How Does a Diamond Become Part of a Ring?
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Harvesting Diamonds
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When diamonds are mined 3,500 feet under the earth, they do not look like the diamonds we are familiar with today. They look like pebbles with dark and yellowish tinges, and they may have irregular shapes. The De Beers company is an example of a company that mines diamonds and trades them to other buyers all over the world. The rocks are mined in Bostwana, Namibia, South Africa and Canada. After mining, the rock is sorted, and sold to manufacturers.
Manufacturers
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After the diamonds are sold to manufacturers, these manufacturers have cutting centers that examine and certify the diamonds for value. They take into consideration the stone's clarity, shape and facets, and cut it in a way that will produce the highest value for the stone. Diamonds are cut with a saw blade that contain diamond dust. As the hardest rock in the world, only diamonds can cut other diamonds. After these diamonds are cut, they are measured by height and width, and shaped into round stones, and then sold to jewelers and jewelry wholesalers.
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Setting on the Ring
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When jewelers acquire wholesale diamond, they begin the process of creating the ring. A jeweler creates a ring mold that will be used to make the ring base and the crown. Molten metal such as gold or silver are combined with other metals to form an alloy for the base. The crown on the ring base is where the diamond will be set. Loose diamonds are then taken and measured to fit the ring crown. Afterward, the jeweler uses shaping tools such as pliers and drill bits to fit the stone into the ring, adjusts the prongs and sets the diamond securely in place. The jeweler then polishes the ring, treats it with an ultrasonic machine to clean it and places it under a high-pressure jet of stream to emphasize the luster of the newly made diamond ring.
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Resources
- Photo Credit Wedding Ring 3, royalty-free image by bjearwicke
