While many people associate diamonds with South Africa, these remarkable gems, in fact, had a more varied journey of discovery, spanning the known world across centuries. The history of diamond mining and trading began in India around the 4th century B.C., eventually reaching South Africa and other prominent sources, including Botswana, Canada, and Australia, thousands of years later.
Diamonds in India
Diamonds have been used throughout ancient history as talismans, remedies, and industrial cutting tools. The earliest recorded accounts of diamonds being systematically mined for adornment and trade trace back to the 4th century B.C. in India, where they were extracted along riverbeds and streams for an impressive 1000 years. During this time, the majority were traded between India and China along Eastern trade routes, including the famous Silk Road.
Valued for their seemingly indestructible quality and shining appearance, diamonds were reserved for a select few: the royalty of the East. This is how India remained the source of diamonds for so long – their supply could meet the limited demand. Most Indian mining was carried out along the Krishna River in the kingdom of Golconda. This is where many famous and fabulous diamonds are said to have been discovered, including the Regent Diamond and the infamous Koh-I-Noor Diamond.
For many years, diamonds remained a luxury only the most elite in Indian society could afford. However, tales of these precious gems began to catch the attention of famous European explorers such as French gem merchant and traveller, Jean-Baptiste Tavernier. He spent several years exploring India, and in 1642, acquired a remarkable blue diamond thought to have been found in the Golconda mines. This gem was later cut into the famed and spectacular Hope Diamond.
The European Fascination with Diamonds
Once the desire for diamonds spread to the West, India’s diamond trade expanded to include the aristocracy and upper classes of Europe. Here, diamonds became a desirable and highly sought-after jewel, especially as diamond faceting began to develop and reveal the gem’s sparkle. The increased trade of diamonds from India to the rest of Europe was greatly influenced by the Portuguese navigator Vasco da Gama, after discovering the sea route to the Orient around the Cape of Good Hope.
The Koh-i-Noor diamond mounted in the centre of the cross pattée on Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother’s Crown.
[Image from Britannica online]
“Onlookers take in the display of the Koh-i-Noor diamond with two smaller diamonds at the Great Exhibition of 1851 in the Crystal Palace in London. The Koh-i-Noor was placed in a covered gilt iron cage that excluded daylight and was illuminated with a ring of gas jets and metal reflectors surrounding it.
(Courtesy of The Illustrated Exhibitor and other sources).
[From GIA Online]
The first diamond engagement ring is thought to have been presented as early as 1477, given to Mary of Burgundy by the Archduke Maximilian of Austria. It was said to have been composed of elongated ‘slices’ of diamond set in the shape of an ‘M’. Interestingly, it was only much later, in 1947, with a genius advertising campaign by De Beers, that diamonds became the quintessential gemstone for engagement rings.
The Birth of Diamond Cutting
Diamond cutting originated in Golconda, India, a then major centre whose name took on the meaning “a place of great wealth” amongst Europeans. However, as more diamonds flooded the European market and demand increased further, the diamond-cutting industry was born in Venice. From there, the industry stretched to Bruges, Paris, and later to the major cutting centre Antwerp. Here, cutting technology and styles developed further, and over centuries the unsurpassed brilliance and fire of diamonds were slowly revealed.
From India to Brazil
Although it was widely believed for centuries that India was the only source of diamonds, their monopoly over these alluring gemstones eventually declined as their supplies began to dwindle. Focus then turned across the globe when, in 1725, a bright light shone over Brazil with the discovery of a new diamond deposit. This light continued to shine for over 150 years. However, as the ruling classes – the biggest market for diamonds until this time – began to decline, affluence had spread to the greater middle class, and demand grew yet again; this meant that by the 1800s the small deposit in Brazil couldn’t keep up anymore.
The Modern History of Diamonds
This is about the time when “the modern history of diamonds” began, with the discovery of the first South African diamond deposits and the subsequent diamond rush. This discovery shaped the future of diamonds and secured South Africa’s position as a primary producer of these precious gemstones.
Discovery
In 1866, a young man named Erasmus Jacobs discovered the Eureka Diamond while exploring the banks of the Orange River near Hopetown. Thinking he discovered nothing more than a transparent pebble that had blinked at him from the water, the diamond passed from Erasmus to his little sister, and then to their mother. Schalk van Niekerk, their neighbour, was a collector of gemstones, and suspected the pebble might be of some value. He offered to purchase it from the Jacobs family, who, having no idea of its worth, simply gifted it to him. Schalk van Niekerk then had the stone examined by Lorenzo Boyes, a civil commissioner in Colesberg, who discovered it could scratch glass. It was then sent on to an amateur gemmologist who promptly pronounced it to be a 21.25-carat diamond. Soon after, farmers began in earnest to start looking for these valuable gemstones, which they called “blink klippe”, meaning shiny stones in Afrikaans.
The Diamond Rush
The next and most significant diamond discovery in South Africa was the Star of South Africa (later known as the Dudley Diamond), weighing an impressive 83.5 carats in the rough (later cut into a 47.69-carat pear shape) (not to be confused with the Cullinan Diamond, also referred to as the Great Star of Africa). This diamond was discovered by a humble shepherd boy along the banks of the Orange River in 1869. The boy sold the diamond for what he deemed to be an exceptionally good price to none other than Schalk van Niekerk. Although the shepherd boy could never have guessed how great his role in the history of diamonds would be, it would be his discovery that truly triggered the Great Diamond Rush and the huge influx of prospectors to this new, unprecedented diamond field, now known as Kimberley. Kimberley itself was created after many diamond mines were connected to make the town, and was considered one of the most important diamond areas in the world due to its large diamond pipes.
