Origin and early history of diamonds
The word ‘diamond’ originates from the Greek ‘adamao’ which means ‘I tame’ or ‘I subdue’. The adjective ‘adamas’ was used to depict the hardest substance known, and gradually became synonymous with diamond.
Knowledge of diamonds is said to have been acquired first in India, where it was first mined. The word most generally employed for diamond in ancient Sanskrit language was transliterated as ‘vajra’ (thunderbolt).
Early descriptions related to diamond dated back almost to the 4th century BC, when it was already treated as a valued material. The earliest known reference to the precious stone is a Sanskrit manuscript dated from around 320-296 BCE.
Small numbers of diamonds started appearing in European regalia and jewellery in around the 13th century – set as accent points among precious pearls in wrought gold. Louis IX of France established in the 13th Century a law reserving them for the king. This showed their rarity even in those times, indicating the value attached to them.
Within a span of 100 years, diamonds appeared in royal jewellery of both men & women, largely among the greater European aristocracy.
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