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Learning diamonds passport
hardest diamond: This diamond is about
2.5 mm high and was grown in about a day on top of a natural diamond (the
lowest layer)
Black
diamonds born in space
Surat
black market Diamonds' sparkle still has heavy price
SURAT, INDIA - Such is its standing in the international diamond industry,
India is expected to be chosen by the United Nations to take over the Kimberley
Process - an initiative to stop the trade in African blood diamonds - from the
European Union.
I
have heard about rare colored diamonds before but I was recently introduced to
the concept of chameleon diamonds.
The chameleon is an extremely rare stone, it has a stable color of
greenish yellow but then they can change color
read chameleon coloured diamonds
High
Pressure/High Temperature (HPHT) equipment
from Sundance to change diamond colors.
Investing in cut diamonds jewelry a matter of
trust
Soon, Your Diamond Will Carry a Diamond Passport
Innovative Tracking System Aims to End Blood Diamond Buys
By LESLIE YERANSIAN found at abc
news May 19, 2006
This
passport authenticates the diamond through its source site. (Collectors
Universe)
— Kanye West sings about them; Charlize Theron rallies against them;
Leonardo DiCaprio will star in a movie about them. They're called blood or
conflict diamonds.
And how can you be sure you don't own one?
Thousands of brides will walk down the aisle this summer knowing next to nothing
about one of the most emotionally charged items they will ever possess -- their
diamond rings. But a new technology is now under way to make sure next year's
batch of brides know their rock's pedigree.
So perhaps Charlize Theron can finally relax about her diamonds and gems,
knowing they are conflict free. Theron is one of Hollywood's leading ladies who
oppose conflict diamonds -- diamonds that have been traded for guns, extracted
from regions controlled by military forces in rebellion. The cavil is that
profits from smuggled diamonds fuel political conflict and violence.
The U.S. government tried to curb the trade and sale of conflict diamonds
through the Clean Diamond Act and the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme
passed in 2003. Some consumers, however, are still not convinced of the
legislation's effectiveness and worry that their diamonds aren't
"clean."
Consumers Want diamond Details
These days consumers are increasingly interested in learning the origins of
the goods they buy -- whether it's organic produce or faux-leather wallets.
Jewelry retailers have now responded to consumers' demands for a product's
history. In a two-page memo, high-end retailer Tiffany & Co. tells its
customers it's serious about determining the source of its gems. "Tiffany
sources rough diamonds from known legitimate mine of origin sources to ensure
adequate supply of high-quality diamonds."
But Michael Haynes, chief executive of Collectors Universe, the parent company
of Gem Certification and Assurance Lab, believes consumers need to see cold,
hard proof of their diamond's source. By tracking a diamond before it enters the
distribution chain all the way until it is in the customer's hands, GCAL makes
sure the diamond matches its papers, guaranteeing that the stone hasn't been
switched out at any point in the distribution channel.
Haynes provides consumers with what he calls a "source veritas
passport," the first third-party certification and source-site verification
that caters directly to the buyer, not just the retailer. As these diamonds
cross national borders, Haynes tries to make sure buyers get a passport that
discloses where their diamonds have been mined.
Protection Against diamond Counterfeiters
The passport site would identify the diamond's source and provide a snapshot
of the gem's unique reflective pattern for authentication papers. GCAL uses a
noninvasive laser technology to imprint the diamond. The pencil-thin laser light
goes down from the table of the diamond and captures a refractive pattern that
then gets recorded on film. "If anyone loses it we can try to recover
it," said Haynes.
Other jewelry retailers, like Cartier, say they laser-imprint technology but
only on the girdle of the diamond or gem. Hayes says, "That doesn't make it
secure. That's like someone writing with a pencil on a piece of paper. It can
easily be erased or written over."
"We imprint the whole table, the whole top of the diamond. That means the
only way that imprint can be changed is if you recut the diamond, and that would
cause the diamond to lose weight. Obviously, counterfeiters don't want to do
that," added Haynes.
This June, diamond industry buyers can start using this unique authentication,
grading and source site verification procedure. De Beers will also roll out its
own passport program to address the consumer need. "It's not just GIA
certificates anymore. People want more reassurance about their diamonds, because
today there's a lot more questioning going on with regards to
certification," said Joan Parker of De Beers LV.
For a consumer, this means that for the same price you can buy diamonds and gems
for the upcoming engagement season and know more details about your diamond than
you know about your own DNA. And when that diamond gets passed down generation
to generation, there will be pedigree papers to ensure that the emotions
attached to that diamond are pride and love -- not worry that it fueled a war in
a faraway land.
Copyright © 2006 ABC News Internet Ventures
read also:
Some gems free of war, injustice
...By 2003, more than 50 nations had agreed to the so-called Kimberley
Process, a system of import-export inspection and certification of conflict-free
diamonds. The U.S. government later turned those rules into law....
"Diamonds
are a girl's best friend" We wish you all the best and a
brilliant 2010. Danny Diamonds.
