A Brief History of April’s Birthstone, the Diamond

If you were born in the month of April, you’re pretty darn lucky, because your birthstone is none other than the DIAMOND! I mean, we know it’s not like you needed another excuse to want some diamonds, but we’re providing you with one anyway.

Diamonds are by far the most popular precious stone. They are extremely rare, beautiful and valuable. They are also in high-demand. Why wait for an engagement ring to get a diamond? You April babies don’t have to!

Believe it or not, diamonds were not always the popular choice when it came to asking your lady love to be yours forever. Considering diamonds have been around since about 3,000BC to 4,000BC where they were first mined in India, it was not until the last century or so that they began to be used as the standard choice for engagement rings. Before that, diamonds represented wealth, power, prestige and were even thought to possess some healing properties – some believed that if you made a sign of the cross with a diamond in your hand it would cure you of your ailments. Not much of that ideology has changed (except maybe the healing powers stuff).

Because of their beauty and rarity, diamonds were mainly worn by royalty and nobility, but this changed around the 1870’s when diamond production began to grow exponentially. In this day and age, diamonds are mined in a whole bunch of different countries across every continent apart from Antarctica.

Now-a-days when we think about diamonds, we think of engagement rings, but it wasn’t until the early 1900’s that diamonds started to become popular for proposal rings…which is odd considering that it’s rumored that the first diamond engagement ring was presented back in 1477 by Archduke Maximilian of Austria to his future bride, Mary of Burgundy. The explosive increase of popularity can be attributed to a De Beers ad campaign from 1947 which sought to make the stone a symbol of love and commitment with the slogan “A Diamond is Forever”.

When you think about it, diamonds really are the perfect stone to set into an engagement ring; they’re beautiful, timeless, and unbreakable. And aren’t those all the things you would wish for your marriage to be?

Diamonds are not just for engagement rings either; diamond stud earrings are also incredibly popular with men and women alike. But why stop there? You can also go for diamond pendants, bracelets, anklets, right-hand rings, wedding bands, earrings or even toe rings. The choices are endless! And what better excuse to receive a beautiful piece of diamond jewelry than to present an April baby with a memorable birthstone piece?