Anschar Diamonds Blog

Twenty-four sapphire discs etched with 100 billion pixels of information illustrating the "very essence of humanity" will be sealed in a time capsule and delivered to the moon in 2027. The sapphire discs are designed to last millions of years.



Imagined by French engineer Benoit Faiveley and his team of international scientists, researchers, designers and artists, "The Sanctuary Project" is intended to serve as a repository of human achievements. It aims to pass on an intelligible message to future generations of humans, but also to other intelligent life forms, through universal symbols of our knowledge and culture.



“We hope Sanctuary will constitute a ‘cosmic hello’ to our descendants or perhaps even visitors from elsewhere," Faiveley explained. "It will be a variegated portrait of our species engraved in micropixels – up to 7 billion per disc.”

The body of work included on the sapphire discs was curated by a multidisciplinary group of 11 renowned scientists, engineers, astrophysicists, paleontologists, cosmologists and artists.



Sapphire was chosen as the preferred medium to preserve the information because of its hardness and durability. Sapphire rates a 9 on the Mohs hardness scale (only diamond is harder) and can withstand the extreme temperatures of the lunar surface. "The Sanctuary Project" is confident the information lasered onto the discs will be unaltered for millions of years.

All of the information contained on the discs will be readable with the naked eye or by using a simple magnifying glass. What's more, the pixels aren't colored with pigments, which can fade over time in extreme temperatures.

The team rejected storing information on digital devices — hard drives, CDs, DVDs, or USB keys — because it's unlikely future generations or otherworldly beings would possess the proper equipment to decipher the code.

The sapphire discs contain between 3 billion and 7 billion pixels of information. Amazingly, that vast amount of information can fit on a wafer thin disc measuring only 100mm (3.9 in) in diameter.

The discs will not only include examples of mathematics, culture, paleontology, art and science, but also the human genome. According to the group, this presentation of our human, cultural and scientific legacy has been made with the ambition of telling the story of who we are, what we know and what we do.

In 2027, the 24 discs will be tightly packed into a container made of aerospace-grade aluminum alloy and transported to the moon as part of NASA's Artemis program. Aluminum was chosen because of its hardness, durability and light weight.

The Sanctuary Project team chose to preserve the discs on the moon because it has a far less volatile environment than the Earth.

"With its ancient surface impervious to flooding, earthquakes, tsunamis and hurricanes, the moon is an ideal location for such an archival time capsule," noted author, historian and Sanctuary team member Michael Benson.

Credits: Disc titled "Space" is one of 24 heading to the moon. ©Sanctuary On The Moon; Benoit Faiveley inspects one of the 24 discs. ©Benedict Redgrove; Faiveley looks at the "Life" disc on the WILDER images wall at INRIA Paris Saclay research center. ©Benedict Redgrove.

Welcome to Music Friday when we bring you stupendous songs with jewelry, gemstones or precious metals in the lyrics or title. Today, Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora perform a gorgeous acoustic version of “Diamond Ring,” a ballad they co-wrote with Desmond Child in 1988.



Featuring romantic lyrics, seamless harmonies and a memorable guitar solo by Sambora, “Diamond Ring” tells the story of a man who is head-over-heels in love and wants the world to know.

They sing, “Diamond ring, wear it on your hand / It’s gonna tell the world, I’m your only man / Diamond ring, diamond ring / Baby, you’re my everything, diamond ring.”

During a 1995 concert, Bon Jovi told fans that “Diamond Ring” was one of his favorite collaborations with Sambora, but also recounted how it was the only song the duo ever “rewrote and rewrote and rewrote.”

“Diamond Ring” was originally intended to be released on the group’s 1988 album New Jersey, but didn’t quite make it. Then it was reworked and recorded for 1992’s Keep the Faith album. Again, it didn’t quite make it. Finally, the song was perfected and released as the 14th track of 1995’s These Days.

