Black Diamonds

What are Black Diamonds, as seen in most jewelry?

Black diamonds are typically enhanced. Black diamonds are genuine diamonds treated with radiation to make their color appear black. Under normal lighting conditions the color enhanced black diamond looks black. However, it is actually very dark green. To observe the very dark green color, a fiber-optic light source can be placed near a thin edge of the diamond (such as the girdle or culet). This allows the light to illuminate some of the interior of the stone. The very dark green color that becomes visible is commonly seen in enhanced black diamonds. The very dark green color that is seen is never seen in natural diamonds. It is a result of radiation treatment.

Famous Black Diamonds

The Black Orloff

The Black Orloff (Orlov) cushion cut diamond (shown left) which still weighs in at a very respectable 67.50 carats. It is reported to have belonged to a nineteenth-century shrine near Pondicherry, India, and to have weighed 195 carats in the rough. Set in a diamond and platinum necklace, the Black Orloff has been widely exhibited. In 1969, the stone was sold for $300,000. It was resold in 1990 at Sothebys for $99,000. Also called the Eye of Brahma Diamond. The diamond is currently owned by Dennis Petimezas, a diamond dealer from Pennsylvania who bought the diamond for an unspecified sum in 2005.

"The Gruosi" Black Diamond

Upon creating amazing black diamond jewelry for his luxury jewelry house de Grisogono, chairman and founder Fawaz Gruosi enjoys a special place in diamond history: he is credited with popularizing the fascination with black diamonds in 1996 - a fascination that continues today.

He also had a rare opportunity - a rare opportunity even for a grand jeweler like himself: he got to name a diamond. Naming a diamond is something reserved only for original buyers of a rough diamond. The de Grisogono founder chose the name "The Gruosi" for the incredible 115.34-carat black diamond. In fact, Fawaz Gruosi has actually been involved in naming two diamonds - the other being the 312.24-carat "The Spirit of Grisogono," also a black diamond with the famous Swiss jeweler Mr. de Grisogono. These two black diamonds are the two largest black diamonds in the world.

sources : generousgems.com,blackdiamonds.co.uk,vialuxe.com