Diamond Folklore

Diamond Folklore

Legend has it that Europeans first discovered African diamonds in a Shaman's leather pouch. The African Shaman used his diamonds as Shamans of the world use quartz crystals. Anciently, diamonds were worn as unpolished stones. They were treasured for their beauty and powers.

The Philosopher's Stone: The diamond is an ancient symbol of the perfected man whose divine spirit shines forth. As the rough diamond is dull and lifeless when first removed from the earth, so the spiritual nature in its "earthly" state reveals little of its inherent luminosity. In the hands of the skillful lapidary, the diamond is transformed into a sparkling gem from whose facets pour streams of rainbow colored fire, so upon the lathe of the Divine Lapidary, the spirit of man is ground and polished until it reflects the glory of its Creator from every atom. He lives by spirit.

Kings, in old days, led the battles on the battle fields. They wore heavy leather breast plates studded with diamonds and other precious stones.

Because it was believed that diamonds were fragments of stars and the tear drops of the Gods, the diamonds possessed magical qualities of the Gods and had powers far beyond the understanding of common man. The warriors stayed clear of the Kings and those who were fortunate enough to have the magical diamonds in their breast plates. So, they survived the wars by the magic of the diamonds and were blessed by the Gods and had lives of good fortune. Much of this lore still lives today in a simply saying, "diamonds are a girls best friend." In ancient Greece and Summaria, diamonds were the status symbols of Kings and the very wealthy.

The Greek word "adamas," meaning unconquerable and indestructible, is the root word of the word diamond. Diamonds were worn because they were thought to give a person strength, invincibility, courage, and magical powers over the dark side of life. Rainbows of color gave the stones magical powers over the evil eye of the sorceress and magicians of the day.

Diamonds are the most popular stone for wedding rings due to an old belief that diamonds were a charm ensuring fidelity, as well as a symbol of purity.

Diamond dust was once believed to be a deadly poison. Poisoners in the 19th century and before were known to mix diamond dust with arsenic, believing diamond dust to be the deadlier of the two. Horace Walpole used the phrase "mortal as diamond dust" in one of his letters.

Diamond Folklore

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