Many critics and fans regard These Days as Bon Jovi’s best album. It charted in 21 countries, including #1 spots in Australia, Austria, Canada, the Netherlands, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Japan, Portugal, Switzerland and the UK.

John Francis Bongiovi, Jr., was born in Perth Amboy, NJ, in 1962. A blood relative of Frank Sinatra, a young Bon Jovi spent much of his youth skipping school to pursue musical activities. By the time he was 16, he was already playing in New Jersey clubs.

In 1980, while sweeping floors at his cousin Tony Bongiovi’s recording studio, Bon Jovi got the opportunity to sing on a Star Wars Christmas album. His first official credit was on a release called “R2-D2 We Wish You A Merry Christmas.” Bon Jovi told late night host Jimmy Kimmel that he earned $183 for that gig.

By 1983, Bon Jovi had formed the group that bears his name. Over the past 41-plus years, the group has sold more than 120 million records and performed more than 2,700 concerts in 50 countries. Bon Jovi and Sambora were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2009.

Also born in Perth Amboy, the 65-year-old Sambora is best known as the lead guitarist of Bon Jovi from 1983 to 2013. He and lead singer Jon Bon Jovi wrote many of the group's most memorable songs, including "Livin' on a Prayer," "It's My Life" and "Diamond Ring."

Trivia: Sambora has collected more than 130 guitars, a third of which are Fender Stratocasters.

Please check out the video of Bon Jovi and Sambora belting out perfect harmonies during a live performance of “Diamond Ring” at 02 Arena in London in 2010. The lyrics are below if you’d like to sing along…

“Diamond Ring”
Written by Jon Bon Jovi, Desmond Child and Richard Sambora. Performed by Bon Jovi and Sambora.

Diamond ring, wear it on your hand
It’s gonna tell the world, I’m your only man
Diamond ring, diamond ring
Baby, you’re my everything, diamond ring

Red, red rose brought it home to you
Blood red rose, tells me that you’re true
Red, red rose, blood-red rose
Like a fire inside that grows, blood-red rose

When you’re hungry, I will fill you up
When you’re thirsty, drink out of my loving cup
When you’re crying, I’ll be the tears for you
There’s nothing that I wouldn’t do for you

When you’re hungry, I will fill you up
When you’re thirsty, drink out of my loving cup
When you’re crying, I’ll be the tears for you
There’s nothing that I wouldn’t do for you

You know, I bleed every night you sleep
‘Cause I don’t know if I’m in your dreams
I want to be your everything…

Diamond ring, wear it on your hand
It’s gonna tell the world, I’m your only man
Diamond ring, diamond ring
Baby, you’re my everything, diamond ring
Darling, you’re my everything, diamond ring
Now, you’ve got me on your string… She wears a diamond ring



Credit: Screen capture via YouTube / Nikita.

August's vibrant green birthstone, peridot, has the distinction of being one of only two gems that form in the Earth’s mantle. The other is diamond.



While most other gems crystallize in the Earth’s crust, three to 18 miles below the surface, peridot forms in the Earth's upper mantle, about 20 to 55 miles deep, and is blasted to the surface by volcanic activity.

And while peridot is considered a deep-Earth gemstone, it's also out of this world — literally.

August’s birthstone has been found scattered across the surface of Mars, as well as embedded in meteorites that have crash-landed on Earth.

The extremely fine, Pakistan-sourced 46.16-carat gem (shown above) is part of the Smithsonian's National Gem Collection in Washington, DC. The barrel-cut gem — a 2009 gift from David Villwock and Daniel Sarros — displays peridot's coveted grass green color. It's a pure hue without strong undertones of yellow or brown.

Peridot claims a curious origin story that takes us back to the Egyptian island of Topazios in the Red Sea around 300 BC. The ancients believed the green gems mined on the island possessed protective powers and anointed them as the “gems of the sun.” They called the stones “topazion” to honor their place of origin and, eventually, the name was shortened to “topaz.”