The Dudley Diamond [image from: https://www.kimberley.org.za]
By 1875, thousands of diggers had gathered in Kimberley, which was now producing 95% of the world’s diamonds. With this massive increase in supply, the diamond industry experienced its first major shift, with diamonds now no longer rare but rather available to anyone who could afford them. The diamond jewellery industry flourished. By 1880, Englishman Cecil John Rhodes formed De Beers Consolidated Mines to regulate and control the diamond supply.
In 1902, the Premier Mine, later renamed the Cullinan Mine, was founded by former bricklayer-turned-prospector Thomas Cullinan. He was later knighted for his contributions to industrial development and became known as Sir Thomas Cullinan. During World War I. This mine was eventually absorbed into De Beers.
In 1905, it shot to celebrity status when the Cullinan Diamond, the largest rough diamond found to date, was discovered here. The Cullinan Diamond weighed over 3,106 carats and is near colourless. This unbelievable gem was cut into 105 assorted diamonds by Joseph Asscher of Amsterdam and his company, famed diamond cutter and namesake of the Asscher cut diamond. Many of these cut stones, along with historic unpolished fragments, form an integral part of the British Crown Jewels held in the British Royal Collection.
Aerial view of the Premier Mine, South Africa, where the Cullinan diamond was discovered
Image source: Wikimedia Commons
Pieces obtained from the Cullinan Diamond rough; top centre: The Great Star of Africa
Image source: user Chris 73 Wikimedia Commons
The Cullinan Mine, also the only noteworthy source of blue diamonds in the world, has produced more than a quarter of all the world’s diamonds weighing over 400 carats. Notable discoveries other than the Cullinan Diamond include the De Beers Centenary at 275 carats and the Golden Jubilee Diamond at 755 carats. The Cullinan Mine holds much of the responsibility for South Africa’s significance in the history of diamonds.
From this point on, demand for diamonds fluctuated drastically, from World War I until 1932, when the diamond demand was so depressed that mining operations actually ceased at one point. De Beers Mines went on to experience many difficulties during both World Wars and the Great Depression, and diamonds began to lose most of their lustre.
In 1947, however, a genius and timeless slogan ignited the popularity of the diamond engagement ring and ushered in a new era of diamond purchasing. “A Diamond Is Forever” was coined by Frances Gerety, a young copywriter hired by De Beers, and is still considered one of the greatest achievements in 20th-century marketing. Many credit Frances as one of the greatest influences on the rebirth of diamonds and the demand for them, especially for diamond engagement rings.
Between the 1980’s and the present day, many new and exciting strides have been made in the diamond industry. De Beers no longer controls the market as sole custodian, and diamonds now flow freely through numerous channels. As advances in various sciences were made, scientists were able to understand how diamonds are formed and how they reach the earth’s surface. Diamonds were found to be incredibly ancient – all diamonds dated so far were formed before the extinction of dinosaurs 65 million years ago, and the oldest dated diamonds are 3.3-3.5 billion years old!
Because these gems remain one of the hardest substances on Earth, industrial diamonds, also known as non-gem quality, play a vital role in many different industries, including metalworking and mining. The majority of 21st-century diamonds are supplied by Russia and the Congo.
In 1982, the Jwaneng mine in Botswana opened and became a famous source of high-quality diamonds, now third in the world for total diamond recovery. 2015 saw the discovery of the Lesedi La Rona, the world’s third-largest gem-quality diamond, found in the Karowe Mine of Botswana. Other major producers include the Argyle mine of Australia (famous for pink diamonds) and Canada.
In all this history, we would be remiss not to mention two major developments. First, the 1919 invention of the modern brilliant cut by Marcel Tolkowsky, which to this day is the most popular cutting style used in diamond engagement rings, pendants, earrings, and more. This cut design is composed of 57 facets (58 if you count the culet), all mathematically perfected to bring out the most brilliance and fire in a diamond. Since India’s first cut diamonds thousands of years ago, India has now once again become a major centre for diamond cutting, with a majority percentage of the world’s cut diamonds produced in Surat.
Second, the establishment of the Gemmological Institute of America (GIA) in 1931 and the profound impact it had on standardising gemological education and grading. The mission of the GIA to protect all buyers and sellers of gemstones by setting and maintaining the standards used to grade gemstones is still in effect today. In 1953, the GIA developed an international diamond grading system, which is still considered the most trustworthy and authoritative to this day. This is due to the scientific laboratory methods used to objectively grade gemstones. This International Grading System is known as the Four C’s. Due to their strict standards, diamonds graded and certified by the GIA are considered worth more than those without this certification, which is a high selling point within the diamond jewellery industry.
The splendour of diamonds has consistently dazzled the human soul throughout history and remains one of the most desirable gemstones around the world today. When wearing a diamond, you are not only wearing a wonder of aesthetic beauty, but also a piece of history older than recorded time.
