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• The symbol of love
The romantic custom of giving a diamond ring as a symbol of love dates from the 15th century. Archduke Maximilian of Austria surprised his future  wife Maria von Burgund with a diamond ring to mark their engagement.
• Writing with diamonds
In England, diamond rings were known as script rings. Lovers write their love messages with them on window panes. This playful form of flirting was also used by Queen Elizabeth I to communicate with her admirer Sir Walter Raleigh.
• Where do the colours come from?
Had gemstones not smuggled in a few metals, topaz, beryl, tourmaline and quartz would all be colourless. Metals such as iron, chrome, cobalt, copper manganese, nickel and vanadium absorb certain wavelengths of white light and only let remaining complimentary colours through. While chrome may make ruby glow red with corundum, the same substance is responsible for the green in emerald with beryl (ICA Gembureau Europe.
• Most gold is used for jewelry
The total quantity of gold ever mined stands at 153,000 tones (end of 2004). Of this 78,500 tons have been used in jewellery, 29,200 are used as official currency reserves held by central banks and 24,100 are in private ownership. 17,100 have been processed for industrial purposes. India stores around 15,000 to 20,000 tons of gold, a significant proportion in jewellery. (GFMS Gold Survey 2005.)
• The origin of the ring finger
The custom of wearing a diamond ring on the fourth finger (ring finger) of the left hand comes from the Ancient Egyptians. They believed that the Vena Amoris (love vein) ran directly from here to the heart.
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• The most expensive wristwatch
in the world
The Skelett Minutenrepetition from Vacheron Constantin, the oldest watch factory in the world (1755), is the most expensive wristwatch in the world at a sales price of CHF 569,000. Minute repetition means that the watch strikes “past time", i.e. it repeats when requested. The materials of the watch movement are red-gold-plated nickel-brass. Only five pieces are produced per year and it takes 2,200 hours for one single watch (according to Wikipedia 2006).
• The most intricate
clock in the world
 The church tower clock at St. Peter in Zurich is the largest clock face in Europe with a diameter 8.7 m. It is also recognized as the most intricate clock in the world and the most expensive clock anywhere. The watch has an eternal calendar, the entire astrolabe, the earth, the sun and the moon. It even includes a calculator of the inclination of the planets. This clock is valued at 9 million Swiss Francs ( 2005).
• The largest diamond in the world
At 3.106 carat (621.2 grams), the Cullinan is the heaviest raw diamond ever found. A mine worker in South Africa stumbled upon the colossal precious stone in 1905 on a routine tour. Sir Thomas Cullinan, the director of the African mine where the diamond was discovered in 1905 gave the diamond it name and it was eventually given to King Edward VIII on his 66th birthday in 1907. Later 105 diamonds were cut from it, among them the Star of Africa, which is still the largest round diamond in the world. (according to www.weltderwunder.de 2002). |
