What are the colors of diamonds?

“The best friends of girls are diamonds,” I must admit that any woman will gladly accept a gift made from these precious stones. Their beauty and shine are mesmerizing, and often we cannot distinguish a real diamond from a fake one. Most of us imagine and know the diamond as a transparent gemstone, but in reality it can be of various colors and shades. Colored diamonds can be found with very rare shades such as green, yellow, orange, purple, red, blue, pink and even black.

Before talking about the features of a diamond and its various shades, it is necessary to define the concepts of "diamond" and "diamond". The word "diamond" (adamas) is of Greek origin and translated into Russian means "unsurpassed." Diamond is a natural mineral made up of 99 percent carbon and one percent may include other elements. It is the most durable mineral and also one of the most expensive gemstones.

Diamonds have existed on earth for millions of years. According to one of the versions, they were formed from the silicate melt of the cooled earth mantle. They were thrown to the surface by explosive processes inside the earth's crust. These stones can be found both among the mountains and at the bottom of rivers and seas.

A diamond is a polished, washed and cut diamond. According to the established rules, not all diamonds can be diamonds, but only those in which, after cutting, fifty-seven facets are formed. The weight of diamonds, like all precious stones, is determined in carats, 1 carat is equal to 200 milligrams.

The value of this stone was first appreciated in the 16th century, when its chemical and physical properties were studied. Then its strength and durability were revealed. Today, scientists have learned how to create an artificial diamond, which is equal in strength to a natural one. The resulting stone was called hyperal diamond, but it does not have the same value as the original mineral.

There are many criteria for determining the value of gemstones.... One of them is color. Before talking about the color of the stone, let us explain how it is formed and what it depends on.

Only a specialist can discern the natural color of a diamond; it is extremely difficult for an ordinary person to understand and see the true shade of the stone. Minerals can be multi-colored: from light yellow to the darkest black. These colored stones are called fancy stones. Due to the absence of an insignificant amount of carbon atoms or, conversely, the presence of atoms of boron, hydrogen, chromium and other elements atypical for a stone, the mineral can be colored. Today, for a million colorless diamonds, you can find only no more than a hundred colored diamonds.

Diamonds can be roughly divided into three categories:

• basic (yellow and brown);
• rare (blue, black, red, green, etc.);
• transparent (white).

There are several modern technologies that can make the color more vibrant and recognizable. To give the color a pronounced tone, the stone must be properly processed and have a good cut. When selling a stone, the fact of staining must be indicated among its characteristics:

• use of a special coating;
• artificial staining of stones;
• irradiation with electrons or neutrons.

Colored diamonds are of two types: containing nitrogen, more precisely, its atoms, and those containing no nitrogen atoms.

Basically, all diamonds in their composition have up to three nitrogen molecules, due to which the color is acquired, mainly light yellow stones.

They are also called pure water diamonds; there is no nitrogen in their structure at all. These are quite rare: only 2 percent of the total production. But there are also more rare diamonds, which contain atoms of boron and other chemical elements. Then their color changes and can be of almost any color.

Diamond, unlike other stones, practically does not change its natural color for a long time. It does not lend itself to change, even when cooled, heated, and solar radiation. The main colors are yellow and brown, they are much more common in nature, therefore their cost is the lowest.

• Brown diamonds contain iron molecules. Stones can be from light brown, almost orange, to dark, rich brown. Jewelry with them looks very original, but does not have a high value among colored jewelry.

• Lithium is present in yellow diamonds. It should be noted here that we are talking about a white diamond with a yellow tint. It is difficult for an ordinary person to distinguish such a diamond from a truly yellow, more expensive one. A stone with a shade of yellow is slightly more expensive than brown, but still belongs to the category of inexpensive diamonds.

Natural multi-colored stones are almost impossible to find on the open market. Mainly, artificial colored diamonds or artificially colored natural white stones are used in jewelry.

Very rare and one of the most expensive colored stones.Initially, the blue color of the diamond is given by the presence of aluminum in its composition.

They contain boron, their price is much higher than blue ones. Natural blue stones can be found at most once per year of mining. Their reserves account for 1/10 percent of all colored diamonds.

Considered a variety of brown diamonds, they are much more expensive and more expensive colored stones. If brown shades are found in the color, then the cost of the mineral decreases. The composition contains manganese, which gives the stones a rich pink color.

A mineral with this color is obtained due to the presence of hydrogen in its composition. In nature, there is practically no stone with a pure purple color. As a rule, in this color there are shades of pink, red or brown, a combination of several colors at the same time can be found in a lilac stone.

Just like all colored diamonds, they are rarely found in nature. If you come across a piece with a green diamond on sale, then most likely the color was obtained artificially.

Chromium is a part of natural green stone, and a green tint can also be obtained under the influence of radioactive rays on it. The color can be uneven and combine several shades. Such stones are purchased, as a rule, for exhibitions or by wealthy people as financial investments.

We can say that this is the most unknown, rare and expensive. Until now, scientists cannot figure out how such a diamond is formed. The presence of manganese in it can give a maximum of pink shades. And like everything mysterious, the origin of this mineral is shrouded in legends, according to one of which it contains human blood.

This is the most controversial stone, until recently it was not considered an expensive colored diamond. It contains graphite, which makes it so dark that the sun's rays do not pass through or refract. There is no way to examine and evaluate its defects and purity.

Jewelry with these minerals looks very mysterious and mysterious. Perhaps that is why today the demand, like the price of these stones, is gradually starting to increase.

Minerals of this breed can be either completely colorless or white with a yellowish or brown tint. The more transparent it is, the higher its cost.

It is extremely rare to find a perfectly transparent stone in nature. The bulk of diamonds are white with a yellow tint, so their cost is much lower than colored ones. However, among the white stones, there are the largest. Their weight can reach 180 carats.

If you do not have a special education or you are a non-professional jeweler, it will be difficult for you to distinguish one shade from another, unless, of course, the color of the stone is pronounced. This is primarily due to the fact that diamonds have more than fifty facets, and sunlight, falling on them, is refracted by all the colors of the rainbow.

You can find interesting information about the largest and most beautiful diamonds in the next video.