Year

The History of Diamonds

800 BC

Diamonds discovered in India

327 BC

Alexander the Great brings the first diamonds to Europe from India.

296 BC

Sanskrit manuscript called the 'Arthasastra', or 'the Lesson of Profit' mentions a diamond

1074

One of the first examples of diamond jewelry history when a Hungarian queen's crown, is created.

1150's

The Briolette of India, is a legendary diamond of 90.38 carats, which was believed to have been brought to England by Eleanor of Aquitaine

1375

The Point Cut was developed which follows the natural shape of a raw diamond, reducing waste in the diamond cutting process.

1382

A circlet crown was purchased for Queen Anne of Bohemia, being set with a large sapphire, a balas, and four large Pearls with a diamond in the centre

Year

The History of Diamonds - 1400's & 1500's

1407

The earliest European records of the history and art of cutting diamonds originate in Paris where there was a flourishing guild, the "Lapidaries, Jewel Cutters and Engravers of Cameos and Hard Stones." Reference is made to a diamond-cutter named Herman, in 1407. The diamond cutters of Paris were quite numerous in that year, and lived in a special district known as "la Courarie, where reside the workers in diamonds and other stones."

1423

It is documented that the Chief Justice of England , Sir William Hankford, gave his great-granddaughter a baptismal gift of a gilt cup and a diamond ring

1434

Johannes Guttenberg (1398 – 1468) learnt gem cutting and polishing from Andreas Drytzehen of Strasbourg.

1458

Lodewyk (Louis) van Berquem of Brugge, Belgium created the first cut diamonds when  he discovered that diamonds could be cut by their own dust. Louis van Berquem invented a diamond polishing wheel called a scaif and introduced the concept of using absolute symmetry in the placement of facets on the diamond.

1467

Louis van Berquem designed the light yellow 137 carat Florentine Diamond  for the Valois Family commissioned by Duke of Burgundy

1477

Mary of Burgundy became the first known recipient of a diamond engagement ring given to her by the Archduke Maximilian of Austria. The history and tradition of the engagement ring begins

1520

The Rose cut was created to resemble an opening rose-bud. The two most famous diamond cutters of this time were Giacomo Tagliacarne and Giovanni delle Corniole who perfected the art of facetted gem cutting

1526

The first Mogul emperor, Babur (1483-1530) acquired the Pink Agra Diamond

1570

The pale yellow Sancy Diamond was purchased in Constantinople by the French Ambassador to Turkey, Nicholas Harlai, the Seigneur de Sancy

Year

The History of Diamonds - 1600's & 1700's

1631

Jean Baptist Tavernier made a series of six voyages to India where he saw some of the world’s most fabulous diamonds and gems. Tavernier purchased the Koh-i-Noor and the Hope diamonds for his patron King Louis XIV of France. He wrote the book "The Six Voyages of John Baptiste Tavernier" which was published in Paris, 1676)

1643

The Grand Condé, a light pink pear-shaped stone, was given to Louis de Bourbon, Prince of Condé by King Louis XIII of France

1650's

Cardinal Jules Mazarin (1602 – 1661) serving the French King Louis XIV, collected diamonds from Catherine the Great and is credited with the first 'Brilliant cut' diamonds, which were called Mazarins Double-Cut Brilliants

1664

The Wittelsbach diamond formed a gift from King Philip IV of Spain to his 15-year-old daughter, the Infanta Margareta Teresa to celebrate her betrothal to the Emperor Leopold I of Austria in 1664. It was a a rare dark blue color.

1669

The Spoonmaker's Diamond (aka the Kasikci diamond) was found on a rubbish heap at Egrikapi in Istanbul

1681

Vincent Peruzzi, a Venetian diamond polisher, introduced the "Triple-Cut Brilliant" or "Peruzzi Cut" diamonds by doubling the number of crown facets from 17 to 33. These are also referred to as 'Old Mine cuts' or Cushion cuts

1691

The Hortensia diamond, a pale orangey-pink diamond, was added to the Crown Jewels of France by King Louis XIV

1701

The colorless Regent diamond discovered by a slave in the Parteal Mines on the Kistna River

1726

The Dresden Green diamond, named after the capital of Saxony, was sold to King Frederic August I by Marcus Moses who acquired the stone in India. It has a fancy green color, weighs almost 41 carats, has 58 facets and has a pear shaped cut

1760's

The Orlov (aka Orloff) Diamond was mounted in the Russian Imperial Sceptre, during the reign of Catherine the Great (1762-1796). It has a bluish-green tint

1762

The Shah Diamond,an 88.70-carat, was found in Golconda, India. It was included in the Great Imperial Crown for Catherine the Great which was made by a jeweller called Jeremia Posier

