Screen legend Marilyn Monroe was famed for saying that ‘diamonds are a girl’s best friend’ – and that certainly seems to be the case, no matter who old or young you are Diamonds are ageless, timeless and priceless.

Diamond is renowned as a material with superlative physical qualities, most of which originate from the strong covalent bonding between its atoms. In particular, diamond has the highest hardness and thermal conductivity of any bulk material.

Those properties determine the major industrial application of diamond in cutting and polishing tools.

Diamond has remarkable optical characteristics. Because of its extremely rigid lattice, very few types of impurities, such as boron and nitrogen, can contaminate it.

Combined with wide transparency, this results in the clear, colourless appearance of most natural diamonds. Small amounts of defects or impurities (about one per million of lattice atoms) colour diamond blue (boron), yellow (nitrogen), brown (lattice defects), green (radiation exposure), purple, pink, orange or red, excellent optical and mechanical properties.

Diamonds come in much different variety of colours, shapes and sizes, colours can vary from yellow, brown or gray to colourless.

Less often blue, green, black, translucent white, pink, violet, orange, purple and red diamonds are found, but these are very rare, and thus become rather expensive to purchase.

Approximately 130,000,000 carats (26,000 kg) of diamonds are mined annually, with a total value of nearly US$9 billion, and about 100,000 kg (220,000 lb) are synthesized annually.

Roughly, 49% of diamonds originate from Central and Southern Africa, although significant sources of the mineral have been discovered in Canada, India, Russia, Brazil and Australia.

They are mined from kimberlite and lamproite volcanic pipes, which can bring diamond crystals, originating from deep within the Earth where high pressures and temperatures enable them to form, to the surface.

The mining and distribution of natural diamonds are subjects of frequent controversy such as concerns over the sale of blood diamonds or conflict diamonds by African paramilitary groups.

The diamond supply chain is controlled by a limited number of powerful businesses, and is highly concentrated in a small number of locations around the world, In the U.S., diamonds have been found in Arkansas, Colorado and Montana.

Diamonds are primarily used in engagement rings, Betrothal rings were used during Roman times, but weren't generally revived in the Western world until the 13th century] The first well-documented use of a diamond ring to signify engagement was by the Archduke Maximilian of Austria in imperial court of Vienna in 1477, upon his betrothal to Mary of Burgundy.

Before the 20th century, other types of betrothal gifts were common. Before the end of the 19th century, the bride-to-be sometimes received a sewing thimble rather than an engagement ring.

This practice was particularly common among religious groups that shunned jewellery.

Engagement rings did not become standard in the West until the end of the 19th century, and diamond rings did not become common until the 1930s.

Diamonds are a girl’s best friend at The Watch Hut.