And that's the way it was for more than 2,000 years.

Then, for reasons that the Smithsonian claims are still unclear, the name "topaz" was hijacked during the 18th century and assigned to the gem we call topaz today. The ancient green stone would be renamed peridot, which is derived from "faridat," the Arabic word for gem.

Ironically, the historic island of Topazios (now called Zabargad or St. John’s Island) has never yielded a single topaz.

Today, the gem we know as peridot can be found on five continents. Important sources include Myanmar, the US (Arizona), Norway, Brazil, China, Australia, Antarctica and Pakistan.

Peridot is the gem variety of the mineral forsterite. Pure forsterite is colorless, but iron atoms replacing some of the magnesium produce the green shades. Peridot is one of only a few gemstones that occurs in just one color.

In addition to being an official birthstone of August — along with spinel and sardonyx — peridot is the 16th anniversary gemstone.

Credit: Photo by Ken Larsen / Smithsonian.

The City of Love is certainly living up to its name as the marriage proposals just keep coming at the 2024 Summer Olympics. On Monday, American rower and gold medal winner Justin Best surprised his girlfriend of nine years, Lainey Duncan, with a diamond engagement ring during a live broadcast of the Today show.



Against the backdrop of their family members holding bouquets overflowing with 2,738 yellow roses — each one representing a day the couple has been together — Best went down on one knee and professed his love.

"Lainey Olivia Duncan, you are the love of my life. You have been with me since day one," he said. "I knew you were special since our first date when I said to you, 'I want to go to the Olympics' and you, without question, said, 'Absolutely go for it.' You are stunningly beautiful, ferociously intelligent. I don't know anyone that doesn't love you."

Then the 26-year-old from Kennett Square, PA, held out a ring box and asked the "easiest question" of his life.

"I want to spend the rest of my life with you and raise a family together," he said. "Lainey, will you marry me?"



Without hesitation, she exclaimed, "Yes." He placed the ring on her finger and the couple embraced.



She told the Today show audience, "I am so, so happy. This is the best day of my life."

People.com reported that Duncan's platinum ring is set with a 2.01-carat, G-color, emerald-cut natural diamond.

"She always had an extraordinary stack of rings on her hands so I wanted to get her one that could support any variation of rings she has on that day," Best told people.com, adding that he purchased the keepsake in December. His dad had been secretly carrying the ring in Paris in the lead-up to the proposal.

Best admitted that he got jittery as he prepared for his on-air proposal.

"I was just as nervous as I was lining up for the start line," he said, referring to Team USA's gold medal performance on August 1 in the four-man rowing event. It was the team's first victory in this discipline since 1960.

In summarizing his Olympics experience, Best joked, “I got the gold and the girl, and she got the diamond.”

You can check out the Today show segment at this link…

Credits: Screen captures via today.com.

Welcome to Music Friday when we bring you memorable throwback songs with jewelry, gemstones or precious metals in the lyrics or title. Today, we take a deep dive into the origins of one of the most famous — and controversial — "diamond" songs of all time.



It’s been 57 years since The Beatles released “Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds,” a psychedelic singalong that stirred a media frenzy over what seemed to be a not-so-subtle reference to drugs. The first letter of each noun in the title did, in fact, spell “LSD,” a hallucinogenic drug that influenced pop culture in the 1960s and early 1970s.

Even though the LSD debate lingers today, the song’s co-writer John Lennon debunked the drug ties to Lucy and her diamonds during a 1971 appearance on The Dick Cavett Show. The song, Lennon explained, was inspired by his toddler's drawing.

Lennon told the host, “My son came home with a drawing of a strange-looking woman flying around. He said, ‘It’s Lucy in the sky with diamonds.’ I thought, ‘That’s beautiful.’ I immediately wrote the song about it.”

