Diamonds are the hardest stones known to man, hence the greek word "adamas," (unconquerable). They have a hardness of 10 on the Mohs' Scale and are one of the toughest gemstones for wearability. Even though they have the greatest hardness known, they can still be broken by a direct hit or scratched by coming in contact with another diamond.
Diamonds have come to signify love because of their great strength and their rareness. In the past, only the nobility could ever afford a real diamond. That was until a very rich and plentiful find was unearthed in Kimberly, South Africa in the mid 1800s. This allowed much more production and thus even more popularity with the world masses.
Diamonds by their very nature allow greases and grime to adhere quickly to all surfaces, so more frequent cleaning is desirable to maximize the stone's true brilliance. Ultrasonic cleaning and steaming are very easy ways to keep your symbol of eternal love bright and clean, so stop in to your favorite jeweler for a free cleaning and mounting check. At home we recommend a reliable commercial jewelry cleaning solution for soaking your diamonds. Make sure to read and follow the directions and use the enclosed small brush to reach those small mounting undercuts and the gemstones pavilion cuts. Do not soak in bleach or other household chemicals, it may not harm the diamond but they may very well damage the gold or platinum that your stone is mounted in. Wipe with a clean dry soft cloth or a jeweler's polishing cloth.
Within the last few years diamonds have become even more inexpensive by the enhancement techniques of "laser drilling" and "quality enhancing" (glass filling). This may seem desirable because of the much lower price point and its ultimate affordability, but it can be a real problem to your repair jeweler. The jeweler needs to be aware of this prior to cleaning, retipping or any other repair being done to the piece. We request that full disclosure should be the standard requirement prior to the execution of any undertaking by your professional jeweler.
At Ralph Miller Jewelers, 28 & 30 West 8th Street, Erie, Pennsylvania, we do not sell laser drilled or quality enhanced diamonds, but only the best, modern cut stones available, featuring polished and faceted girdle stones, with very high quality ranges of VVS1 to SI2, and colors of F - H. We always recommend that you never sacrifice color or quality for size and cut in your diamond purchases. Remember that true brilliance can never be put into the stone after the purchase. The real test of true brilliance is seen only outdoors in natural sunlight.
