Fun facts about diamonds

Diamonds are the hardest natural substance. The only thing that can scratch a diamond is another diamond.

The first diamond was discovered in South Africa in 1867. The diamond, named Eureka, weighed 21.25ct.

Diamonds were originally found and mined in India.

Diamonds symbolise everlasting love and eternal commitment. The earliest record of a diamond engagement ring was in 1477 when Archduke Maximillian of Austria proposed to Mary of Burgundy with a diamond ring.

Roman literature first made mention of diamonds in the first century AD. The ancient Romans and Greeks believed that diamonds were tears cried by the gods or even splinters from falling stars and that Cupid’s arrows were tipped with diamonds.

During the Middle Ages, diamonds were thought to have healing properties that could cure ailments ranging from fatigue to mental illness.

The largest diamond ever found is not on Earth but about 50 light-years away from our planet. The white dwarf star is a mass of crystallised carbon that would equal a diamond of 10 billion trillion trillion carats. Astronomers nicknamed the space diamond Lucy after the Beatles’ song Lucy in the sky with diamonds.

Ancient Hindus used diamonds for the eyes of devotional statues and believed that a diamond could protect its wearer from danger.

To produce a single 1ct diamond, an average of 250 tonnes of earth will be mined.

The diamond is the birthstone for people born in April.