Lucy was a classmate of three-year-old Julian Lennon at the private Heath House School in the UK. Lucy O’Donnell (later Lucy Vodden) told the BBC in 2007 that she remembered “doing pictures on a double-sided easel, throwing paint at each other, much to the horror of the classroom attendant.”

Noted Julian, now 61, “I don’t know why I called it [Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds] or why it stood out from all my other drawings, but I obviously had an affection for Lucy at that age. I used to show Dad everything I’d built or painted at school, and this one sparked off the idea.”

Co-writer Paul McCartney said the song’s fantastical imagery is a nod to Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland.

McCartney told an interviewer, “We did the whole thing like an Alice In Wonderland idea, being in a boat on the river… Every so often it broke off and you saw Lucy in the sky with diamonds all over the sky. This Lucy was God, the Big Figure, the White Rabbit.”

“Lucy In the Sky With Diamonds” was released as the third track from enormously successful Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band album, which spent 15 weeks at #1 on the Billboard 200 chart and sold more than 32 million copies worldwide. Rolling Stone magazine had once ranked the album #1 on its list of the “500 Greatest Albums of All Time.” The magazine's 2024 updated ranking reduced it to a respectable #24.

The Beatles remain the best selling music act of all time with an estimated 600 million albums sold worldwide. McCartney, 82, and Ringo Starr, 84, are the two surviving members of the band. Lennon was assassinated in 1980 at the age of 40. George Harrison lost his battle with lung cancer in 2001 at the age of 58.

Trivia: In 2004, astronomers at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics named a white dwarf star “Lucy” as a nod to The Beatles’ song because they believe the super-dense star — scientifically known as BPM 37093 — is made primarily of diamond.

Please check out the audio track of The Beatles performing “Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds.” The lyrics are below if you’d like to sing along…

“Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds”
Written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney. Performed by The Beatles.

Picture yourself in a boat on a river
With tangerine trees and marmalade skies
Somebody calls you, you answer quite slowly
A girl with kaleidoscope eyes

Cellophane flowers of yellow and green
Towering over your head
Look for the girl with the sun in her eyes
And she’s gone

Lucy in the sky with diamonds
Lucy in the sky with diamonds
Lucy in the sky with diamonds
Ah

Follow her down to a bridge by a fountain
Where rocking horse people eat marshmallow pies
Everyone smiles as you drift past the flowers
That grow so incredibly high

Newspaper taxis appear on the shore
Waiting to take you away
Climb in the back with your head in the clouds
And you’re gone

Lucy in the sky with diamonds
Lucy in the sky with diamonds
Lucy in the sky with diamonds
Ah

Picture yourself on a train in a station
With plasticine porters with looking glass ties
Suddenly someone is there at the turnstile
The girl with the kaleidoscope eyes

Lucy in the sky with diamonds
Lucy in the sky with diamonds
Lucy in the sky with diamonds
Ah
Lucy in the sky with diamonds
Lucy in the sky with diamonds
Lucy in the sky with diamonds
Ah
Lucy in the sky with diamonds
Lucy in the sky with diamonds
Lucy in the sky with diamonds



Credit: Photo by ingen uppgift, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

For Will and Marshall Barnett of Buckeye, AZ, a recent father-and-son "boys' week" road trip with a stopover at Arkansas’ famous Crater of Diamonds State Park couldn't have gone much better. The pair discovered a 2-carat, iced tea-colored diamond after wet sifting just a few buckets of soil.



It was the second-largest diamond registered so far this year and the 36,500th diamond documented since the site became an Arkansas State Park in 1972.

Will had learned about the park from his uncle, who worked as a park interpreter at another Arkansas State Park. So, when he and his son mapped out their summer trip, they were excited to try their luck at finding genuine gemstone in Murfreesboro.



With buckets and shovels in-hand, Will and Marshall arrived at the park on the morning of July 27. They rented screens at the park’s Diamond Discovery Center and then entered the park’s 37.5-acre diamond search area, a plowed field atop the eroded surface of an ancient, diamond-bearing volcano.