1792

The French Blue Diamond, later to become the Hope Diamond, was stolen from the French Crown Jewels during the French Revolution

Year

The History of Diamonds - 1800's & 1900's

1837

The Tiffany Diamond Company was founded by Charles Lewis Tiffany

1839

A large blue diamond, called the "Hope Diamond," appears in the gem catalogue of Henry Philip Hope

1850's

The Black Orlov (aka Orloff) Diamond was acquired by the Russian Princess Nadia Vyegin-Orlov (aka Orloff)

1851

The Koh-i-Noor diamond was re-cut to 105 carats for Queen Victoria (Empress of India) by a stone-cutter from Amsterdam. This famous diamond is part of the British Crown jewels

1853

The Star of the South was found in the Bagagem Diamond Mines in Brazil

1854

Royal Asscher Diamond Company was founded

1866

The Eureka Diamond was cut from the first diamond found in South Africa

1869

The Star of South Africa, a 47.69-carat old style pear-shaped diamond, was found in South Africa

1877

The Tiffany Yellow was found in South Africa

1880

The colorless Porter Rhodes Diamond came from the claim of Mr. Porter-Rhodes in the Kimberly Mine

1889

The Iranian Yellows - African diamonds acquired by Nasseridin Shah

1895

The Jubilee Diamond, a colorless, cushion-shaped diamond, was found in the Jagersfontein Mine

1902

The Cullinan (aka the Star of Africa) was found by Frederick Wells, the superintendent of the Premier Mine in South Africa, and named after Sir Thomas Cullinan, who opened the mine and was visiting that dayAbraham and Joseph Asscher cut the enormous 3,106 carat Cullinan diamond at the request of King Edward VII in 1902 when the Asscher cut was patented.

1900's

The Archduke Joseph, a colorless cushion shaped diamond, was found and named after a Hungarian prince Archduke Joseph August (1872-1962)

1900's

The Spirit of de Grisogono at 312.24 carats was also found in the early 1900's and is the world's largest cut black diamond

1909

The Blue Heart diamond weighs 30.82 metric carats and was cut by Atanik Ekyanan of Neuilly, Paris

1916

The Tereschenko Diamond was secretly taken out of Russia on the eve of the Russian Revolution

1924

Uncle Sam is the nickname for the largest diamond discovered in the United States which was discovered by W. O. Bassum at Crater of Diamonds state park in Murfreesboro, Arkansas.

1933

La Favorite Diamond was mined in South Africa and exhibited at the Chicago World's Fair

1934

The Jonker Diamond was found by 62-year-old Johannes Jacobus Jonker in South Africa

1941

1941 The Walska Diamond, a 95-carat yellow briolette cut stone, was bought by Ganna Walska (1887-1984) who was a Polish opera singer

1950

The Allnatt Fancy Vivid Yellow 101.29 carat Diamond was found at the Premier Diamond Mine in South Africa. It was named after its original owner, Alfred Ernest Allnatt

1957

The Nepal ("The Ageless Diamond" ) was purchased by Harry Winston from an Indian dealer

1958

Nur-Ul-Ain Diamond was used as a centrepiece of the tiara designed for the wedding of Empress Farah to the the last Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi.

1967

The Earth Star Diamond was cut from a rough gem weighing 248.9 carats which was found in the Jagersfontein Mine

1968

The Asscher cut Krupp Diamond, originally named after Vera Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach, was sold at Sothebys to Elizabeth Taylor.

1969

The famous couple purchased the Taylor-Burton pear-shaped diamond

1969

The Zale Light of Peace Diamond (blue-white) was purchased by the Zale Corporation of Dallas weighing a total of 434.6 carats. It is believed to have come from Sierra Leone, Africa

1969

The Sultan of Morocco  is a 35.27 carat cushion cut grayish-blue diamond. Cartier lent this diamond to the New York State Museum for their World of Gems Exposition

1973

The black Amsterdam Diamond was first exhibited at D. Drukker & Zn., Amsterdam

1977

The Kahn Canary Diamond was Discovered in the Crater of Diamonds State Park, near Murfreesboro, Arkansas

1997

The Pumpkin Diamond is a Fancy Vivid Orange was found by a farmer on South Africa

1997

The Golden Jubilee Diamond was presented to the King of Thailand for his Golden Jubilee and was designed by Gabi Tolkowsky

1999

The American Star Diamond was purchased by the EightStar company of California

2002

The Beluga Diamond (a 41-carat stone from the Golconda area of India): The Ashoka cut diamond was developed by the William Goldberg firm