Extract from GIA Textbook: Diamonds

Did you know? -- The world's love of diamonds had its start among the very wealthy classes in India, as early as the fourth century BC, estimated by historians.

Gradually, these diamonds found their way to Western Europe in the caravans that traveled to Venice's medieval markets. By the 1400s, diamonds had become popular among the Europe's elite.

In the early 1700s, Brazil emerged as a dominating diamond source for 150 years. The 1800s brought increasing affluence to Western Europe and the United States. Just in time to satisfy the expanding market, explorers unearthed the first great South African kimberlite pipes.

The buying and selling of diamonds is now a multibillion-dollar international industry. The factors that contributed to its phenomenal growth are part of the diamond trade's history. We will share more soon. Photo: Chris Bell/FPG International LLC. Courtesy: GIA. Resource: Amanda