After filling a few buckets with diamond-bearing soil, they headed to the park’s south wash pavilion to wet sift the material.

“Wet sifting is one of the most effective methods to search for diamonds,” said Park Interpreter Ashlyn Keys. “The search area has two wash pavilions, with water troughs and tables. Using screens to separate dirt from the gravel allows you to go through more material in less time, giving a better chance of finding a diamond.”

The wet-sifting strategy quickly paid off. Will spotted something glimmering at the bottom of his screen and called over his son, saying, “Hey Marshall, you should take a look at this!”



Marshall and his dad brought their find to the park’s Diamond Discovery Center, where staff confirmed that it was a 2-carat, rectangular-shaped diamond, about the size of a pencil eraser.

Even before learning the official results, Keys said, “You could tell they knew they had found something special from the smiles on their faces.”

Will and Marshall are no strangers to the mining scene. They are frequent gold panners.

The dad often refers to his son as a "minor-miner," so they decided to name their diamond "Minor Find."

Commenting about his experience at the park, Will said, “It’s worth looking, even if you don’t find a diamond!”

Credits: Images courtesy of Arkansas State Parks.

There is strong evidence that bronze forearm cuff bracelets were all the rage near Prague 3,600 years ago.



An archeologist using a metal detector to survey a site in the town of Budyně nad Ohří, just 40km northwest of the Czech capital, discovered a hoard of bronze artifacts that included eight cuffs, eight axes, two long pins and an arrowhead.

The simple three-quarter round cuffs are decorated with nine parallel notches. The basic style of the bracelets is not much different than some of the ones worn today.



The long bronze pins may have had two purposes, according to the archeologists. They were likely used to style hair or to fasten clothing.

The axes were employed as cutting tools or weapons.

Archeologists from the Podřipské Museum in Roudnice nad Labem believe the hoard dates back to the Middle Bronze Age, when Europeans mastered the art of making tools and ornaments from bronze, an alloy of copper and tin. They noted that the quality of the items testify to the technological advancement of the bronze casters of that period.

Archaeologist Martin Trefný told Radio Prague International, that all but one of the items in the hoard date back to 1600 BC, and one axe was much older.

Trefný and his team offered three theories on why the hoard was intentionally buried. First, the items in the hoard could have represented a religious offering to the deities. Second, they may have been hidden from enemies during a crisis. Or, third, the place of discovery could have been a merchant's storage pit.

Trefný told Radio Prague International that the artifacts could be worth "millions of crowns" (each million crowns is worth about $42,000), but added that the historical and the scientific value is much higher than the financial value.

The precise location of the discovery will remain secret to prevent amateur treasure hunters from disrupting the site. After undergoing conservation treatment, the bronze items will be put on display at the Podřipské Museum.

Credits: Images courtesy of Lucie Heyzlová, Český rozhlas, Podřipské Museum.

John Legend famously sang about his stunning wife Chrissy Teigen's "perfect imperfections" in his 2013 hit, "All of Me." In the world of gemstones, perfect imperfections can turn a nondescript clear stone into a vibrant masterpiece. Such is the case with spinel, the August birthstone that is colorless in its pure state, but brilliantly colorful when impurities are sprinkled by nature into its chemical makeup.



Spinel is a magnesium aluminum oxide that forms when impure limestone is altered by heat and pressure. The mineral gets its color from trace amounts of metallic elements, such as chromium, iron and cobalt.

When chromium replaces aluminum in the chemical structure, for example, the result is a red spinel. When iron or cobalt enters the mix, the result is blue or greenish blue. The other colors represented in the spinel family include peach, pink and purple.

The suite of round brilliant-cut spinels seen in the photo, above, has been part of the Smithsonian’s National Gem Collection since 2013. The Vietnam-sourced gems range in size from 60 points to 4.60 carats.

