Interesting Jewellery Facts You Didn’t Know

Nothing says love like a piece of jewellery. A piece of jewellery states a lot about a woman, her choices and her life. It is one of the most valuable gifting options and hence it is but natural that most people have jewellery piece that hold sentimental value for them, which they take care of like a prized possession. But, the history of this art of wearing jewellery is immensely interesting.

If you, like us, are a jewellery lover, here are some facts about jewellery you ought to know about.

Ancient people wore jewellery made up of bones and shells, feathers and coloured pebbles. The oldest jewellery known to mankind were perforated beads made from small sea shells. It is assumed they were used for decorative purposes.

The very first diamond was found in India in the 4^th century. Their sparkle and durability quickly made their value very high. The world thought India was the only source of diamonds. In fact, that didn’t change until 1726 when diamonds were discovered in Brazil.

Exchanging engagement rings is an important wedding tradition. But there was a time when the idea of engagement rings wasn’t around. It was in 1477 when the Archduke of Austria gave a ring to his beloved Duchess of Burgundy as a promise of marriage. This is from where idea of engagement rings spread far and wide and turned into a tradition that lasts till date.

The most popular rock for engagement rings today is diamond. In the 20^th century, diamonds grew to be the most popular gemstone. Today, over 80% of couples choose diamond ring designs for their engagement ring. Especially, solitaire rings are a rage today.

Pearls are organic gemstones. They are the only gemstone that come from a living animal. In the 20^th century the process of culturing pearls began in order to make it accessible to everyone. Almost all the pearls available today are cultured pearls.

Pyrite has an uncanny resemblance to gold, that has earned it the name fool’s gold. It is mostly used in artificial jewellery. When crushed, pyrite looks greenish-black, as opposed to the yellow of gold powder.

In China, the most sought-after gemstone is jade. Jadeite is jade’s rarest variety and is the most expensive gemstone in the world.

Sapphire is one gemstone that is available in every colour, except red. This is because, red sapphires are known as rubies. Rubies and sapphires are almost identical in every way except their colour.

It is extremely rare to find a ruby that is flawless. Almost all rubies have flaws. A flawless ruby is exceptionally expensive, priced higher than a diamond of similar quality and weight.

The most expensive jewellery ever used in a film was the necklace wore by Nicole Kidman in the movie Moulin Rouge, costing a whopping $1 million.
The most expensive engagement ring ever was the one given by James Packer to Mariah Carey, costing a full-blown $10 million! However, it is interesting to know that the couple never ended up getting married.

Yellow Gold and Rose Gold are both alloys made of Pure Gold and other metals. This is in stark contrast to the idea that Yellow Gold is pure gold and Rose Gold is a distinct metal.

All these facts prove that the obsession of the world with jewellery is real and the art of wearing jewellery will never really go out of style.