’s Crown. The Koh-i-Noor diamond  used to be set in that spot, but when it was later moved to another crown, the Cullinan V took its place.
Cullinan VI is sometimes worn by Queen Elizabeth II as part of an emerald and diamond necklace. I suppose at 11.50 carats, it’s less ostentatious than some of the others.
Cullinan VII and Cullinan VIII have been combined into an all-diamond brooch.
Finally, the Cullinan IX, coming in at 4.39 carats, is worn by Queen Elizabeth as a ring.

4. The Golden Eye Diamond
 
The world’s largest flawless Canary Yellow diamond. Its original uncut 124.5-carat state. This particular type of diamond - a fancy intense yellow - accounts for less than 0.1 percent of all natural diamonds, so you can imagine how rare one this size is. The gem was cut to a still-huge 43.51 carats and somehow became entangled in a drug dealing and money laundering ring in Ohio, which was busted in 2006. As a result, the unusual jewel became property of the U.S. government. Just as of May 11, 2009, it was declared that the Golden Eye diamond belonged to the government, and in turn, the government announced that it would be auctioning the diamond off. So if you’re looking for a rare yellow diamond in the neighborhood of $15-$20 million.

5. The Koh-i-noor

The Koh-i-noor is more than 5,000 years old.For hundreds of years it was in the possession of various Indian Emperors and was even installed into the Peacock Throne of Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan.But in 1851, it was decided that the bauble would be presented to Queen Victoria, who immediately put it on display at the Crystal Palace Exhibition. After it was cut down by about 80 carats to its current 108.93 size, the diamond was moved to the Queen consort’s crown (used by both Queen Alexandra of Denmark and Queen Mary of Teck) and finally to Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother’s crown in 1936. It remained there until her death in 2002 and was set in the Imperial State Crown afterward.

6. Spirit of de Grisogono

The largest cut black diamond in the world is also the world’s fifth-largest diamond of any kind, weighing in at 312.24 carats. It was 587 carats before it was cut. The Spirit of de Grisogono is set in a ring that contains 702 white diamonds and is thought to have been sold to a private collector.
7. The Earth Star

When this huge sparkler was found at a South African De Beers mine in 1967, it was a whopping 248.9 carats. As you can imagine, it caused quite the stir in the industry, and not just because of its massive size. It was actually the color everyone was talking about: The Earth Star was brown. The Baum gold Bros. jewelers bought the enormous jewel and cut it into a pear shape that ended up weighing 111.59 carats, which was the largest brown diamond in the world at the time (it’s still the third largest brown diamond… we’ll get to the largest in a minute). It was Baum gold that gave the diamond its name. For more than 15 years, the Earth Star traveled the world in various exhibitions, but it was bought by a private citizen in 1983 for the staggering sum of $900,000.

8. The Golden Jubilee

It’s the largest faceted diamond in the world. But when it was first discovered in 1985, people in the industry refered to the 755.5 uncut rock as “The Unnamed Brown” and “The Ugly Duckling.” Since it was kind of homely, De Beers decided to let jewel cutter Gabriel Tolkow sky try an experimental method of cutting using some untested tools. They figured if he messed it up, it was no great loss - the thing was going to be unmarketable anyway. Under Tolkow sky’s hands, though, the Ugly Duckling turned into an amazing yellow-brown diamond of epic proportions. It was presented to the King of Thailand for his Golden Jubilee in 1997, which is when it finally received an appropriate name. It’s still a part of the Crown Jewels of Thailand today.

9. The Ocean Dream Diamond

The Ocean Dream may be small - a mere 5.51 carats - but it’s the only diamond in the world of its kind. No other diamond is known to naturally possess a blue-green hue like this one. The color is thought to have come from being exposed to natural radiation in Central Africa for thousands of years. It’s currently owned by the Cora Diamond Corporation, but you might have seen it at the Smithsonian as part of “The Splendor of Diamonds” exhibit a few years back.

10. The Hope Diamond

  This 45.52 fancy deep blue diamond is gorgeous, to be sure, but also deadly - at least according to some. The Hope’s story starts with the Tavernier Blue, a crudely cut triangular stone of about 115 carats that was sold to King Louis XIV in 1669. Several years later, Louis had the stone cut down to about 67 carats and had it suspended on a gold ribbon so he could wear it on formal occasions. He renamed the new cut the “French Blue.” In the mid 1700s, Louis XV had the gem set into a pendant and it was much speculated that Marie Antoinette wore it; the curse is the reason she was beheaded. Not so, say most historians: there’s no evidence that it ever adorned the doomed Queen. The French Blue mysteriously disappeared in a jewel heist in 1792 and never turned up again. However, the Hope Diamond suddenly arrived on the scene just as the statute of limitations on the jewel heist was running out 20 years later. It happened to be the exact same color as the missing French Blue, although it had been cut differently and was decidedly smaller. The Hope had several British owners throughout the 1800s, although, surprisingly, it never came into the hands of the Royal Family. By 1910, famed jeweler Pierre Cartier had acquired the blue beauty and sold it to American socialite Evalyn Walsh McLean. She wasn’t interested until he reset the old stone in a modern setting and told her tales of the curse. She wore the stone for 37 years (and often let her dog wear it around the house as well) and left it to her grandchildren upon her death in 1947. However, she was quite in debt, and her trustees ended up selling it in order to pay of some of the money she owed.
That’s how Harry Winston ended up owning it until 1958, when he decided that it belonged to the Smithsonian and sent it there in an uninsured brown paper envelope. It’s still part of the Smithsonian today, and so is the envelope (that’s it above). And if you want to read a list of some of the people supposedly killed off by the Hope’s curse, you can do some good search for yourselves.


benvalmores

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Re: Gem stones, Diamonds and related gems discussed here
« Reply #10 on: April 17, 2011, 05:56:43 AM »
1.The blue heart
2.The centenary
3.The Cullinan
4.The Golden Eye


benvalmores

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Re: Gem stones, Diamonds and related gems discussed here
« Reply #11 on: April 17, 2011, 06:04:13 AM »
5.The Koh-i-noor
6.Spirit of de Grisogono
7.The earth star
8..The Golden Jubilee
9.The Ocean Dream Diamond
10.The Hope Diamond

benvalmores

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Re: Gem stones, Diamonds and related gems discussed here
« Reply #12 on: April 17, 2011, 06:07:02 AM »
Ocean Dream and the hope

Offline Elyong

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Re: Gem stones, Diamonds and related gems discussed here
« Reply #13 on: April 26, 2011, 07:46:51 PM »

What a great Diamonds truly are Forever...

Thanks Sir Ben for sharing...
:) A true THunter never say never. Sincerity, Loyalty and Truthfulness are the keys to win everyone's heart.

Offline Boyet

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Re: Gem stones, Diamonds and related gems discussed here
« Reply #14 on: April 29, 2011, 07:16:20 AM »
Nice Sir Ben...