We have gathered some amazing diamond statistics, stories about diamonds, and facts that will not only blow your mind but also motivate you to get at least one diamond of your own.
Since their discovery, diamonds have often been considered the most beautiful things in the world. About two thousand years ago, the Roman naturalist Pliny said: “Diamond is the most valuable, not only of precious stones but of all things in this world.”
So, let’s see what they are all about!
Top 10 Shiny Diamond Facts and Stats
- ALROSA company is the leader in diamond production, followed by De Beers, Rio Tinto, and Petra Company.
- During the Covid19 pandemic, the prices have gone up for high-quality one-carat diamonds by 12%.
- One survey in Angola showed that 46% of miners were kids between 5 and 16 years old.
- The diamonds market price is around $10,441.11 per carat.
- There is only one active diamond mine in the whole United States.
- The US is the world’s largest diamond consumer.
- Queen Elizabeth II owns a diamond worth £40.9 million ($55.2 million).
- In the 90s, up to 15% of all the traded diamonds were blood diamonds.
- The market for lab-grown diamonds increased by 15–20%.
- Diamond-related conflicts in Sierra Leone resulted in the deaths of about 75,000 people.
Diamond Stone Stats and Worldwide Production
1. ALROSA company is the leader in diamond production, followed by De Beers, Rio Tinto, and Petra Company.
(Statista)
From 2015 to 2019, the leading company in diamond production was a Russian company ALROSA, with around 38.5 million carats of diamonds according to stats about the global diamond industry in 2019.
The ALROSA company was followed by the De Beers company, one of the most well-known diamond companies, with a little less than 31 million carats of diamonds produced. In third place was Rio Tinto, and in fourth, Petra Diamonds company.
2. A near record-high diamond production in 2019 wasn’t accompanied by the same demand.
(The Diamond Loupe) (Diamonds)
The overproduction of rough diamonds in 2017 caused mining revenues to drop for almost a quarter. According to diamond statistics, the diamonds production in 2019 was almost at a record high.
However, the demand for diamonds dropped in 2019, which led to higher diamond inventory levels all over the world.
3. In 2019, Russia produced $4.1 billion worth of diamonds.
(Statista)
According to statistics, the world’s leading country in diamond production is Russia, with around 4.1 billion US dollars worth of diamonds made in 2019. It’s followed by South African Botswana.
4. When talking about diamond rates, the market price is around $10,441.11 per carat.
(Diamond Search Engine)
When discussing the price of diamonds, we have to look at different factors. Some of them are famous 4 Cs, which include carat weight, cut, color, and clarity — but polish, symmetry, shape, and a few other aspects are important, as well.
The average diamond price, at the time of writing (November 2020), is $10,441.11 per carat.
5. Diamond pricing trends during the Covid19 pandemic show the prices have gone up for high-quality one-carat diamonds by 12%.
(Reuters)
Conversely, the prices for lower-quality diamonds have dropped. Overall, the demand for diamonds has largely decreased in 2020 and the trend will probably continue in 2021 until the pandemic ends.
Yet, as it can be seen, top quality is appreciated even more in times of crisis.
5 Quick Facts About Diamonds in Africa
6. The Kimberley Process has managed to reduce the trade of conflict diamonds.
(The Kimberley Process) (How Stuff Works)
The Kimberley Process was founded in 2000 for the purpose of ensuring that all traded diamonds were conflict-free. This means that countries that export diamonds need to ensure that all the containers have a certificate proving the diamonds inside have a legal background.
There are about 56 participants representing 82 countries, including the European Union and its Member States (they count as one participant).
7. Horrible conflict diamond facts state billions of dollars have been used to finance civil wars.
(CDN Global Witness) (How Stuff Works)
Conflict diamonds, also known as blood diamonds, are diamonds usually used by rebel groups to finance civil wars in some African countries. Blood diamonds have also been used by terrorist groups to finance their activities. The precise number is hard to determine, but experts say that billions of dollars went into funding those kinds of conflicts.
8. Diamond-related conflicts resulted in the deaths of about 75,000 people in a single conflict, Sierra Leone diamond facts report.
(CDN Global Witness) (How Stuff Works)
A civil war in Sierra Leone, which was funded by blood diamonds, ended in 2002. According to sources, the Revolutionary United Front killed and mutilated the people living in the diamond villages until they gained full control of the mines. In that conflict alone, around 75,000 people lost their lives; in all conflicts combined, more than 4 million people died.
