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Buddhist works dating from the 4th century BC describe the diamond as a well-known and precious stone but do not mention the details of diamond cutting. [11] Another Indian description written in the beginning of the 3rd century describes strength, regularity, brilliance, ability to scratch metals, and good refractive properties as the ...
Diamond mining in India extends back into antiquity. From ancient times, India was the source of nearly all the world's known diamonds, and until diamonds were discovered in Brazil in 1726, India was the only place where diamonds were mined. India has not been a major diamond-producing country since the 1900s, but diamond mining continues.
Golconda diamonds are mined in the Godavari-Krishna delta region of Andhra Pradesh, India. Golconda Fort in the western part of modern-day Hyderabad was a seat of the Golconda Sultanate and became an important centre for diamond enhancement, lapidary, and trading. Golconda diamonds are graded as Type IIa, are formed of pure carbon, are devoid ...
In popular culture, sets of precious substances may form hierarchies which express conventional perceived relative value or merit. Precious metals appear prominently in such hierarchies, but as they grow, gems and semi-precious materials may be introduced as part of the system. The sequences can provide interesting examples of the arbitrariness ...
Sri Lanka ’s gem industry has a very long and colorful history. Sri Lanka was affectionately known as Ratna-Dweepa which means Gem Island. The name is a reflection of its natural wealth. Marco Polo wrote that the island had the best sapphires, topazes, amethysts, and other gems in the world. [ 1] Ptolemy, the 2nd century astronomer recorded ...
Diamond mine in the Golconda region 1725 CE from the collection of Pieter van der Aa—a Dutch publisher known for preparing maps and atlases.. The period of peak production of the Golconda diamonds (in the present-day states Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, India) was under the Qutb Shahi dynasty (16th century – 17th century CE), and the region was also known as the "Golconda Sultanate".
The diamond had been stolen from the Tower of London by a Parisian gang leader who replaced it with a replica stone. [ 86 ] The Koh-i-Noor is a central plot point in George MacDonald Fraser 's 1990 historical novel and satire , Flashman and the Mountain of Light , which refers to the diamond in its title.
Philosopher's stone. The Alchymist, in Search of the Philosopher's Stone by Joseph Wright of Derby, 1771. The philosopher's stone[ a] is a mythic alchemical substance capable of turning base metals such as mercury into gold or silver [ b]; it was also known as "the tincture" and "the powder". Alchemists additionally believed that it could be ...