Diamonds. They are beautiful, timeless and extravagant, and they perfectly encapsulate true love. But what do you really know about these precious stones, aside from them being a girl’s best friend? Read on to discover some truly fascinating facts that you may or may not have heard of before!

Are diamonds really  forever?

The diamond industry may not be the bustling trade it is today if it wasn’t for De Beers, and their brilliant marketing campaign which they rolled out in the late 1930s. Once upon a time, diamonds were not synonymous with love, commitment and marriage. It was merely seen as a gem with a high price tag, only reserved for the super wealthy. To combat such views, De Beers created a brilliant campaign that successfully manipulated consumer attitudes and demand – coining the iconic phrase ‘A Diamond is Forever’ along the way. Today, engagements don’t seem complete without a diamond ring in tow, so it’s safe to say the company’s ingenious plan worked.

Twinkle, twinkle, little star:

Astronomers with a penchant for shiny jewels will be thrilled to know that scientists have discovered a star, almost as big as the sun, around the grand old age of 11 billion years  with a hefty diamond core! Made up of 10 billion trillion trillion carats  - this white dwarf star is known to be the largest diamond in our universe and was aptly named ‘Lucy’ after the Beatles song ‘Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds.’

It’s out of this world: the mother of all diamonds:

On top of finding a star with a diamond core, scientists also discovered a planet in the Milky way thought to be covered in diamonds and graphite – at least a third of the planet is thought to be pure diamond! Scientists have named it ‘ 55 Cancri e’ – which is hardly fitting for such a dazzling planet!

Unbreakable:

Diamonds are known to be the toughest natural substance on earth. Fittingly, ‘Adamas’ an ancient Greek word, which translates to ‘indestructible’ or ‘unconquerable’ is where the stone’s name originally derived from.

Cursed:

Diamonds are supposed to be a girl’s best friend, but are they really? A select few beautiful yet entrancing diamonds are said to be cursed, bestowing fatal consequences upon the proud owner. The Hope, Koh-i-Noor and Black Orlov diamonds are a few gems reported to either kill the owner, drive them barking mad or present them (and their families) with great misfortune.

Trend setter:

Back in 1477, Archduke Maximilian of Austria presented his betrothed, Mary of Burgundy, with a ring featuring a beautiful array of diamonds in the shape of an ‘M'. It was the first instance a diamond had been used in an engagement ring.