9. Diamond industry facts show that, in the 90s, up to 15% of all the traded diamonds were blood diamonds.
(CBS News) (CDN Global Witness)
It’s very hard to say exactly what percentage of all the traded diamonds are conflict diamonds. However, it’s a well-known fact that there are some legal holes in the Kimberley Process — sometimes, a government declares blood diamonds as “conflict-free.”
All in all, blood diamond facts show that as much as 15% of all the traded diamonds in the mid and late 90s were blood diamonds.
10. One survey in Angola showed that 46% of miners were kids between 5 and 16 years old.
(Brilliant Earth)
Unfortunately, in most parts of Africa, people live in poverty, bad health, and unsafe environments. Due to such conditions, even kids often have to work and earn money for their families.
Interesting US Diamond Data
11. The US alone consumes more than 40% of the world’s diamond jewelry.
(Geology) (Shimansky)
The US is the world’s largest diamond consumer. India, China, the European Union, Japan, Hong Kong, and the Middle East, all together, consume approximately the same amount of diamond jewelry as the United States alone.
Also, according to Forbes, millennials in the US are responsible for 45% of all diamond-related purchases.
12. There is only one active diamond mine in the whole United States.
(Geology)
Even though it is a huge country, there is only one active diamond mine in the USA. It’s called the Crater of Diamonds and is located in Arkansas. People have been finding diamonds in it since 1972, when it became a state park, and most of those diamonds were yellow and brown.
13. In 2019, a teacher found the largest diamond of the year in the Crater of Diamonds.
(USA Today)
In 2019, a Nebraska teacher was searching for gems with his family in the Crater of Diamonds mine. After a couple of hours, he found something special — a brandy-colored diamond, the largest found at the park that year. Even though a cut diamond of a similar size was sold for around $1000, he decided to keep it.
Diamond Fun Facts for Kids and Adults
14. Queen Elizabeth II owns a diamond worth £40.9 million ($55.2 million).
(The Sun)
Apart from a huge collection of pearls, rubies, emeralds, and sapphires, the Queen also owns one of the biggest diamonds in the world, a part of the Cullinan diamond.
The diamond, before cut, weighed 3,106 metric carats. It was discovered in 1905 in South Africa, and it was named after the owner of the mine. It was cut into nine smaller pieces, and the largest of them, which belongs to the Queen, is now worth £40.9 million.
15. The market for lab-grown diamonds increased by 15–20%.
(Bain & Company)
The price difference between a natural and a manufactured diamond is significant, but the market for lab-grown diamonds has been increasing every month. There are many campaigns pointing out the “green“ side of lab-grown diamonds, which is one of the reasons why the demand for them is increasing.
16. The average price for a 1.2-carat center stone diamond ring is $6,351.
(Financial Samurai)
Diamond ring trends show that engagement rings are usually made of gold (white gold being the most popular option) and diamonds. The average price for an engagement ring nowadays is 6,351 for a 1.2-carat center stone diamond ring.
Also, the average amount of money spent on an engagement ring has increased by 25% in less than ten years.
17. The Eureka Diamond was the first diamond found in South Africa.
(The Israeli Diamond Industry)
The first-ever diamond found in South Africa was the Eureka Diamond. One of the interesting facts about this diamond is that it was found in 1866 by the children of Daniel Johannes Jacobus Jacobs, a Dutch farmer. Daniel appreciated its unique appearance and beauty but didn’t expect it to be worth much.
18. There is a star made of diamonds called Lucy.
(Futurism)
There is a unique star, 50 light-years away from the Earth, and it is named Lucy. After a few experiments, the scientists concluded that about 90% of Lucy’s mass is crystallized. And since its core is made out of carbon, it can be said that it is the biggest diamond ever found!
19. The Hope diamond once belonged to King Louis XIV.
(Smithsonian) (Diamond Gems) (Diamond Gems)
According to Hope diamond facts, it was made from one of the most well-known blue diamonds. The original diamond, the Tavernier Blue, was found in the mine in Golconda, India.
First, it was purchased by a French merchant, Jean Baptiste Tavernier, who gave it its original name. In 1668, he sold the diamond to King Louis XIV, who recut it and renamed it the French Blue. According to facts about the Hope diamond, it was passed on to King Louis V and VI, and in 1792, it was stolen, recut, and resold.
The details of its history between that theft and 1830 are not clear, but some records claim that a larger part of the diamond was sold to a London banker in 1812, and he named it Hope. Today, the Hope diamond is a part of the gem collection at the National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C.
