This fancy yellow diamond helped earn a 19th-century jeweler, Charles Lewis Tiffany, the nickname “King of Diamonds.” Tiffany acquired the South African diamond in 1878 for $18,000. A famous gemologist of the era, George Frederick Kunz, supervised its cutting—a task that took nearly a year.
Today, the Tiffany Diamond is the icon of Tiffany & Co., where it has been on view for nearly 70 years. Tiffany designer Jean Schlumberger designed three jeweled settings for the Tiffany Diamond in 1956. The current setting “Bird on a Rock” was mounted in 1995.
Alexandrite-June Birthstone
History and Folklore- Alexandrites were said to have been discovered by mineralogist Nils Gustoaf Nordenskiold (1792-1866) on the sixteenth birthday of Alexander II. He named the stone in honor of the future Tsar Alexander II of Russia. While this is a very popular story of the discovery of Alexandrites, it is very controversial.
Facts and Information – The material that displays a color change in the chrysoberyl species are called Alexandrites. This color appears in daylight – green, bluish green, yellowish, brownish yellow, grayish and changes to red, purplish red, orange or brownish red in incandescent light. Alexandrite from the Ural Mountings in Russia have the “ideal” color change-green to red or purplish red. Because of their rarity and color change capability, these gems are very expensive, and larger stones are very rare.
Gemstone Identification and Characteristics
• R.I.: 1.746-1.755
• Hardness: 7.5-8
• S.G.: 3.73
• Species: Chrysoberyl
Cleaning Methods
• Usually safe in steamer or ultrasonic
• Safe in warm, soapy water
Major Sources
• Brazil
• Sri Lanka
• India
• Russia
This fancy yellow diamond helped earn a 19th-century jeweler, Charles Lewis Tiffany, the nickname “King of Diamonds.” Tiffany acquired the South African diamond in 1878 for $18,000. A famous gemologist of the era, George Frederick Kunz, supervised its cutting—a task that took nearly a year.
