Diamonds Are Forever?
The allure of diamonds has existed almost since the dawn of civilisation. The earliest references can be found in the Bible and the Book of Exodus dating from 1200BC. The first deposits were to be found in the ancient mines of India, where manuscripts dating to the 1st century BC have been discovered laying claim that diamonds were known during the Buddhist period of around 400BC, and it is these ancient mines from which the diamonds mentioned in the Bible may have originated.
Although Arab traders were instrumental in developing trade between Europe and India, as well as being the first to use the carat as a unit of measurement, the earliest recorded documentation of the Indian diamond fields in modern times was by J.B.Tavernier, the famed French jeweller and traveller, who visited the East between 1630 and 1668. Although not the first European to visit the ancient Indian mines, he was the first to chronicle them. They stretch from the Godvari river in Hyderabad in the North, to the Pennar river in Madras in the south, and the name of the now ruined ancient fortress of ‘Golconda’, which originally served as a commercial trading centre for the region, has now survived to describe the historic diamonds peculiar to India.
At the close of the of 16th Century the output of the ancient Indian mines began to decline. However around the same time, prospectors searching for gold in the Tejuco region of Minas Gerais in Brazil discovered diamond deposits. The region was renamed Diamantina as the region became the scene of feverish diamond mining activity. The first and most important event was the opening of the diamond mines at Minas Gerais in Brazil in 1723 - just as the Indian mines of Golconda were being exhausted. This led to an increased availability of rough diamonds on the market,which were facetted using recently improved cutting techniques. Such was the quantity of the diamonds produced that the prices in European markets dropped sharply, leading to false rumours spread by merchants importing Indian stones that the Brazilian diamonds were inferior quality diamonds mined in India which had been shipped via Brazil. In retaliation the Brazilian exporters shipped their diamonds to Goa before selling them in Europe as fine quality Indian stones.
As the 18th century progressed, Brazil was to become the foremost source of diamonds until the deposits became exhausted in the 19th century. This co-incided with the discovery of new diamond deposits in South Africa, providing a supply of diamonds which took over the market previously provided by the now exhausted Brazilian mines. As in the 18th century, diamond prices fell due to a new oversupply, and it was not until the1880s that diamond prices finally stabilised when de Beers achieved a dominant market position by aggressively acquiring its competitors.
Today we are constantly searching for new deposits of diamonds to replace those that are running out. In recent times, modern technology has made it possible to mine stone in the inhospitable frozen waste lands of Russia and Canada.
Will the supply of diamonds one day run out? Who knows, one day we may be mining stones in deep space!!
Diamonds are always a safe investment. If you are looking for a loan against diamonds, the Borro valuation team are second to none, and will be happy to provide you with top dollar loan estimates online. Borro frequently advances asset loans within 48 hours of application. So, if you need cash fast, it’s easy at Borro.com.
DID YOU KNOW…?
Scientists beleive that one day diamonds may be found on the moon…
Gold and Carats
If you wish to buy or sell gold, you need to understand carats. A carat is defined as 200 mg - or 0.007055 ounces - or 3.086 grains - depending on which units you prefer.
The carat is also used to express the purity of gold. The higher the carat, the purer the gold - for example, 24 carat gold is 99.9% pure, whereas 12 carat gold is 50% pure.
The higher the carat, the more yellow and soft the gold is. 10 and 14 carat gold is used more in the US, whereas Indian gold tends to be 24 carat gold and therefore extremely yellow in colour. In England gold standards vary in purity, the more common variations being 9, 18 and 22 carat.
Gold is fashioned into many different forms of jewellery, but some of the more common standards for trading in the raw material are:
- Sovereign - a 22 carat coin weighing 0.235 troy ounces
- Krugerrand - a 22 carat coin weighing 1 ounce
- Bar - bars vary in size - for example 100 grams / 24 carats or 1 Kilo / 24 carats
- Biscuits and Wafers - are similar to bars but thinner and flatter
- Bullion - is another word often applied to a standard unit for storage and trading, such as a bar, biscuit or wafer. The key valuation factors when trading in gold bullion of any shape or size are the weight and the purity (expressed in carats).
Leading pawnbroker, Borro.com, is the world’s first online pawnbroker. A personal loan against gold is always available from Borro.com in the form of a secured loan. With Borro, you can use gold to secure fast cash at low rates of interest.
If you compare the cost of a short term loan from collateral loan provider, Borro.com, with other short term loan providers such as pay day loan companies and doorstep lenders, you will see that a low interest rate loan from Borro.com is not only affordable, but no risk.
There is no risk of hidden penalties, asset seizures or repossession with an easy cash loan from online pawn shop, Borro.com. Even if you fail to pay off your cheap loan from Borro, the worst that can happen is that your pledge is sold to pay off the loan, and any money left over will be returned to you straight away.
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