How much do you know about the materials that have made the human heart beat faster, kings to wage wars and queens to lose their head? Gold, diamonds, gemstones, pearls and other precious metals and stones - though money has changed a lot over the years, these materials and their worth have little changed. Enjoy and learn some fascinating facts about jewelry.
Historically, people used to swallow whole pearls because it was believed they were a source of purity, and can ward off the evil influences of disease.
The largest pearl on record weighed 14 pounds.
Back in 1896, an engagement ring from Tiffany would set you back about $40. How things have changed...
Elizabeth II, former Queen of England, had a jewelry collection that was estimated at about $57 million dollars.
The famous jewel from the movie Titanic was actually based on an actual rare and large sapphire that went down with the titanic and never recovered.
All diamonds turn to graphite over an extremely long period of time
While diamonds are one of the hardest substances in nature, there are many man-made, synthetic nanomaterials that are much harder.
However hard a diamond is, it is not strong. You can break any of them with a hammer. If you hit one with a hammer it will shatter.
Engagement rings were declared as mandate for marriage as far back as 860 A.D by Pope Nicholas I.
Opals may sometimes be made of up to 30% water
Platinum was not used in jewelry until 1896, by Cartier.
Contrary to common belief, emeralds can be more valuable than diamonds when they are of very high quality.
The real color of gold is yellow and any other color means the gold is not completely pure.
The Star of Asia is one of the largest sapphires known in the world and is currently housed at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History.
All the gold ever mined in the history of the world can be compressed into an 18-yard cube, roughly 1/10 of the Washington Monument
In all the oceans, however, there is an estimated 10 billion tons of gold.
Why are pearls so rare? Only 1 out of 10,000 oysters will create a pearl.
For each one million diamonds that are mined, only a single one will become jewelry.
The U.S. is the world’s largest consumer of diamonds
3 out of 4 American brides receive engagement rings with gold and diamonds.
All diamonds are over 3 billion years old, as that is the time it takes the process to create them from pressure.
The most expensive piece of jewelry created for a movie was Nicole Kidman’s necklace in Moulin Rouge. It is expected to sell for $1 million.
The twelve birthstones came from the twelve tribes of Israel
Why is this particular finger the 'ring finger'? Because people used to believe that the finger had a vein connected straight into the heart. That's pretty darn romantic.
