Table of contents
- How Natural Diamonds Are Formed in the Earth
- Where Diamond Origin Meets Responsible Discovery
- Diamond Traceability: The Assurance Behind Every ORIGIN De Beers Group Diamond
- How Diamond Craftsmanship and Artistry Reveal Brilliance
- From Polished Diamond to Personal Story
- Love Stories Are Written With ORIGIN De Beers Group Diamonds
Time shapes everything it touches. It carves landscapes, it forms us, and it creates diamonds. An ORIGIN De Beers Group diamond carries this history, formed millions, if not billions of years ago deep beneath the Earth, and revealed in brilliance to become part of your story.
Discovered in Botswana, Canada, Namibia or South Africa, each ORIGIN De Beers Group diamond* is registered on a blockchain-secured platform that can record its journey from its origin to its polished form. Every step has been traced, giving you peace of mind in not only where your natural diamond comes from, but how it was sourced and the meaningful impact it has helped enable along the way.
How Natural Diamonds Are Formed in the Earth
To understand a diamond’s story, you must turn back millions of years to when diamonds were formed from carbon atoms, deep within the Earth. Around 100 miles (160 kilometers) below the surface, under temperatures of 2000°F (1090°C) and pressures of about 45k bar, carbon atoms formed strong, regular bonds to create a crystal structure. The bonds between the carbon atoms give natural diamonds their exceptional hardness and resilience, along with the dazzling optical qualities that make them so unique.
A diamond’s journey to the surface began when magma rose rapidly from deep within the Earth through volcanic eruptions.1 Diamonds traveled within this rising magma, as it passed through the diamond-forming regions. Very few diamonds endured the rapid ascent and explosive release at the surface to come to rest within the conical holes of cooled volcanic rock, known as kimberlite. A diamond’s journey was extremely treacherous, and few made it to the surface. In fact, about 1 in every 200 kimberlite pipes contains gem-quality diamonds. Today, the majority of the world’s diamond mining supply comes from just 10 of these rich pipes.2
Over millions of years, erosion has carried diamonds from some of these kimberlite pipes into rivers and eventually out to sea, where additional undersea deposits can be found. Others remain locked within the volcanic rock, still waiting to be discovered. Only a select group of diamond mines meet the standards for ORIGIN De Beers Group diamonds. They are certified to the Responsible Jewellery Council’s Code of Practices and are guided by De Beers’ Best Practice Principles,3 which set strict standards at every step of the journey to provide assurance around the ethical and responsible sourcing of diamonds.
Where Diamond Origin Meets Responsible Discovery
Born at great depth beneath South Africa’s soil, hidden in Botswana’s desert sands, carried to sea by Namibia’s rivers, or preserved deep beneath Canadian ice, every ORIGIN De Beers Group diamond* is linked directly to its point of discovery.
Each one comes with a unique identifier, a discreet inscription linking to a secure digital record that displays its source and integrity. This identifier connects the diamond to responsibly run, mined diamond operations in just four countries: Botswana, Canada, Namibia, and South Africa. By making the path of each natural diamond visible, ORIGIN De Beers Group provides assurances that each diamond has been ethically sourced and helps contribute to meaningful impact in the countries where they were discovered.
In addition to adhering to the Kimberley Process, which guarantees that all ORIGIN De Beers Group diamonds are conflict-free diamonds,4 they are sourced exclusively from De Beers Group’s diamond mining operations. Through its Building Forever sustainability framework, De Beers Group is committed to creating a legacy across its operations, working in partnership with communities and organizations worldwide to help support lasting social and environmental progress.
Progress is measured and reported publicly annually, including around its climate commitments which are aligned to the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi).5
ORIGIN De Beers Group diamonds support initiatives that help strengthen communities and help create opportunity. These include education and training, entrepreneurship programs such as Tokafala in Botswana, as well as projects that help protect and restore the natural world. Each ORIGIN De Beers Group diamond* carries its truth and its impact, connecting you to a story that honors both communities and nature.
