The Rare Blue Wittelsbach-Graff Diamond Exhibition in 2010

By Woro Swasti

blue diamonds jewelry

Diamond jewelry stones are always have high price due to their value. Some of them have extremely high value and of course, very expensive. Rare diamonds usually belong to this group of diamonds. One of the rarest blue diamond jewelry in the world is Wittelsbach-Graff Diamond.

Now the Wittelsbach-Graff Diamond is on display until August 2010. It is exhibited in the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History. No one knows when the diamond will be seen in public again after this exhibition, so this is the right time to watch this adorable rare blue diamond.

The Wittelsbach Blue diamond was in December 2008 auction, when Laurence Graff, a diamond dealer, paid more than $25m for this famous diamond. Graff repolished the diamond, made a reduction to it’s carat weight, and thus making it internally flawless. Now the diamond’s weight slightly over 31 carats and renamed Wittelsbach-Graff Diamond.

The Wittelsbach diamond originally weighs 35.56 metric carats. The diamond has an unusual pattern with 82 facets. The diamond was discovered many centuries ago at the diamond mine in India, the same origin as the Hope Diamond. Many believe that the two blue diamonds was fashioned from the same piece of rough French Blue Diamond.

In 1664, Philip IV of Spain gave the Wittelsbach blue diamond to his 15-year-old daughter, the Infanta Margareta Teresa, upon her engagement to Emperor Leopold I of Austria. The earlier history of the Wittelsbach was lost during the Spanish Civil War of 1936-39.

The beautiful diamond was last seen in public in Brussels at the 1958 World Exhibition. Six years later, the Wittelsbach was acquired by private collector until the auction in 2008.

I wrote a guide you may be interested in reading: Oval Diamond and Canary Diamond

Canary Diamond

By Woro Swasti

canary yellow diamond

Canary diamond is a fancy color diamond, which have brilliant yellow color. Natural canary diamond is rare and expensive. Its rarity have made many jeweler created enhanced canary diamonds, with much more affordable prices.

To know whether your yellow canary diamond is natural or enhanced, always check the diamond’s certificate. This certificate will determine the quality of your diamond.

There are many popular cuts of canary diamonds, such as oval, pear, marquise, cushion, princess, and emerald cut diamond. Canary yellow diamonds can be found in all kinds of jewelry, including necklaces, earrings, and rings.

The term “canary” first considered as a diamond slang word, after a bright yellow songbird. In 1869 is the discovery of a huge sunflower yellow diamonds in South Africa. These bright stones were brought to the surface and that was when the word “canary” came to describe these diamonds.

Every colored diamonds contain impurities or defect which gave the color to the stones. In case with canary diamonds, the main impurity is nitrogen atoms. The nitrogen atoms are dispersed in the isolated sites of carbon crystal while the stone is forming. This give the stone their bright yellow tint. The natural yellow canary diamonds represents only 0.1% of natural diamonds, which is very rare.

Canary diamond rings are difficult to find. There are several famous canary stones, such as Tiffany Diamond with more than 280 carats weight, or Oppenheimer Diamond weighed in at more than 250 carat displayed at Smithsonian Museum.

Diamond canary engagement rings are beautiful and bright. Some people said these rings symbolizes relationship better and more beautiful than any bird’s song.

We have additional information on this subject you may be interested in reading: Emerald Cut Diamonds and Diamond Vintage

Facts About Pink Diamonds

Executive Summary about Pink Diamonds by David Cowley

pink diamond ring

The pink diamonds comes in shades ranging from a pastel rose, such as the Pink Orchid to intense purple-reds of the Moussaieff Red, and the price is determined by the intensity of the color.

The intense pressure changes the lattice structure of diamonds and has led to the formation of Pink, Red, and Brown colored diamonds.

Only 1 out of the top 66 largest diamonds in the world is pink. Although not normally large in size they have become very popular and over the years many have become world famous.

Probably the most famous pink diamond in the world was the Pink Panther Diamond that was made famous by the 1964 file release of The Pink Panther. Darya-I-Nur diamond is believed to be the largest pink diamond in the world.

The Steinmetz Pink Diamond is classified as a vivid pink and is 59.60 carats in weight. This diamond was discovered in South Africa and is the largest Fancy Vivid Pink diamond in the world.

What Gives the Pink Diamond Its Pink Hue

Executive Summary about Pink Diamonds by Debra Gravelle

Naturally, colored diamonds are extremely rare and enormously expensive. The mysterious pink diamond is mined in India, Brazil and in Africa. Although, the Argyle Diamond Mine, in Western Australia, remains the largest producer of the pink diamond.

Unlike the kimberlitic plates in India, Brazil, and Africa, the Argyle Diamond Mine produces its pink diamonds from a rock formation called lamproite.

Scientists as well as top gemologists from around the world have yet to discover the exact element or elements that produce the pink hue in a pink diamond.

There is a theory among scientists that the pink hue is a reflection from a crystal deformation. This would explain the florescent pink hue presence even within such a clear atomically correct diamond. Scientist has yet to prove their theory though or to isolate the crystal deformation.

Gemologists claim that tiny abrasions along the diamonds multiple grains are responsible for reflecting the pink hue.

Meaning, a pink diamond only has the appearance of a pink hue and not that of a true mineral or element nature. Gemologists have based this theory on the fact that the pink diamonds found in the Argyle Diamond Mine are clear under microscopic evaluation.

The color classifications are pink, purplish pink, brownish pink, orange-ish pink and pink champagne.

A natural pure untreated pink diamond is defiantly limited in quantity. The Argyle Diamond Mines are known to be the only pink diamond producer of its kind.

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