Top 5 Interesting Jewellery Facts

Accessorising with jewellery is a fashion statement loved by people all over the world. If you want to find out more about jewellery, we’ve put together five of the most interesting, random and surprising jewellery facts to learn more about the trade.

1. Jewel comes from the French word ‘jouel’, which means a toy

The word jewel derives from the old French word ‘jouel’, which translates directly as a plaything, or toy. This is predominantly down to the fact that only wealthy people could afford jewellery, and so they referred to them as toys. Jewellery has also been referred to as ‘baubles’ in the past, which is another French word for a toy, too.

2. Gold comes from meteorites

All the gold that has been mined on Earth originally arrived via a meteorite. It is believed that gold arrived on Earth via a huge meteor shower that occurred over 4.5 billion years ago after the Earth’s crust had formed. So, the gold used in the ring on your finger was once roaming around Space all those years ago!

3. 24K Gold is soft enough to move with our hands

Gold isn’t the most durable of metals; platinum is the better choice for a jewellery piece that needs to withstand being knocked about. However, 24-karat gold is so soft that it is actually possible to move it about with your hands, which is why you’re unlikely to find it used in jewellery. Instead, 24-karat gold is alloyed with other metals to make it more hard-wearing.

4. There is enough Platinum in the World to fill the average living room

Basically, there really isn’t that much platinum in the entire World! So little of it exists that the entire amount would fill an average-sized living room. Platinum is hard to find, which makes it very a precious and expensive metal. Platinum comes from Ore, which is a naturally occurring solid material, and around ten tons of this needs to be mined to find a mere one ounce of platinum.

5. Diamonds come in all colours of the rainbow

Whilst white, or clear, diamonds are most popular, they are in fact available in a variety of different and beautiful colours. The colour of a diamond will change due to its chemical composition when it forms. Coloured diamonds are unique and are judged on their own scale from Faint to Fancy to Fancy Deep. A mixture of colours in a diamond could increase or decrease its value, depending on the combination, and the more vivid the colour, the rarer and more valuable it will be.