20. A little known fun fact about diamonds: Indians were trading diamonds in the fourth century BC.
(GIA)
Some historians believe that in the fourth century BC, Indians were collecting diamonds from the country’s rivers and streams and then selling them to wealthy Indian families.
In the 1400s, those diamonds started finding their way to Western Europe, where they became a very popular fashion accessory among the wealthy class.
21. Brazil was one of the biggest diamond suppliers for more than 150 years.
(GIA)
After a few hundred years of being in the spotlight, India’s diamond supplies started to decrease. In the 1700s, Brazil came up as an important diamond source. Diamond facts show that diamonds were discovered in Brazil by the gold miners checking the gravels of the local rivers.
22. Diamond statistics report the supply and demand increased drastically after the discovery of diamonds in South Africa.
(GIA)
The huge discovery of diamonds in Kimberly, South Africa, in 1866, made everything very different. The entrepreneur Cecil Rhodes established De Beers Consolidated Mines Limited, which, at some point, controlled around 90% of the world’s production of rough diamonds.
FAQs
What does a diamond look like when it is first found?
(Sciencing)
To identify a real uncut diamond, a couple of positive tests are necessary. A diamond in the rough looks like a water-worn quartz pebble, but the only way to know for sure is by considering the location it’s been found in, its crystal form, specific gravity, hardness, etc.
What is the diamond made of?
(Smithsonian Magazine)
Diamonds are made of carbon, and they form under high temperature and pressure around 100 miles below the Earth’s surface. Under these conditions, diamonds’ carbon atoms crystalize. Every carbon atom is connected to four other carbon atoms, which makes a diamond one of the hardest materials on the planet.
What makes a diamond so valuable?
(General Kinematics)
Since their discovery, they represented strength, the value of love, and even magic. It’s believed that diamonds are so valuable due to their unique appearance, natural strength, and relative rarity.
What is harder than a diamond?
(The Conversation)
Diamond is the hardest mineral on Earth thanks to the covalent bonds between carbon atoms. There are some materials that are harder than a diamond, but all of them are synthetic; some of them are boron nitride, synthetic diamond, and Q-carbon.
What can cut a diamond?
(My Science Blast)
The only thing that can cut a diamond is another diamond — and a laser. Moreover, even though Obsidian, a volcanic glass, is around three times sharper than a diamond, it is too brittle to cut it.
How many carats of diamonds are mined each year?
(CNBC)
According to Bain & Company, about 133 million carats of rough diamonds are mined each year. Also, about half of the world’s diamond production is done by Russia and Botswana.
How much diamond is left in the world?
(CNN)
A recent study by a team of researchers showed that more than a quadrillion tons of diamonds are still deep below the Earth’s surface. Hence, no diamond shortage any time soon.
Who owns most of the diamonds in the world?
(Israeli Diamond)
The largest diamond company is De Beers company, founded in 1888 by Cecil Rhodes. It is the owner of mines in Canada, Botswana, Namibia, and South Africa. The main marketing strategy they are using is representing diamonds as symbols of eternal love and commitment, which encourages people to opt for installment loans in order to obtain one.
What are some fun facts about diamonds?
(Master Jewelers Indiana)
There are a lot of fun facts, and some of them are:
- The only thing that can cut a diamond is another diamond.
- Diamonds are usually transparent or pale yellow. However, they can also be brown, green, blue, red, orange, pink, black, etc.
- Scientists have discovered a star made out of carbon. Since 90% of that carbon has crystallized, it can be said that a large part of the star is a diamond.
Conclusion
Diamonds are arguably the most beautiful gems in the world. Even though it’s been a long time since they were first discovered, they are still extremely valuable and desirable.
We hope that these diamond statistics, stories, and facts have taught you something new about the diamonds and perhaps even made you consider getting one for yourself or your significant other in the future.
Sources:
- Bain & Company
- Brilliant Earth
- CBS News
- CDN Global Witness
- CNBC
- CNN
- Diamonds
- Diamond Gems
- Diamond Gems
- Diamond Search Engine
- Financial Samurai
- Futurism
- General Kinematics
- Geology
- Geology
- GIA
- How Stuff Works
- Israeli Diamond
- Master Jewelers Indiana
- My Science Blast
- Reuters
- Sciencing
- Shimansky
- Smithsonian
- Smithsonian Magazine
- Statista
- Statista
- The Conversation
- The Diamond Loupe
- The Israeli Diamond Industry
- The Kimberley Process
- The Sun
- USA Today
