April is Diamond Month at Blue Nile and we’re celebrating all 30 days by highlighting basically everything we can think of about our most favourite gemstone.
You Say It's Your Birthstone
Lucky you, April-born! Diamond is your birthstone—perhaps the most coveted stone of all, and certainly our favourite around here.
Diamonds first hit the historical record in 2500 B.C. when the Chinese discovered their effectiveness at sharpening weapons. By the fourth century B.C., they were traveling along Indian trade routes and by the first century A.D., they were highly prized as adornment by Greeks and Romans.
Among its many unique attributes, diamond is the only gemstone comprised of one single mineral: carbon. They result from billions of years of subterranean pressure and heat that bonds those carbon molecules intensely, resulting in the stone’s unique crystalline structure.
The first known engagement ring set with diamonds occurred in Austria in 1477, when an archduke gave one to his betrothed. But it wasn’t until the mid 20th century when industry heavyweight De Beers created history with their immensely effective ad slogan, “A diamond is forever®,” that diamonds and engagement rings became intrinsically joined as symbols of matrimony.