Diamond Traceability: The Assurance Behind Every ORIGIN De Beers Group Diamond
When you select an ORIGIN De Beers Group diamond*, you gain access to its Tracr™ diamond data, a secure, blockchain-based record which reveals a diamond’s journey from rough to polished diamond. From the moment an ORIGIN De Beers Group diamond* enters the value chain it is registered with a unique digital ID.6 Every step is recorded, creating an immutable history that cannot be lost, altered, or forged. The record begins with the diamond’s country of discovery and follows its path through the value chain, building a transparent and tamper-proof account of its provenance.
More than documentation, the unique record for ORIGIN De Beers Group diamonds gives confidence of responsible sourcing, connecting your diamond directly to its place of origin and the standards upheld throughout the diamond’s journey.
How Diamond Craftsmanship and Artistry Reveal Brilliance
From Earth to artist, each ORIGIN De Beers diamond is guided through a process of care and precision. The role of the artisan is not to change nature, but to reveal the brilliance and rarity already encapsulated within each natural diamond.
During the cutting and polishing process, artisans carefully consider birthmarks (the tiny natural features that come from a diamond’s formation and create the diamond’s one-of-a-kind fingerprint), using their skill to maximize brilliance and reveal the diamond’s unique character.
Step by step, the diamond craftsmanship continues: shaping, refining, and choosing the best cut, from round brilliants (celebrated for their balance of brilliance and fire) and Asschers (known for their depth), to emerald cuts (defined by elegant step facets). Each ORIGIN De Beers Group polished diamond is meticulously crafted with the highest standard of precision and symmetry for exceptional brilliance.
Here, mathematics becomes beauty, as the cutter’s skill reveals what nature has held for millions of years in the loose natural diamond.
Natural diamonds are graded according to the internationally recognized standards known as the Four Cs:7
- Cut. Measures how well a diamond’s proportions, symmetry, and polish interact with light to reveal its brilliance.
- Clarity. Refers to the presence of birthmarks, the tiny natural features formed during a diamond’s creation.
- Color. Graded from colorless (the rarest) through near-colorless to faint yellow tones in white diamonds.
- Carat. The weight of the diamond, with one carat equal to 200 milligrams.
These measures provide a universal language for understanding a diamond’s characteristics. With ORIGIN De Beers Group diamonds*, you’re getting even more: proof of origin, the diamond’s De Beers Group Natural Rarity Score™ as well as its De Beers Group Symmetry Score™.8 You also get the complete story of discovery, craft, and meaning, giving you confidence in your choice.
From Polished Diamond to Personal Story
Once you choose an ORIGIN De Beers Group diamond, its story continues with you. Whether purchasing a loose or set diamond from retail partners, the diamond becomes part of your life and your meaning. The choice of setting and style allows the diamond’s light to be revealed in a way that feels personal, bold enough to make a statement, or subtle enough to wear every day, close to your heart. This is where a journey that began deep within the Earth becomes part of your own.
Love Stories Are Written With ORIGIN De Beers Group Diamonds
Each ORIGIN De Beers Group diamond carries the endurance of time. Its light is nature’s potential, revealed by the hand of an artist. The person who cut your ORIGIN De Beers Group diamond worked until proportion, symmetry, and polish aligned, creating the quiet harmony that feels unmistakably right.
A proposal is one of those occasions where that harmony finds its truest expression, the moment when a diamond’s journey meets your own.
Today, proposals are more personal than ever. If you choose to go quiet and intimate or bold and creative, they are shaped by the story of two people. Choosing an ORIGIN De Beers Group diamond enriches that moment with a story of discovery and responsibility, making the promise not only personal but also deeply meaningful.
An ORIGIN De Beers Group diamond not only symbolizes love, it also speaks to truth, accountability, and legacy. Love is amplified when it’s sealed with an ORIGIN De Beers Group diamond, a symbol of two stories becoming one, and of a future built together.
And one day, your unique diamond may be passed on as an heirloom, carrying both its natural history and the story you began with it.
*Above 0.3 cts
