The diamond is made up of pure carbon, the same element of which graphite is formed that we commonly find in pencils.
Despite the identical chemical composition, these two minerals have quite different physical characteristics. The reason is to be found in the crystal lattice which is very different in the two cases.
In the Mohs hardness scale, graphite corresponds to a hardness of 1-2, thus resulting in one of the softest minerals in nature, while diamond has the maximum value, ie 10, the hardest mineral existing in nature; graphite is a mineral that is always opaque and black, unlike diamond which can be transparent and colorless.
Diamond is the high pressure variety of carbon: it crystallizes with pressures of at least 50 kbar and temperatures above 900 ° C, as in the magma of volcanoes. On the other hand, graphite is formed at lower pressures or temperatures.
The diamond, due to its exceptional hardness, for a long time was considered a talisman of the winners and therefore a man’s gem, a gem that brought courage, daring and value.
Mary of Burgundy was one of the first women to receive it as a gift as a token of love and since then she became the gem of Venus and a symbol of love.