Spinel has the distinction of being the newest official birthstone. In 2016, the American Gem Trade Association and Jewelers of America announced that spinel would be joining peridot as an official birthstone for the month of August. Since peridot is available in only one color, spinel provided more variety and options for August-born individuals.

Spinel is often called a "ruby imposter" because throughout history gem experts had a really tough time telling them apart. In nature, spinel and ruby are often found side by side.

In fact, some of the world’s most famous “rubies” are actually vivid red spinels. These include the 170-carat Black Prince Ruby, which is prominently displayed on the Imperial State Crown of England; the 361-carat Timur Ruby, which was presented by the East India Company to Queen Victoria as a gift in 1851; and the 398-carat ruby look-alike that tops the Imperial Crown of Russia.

The Smithsonian noted that the leading sources of spinel are Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand, while other significant spinel production is taking place in Cambodia, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Vietnam, Russia and the US.

Spinel is a durable gem with a hardness of 8.0 on the Mohs scale. By comparison, diamond rates a 10 and ruby rates a 9.

Credit: Photo by Ken Larsen / Smithsonian.

Egyptian archaeologists recently discovered a trove of 2,500-year-old golden artifacts at the Tell al-Deir necropolis in Egypt's Nile Delta city of Damietta. Among the items buried at the site were gold foil figurines that were intended to act as servants for the tomb occupants in the afterlife.



An Egyptian archaeological mission from the Supreme Council of Antiquities unearthed a group of 63 mudbrick tombs dating back to Egypt's Late and Ptolemaic periods — a time just before Egypt became part of the Roman Empire.



Also found in the tombs were a collection of funerary amulets, funerary statues, pottery vessels and 38 bronze coins from the Ptolemaic Period.



The collected included a mix of imported and local pottery vessels, highlighting the importance of the city of Damietta as a center for foreign trade throughout various historical eras.

Archaeologists believe the tombs were occupied by some of Egypt's wealthiest members of society — those who could afford to be buried with riches.



Archaeologists are currently restoring and classifying the finds, according to the country's Supreme Council of Antiquities. Neveine el-Arif, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, told CBS News that she anticipates that some of the items from Tell al-Deir necropolis will be displayed at one of the country's museums.

The burial site in the port city of Damietta is located about 125 miles north of Cairo.

Credits: Tomb and artifact images courtesy of Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities.

Welcome to Music Friday when we bring you awesome songs with jewelry, gemstones or precious metals in the title or lyrics. Today, country star Aaron Watson pens an emotional tribute to his little girl in “Diamonds and Daughters.”



Watson pledges his life-long devotion to the daughter who had him crying like a baby the moment he first saw her face. He knows he’ll cry again when he walks her down the aisle.

He sings, “I found fortune like diamonds / In the love of a daughter / Worth more than all the gold in the world / And they say that a son / Is the pride of a father / But my heart belongs to my little girl.”

Released in February of 2017 as the 16th track from his Vaquero album, “Diamonds and Daughters” is a sentimental tune that would be a fitting addition to any wedding day playlist.

Watson revealed that he wrote “Diamonds and Daughters” after scoring an earlier hit with “The Underdog” — a song inspired by his sons.

“When [my daughter] found out that her brothers got a song and she didn’t, she was not happy with me,” Watson told The Boot. “Even though I wrote that for Jolee Kate, I wanted all daughters… to hear that song and just know that they’re special.”

Watson scored a commercial success with Vaquero, as it reached #2 on the US Billboard Country chart.

When his album The Underdog reached #1 on the Billboard Country chart in 2015, Watson became the first solo male artist to accomplish that feat with a self-released, independently distributed and promoted studio project.

At the time, the Amarillo, TX, native said he was proud of his slow and steady climb to national success.

“I’m independent not because I’m not good enough,” he told The Boot. “I’m independent because I’m unwilling to sell out on my music or my fans… I’m independent by choice.”

Watson, 46, is currently on tour withs stops scheduled for Texas, Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa, Missouri, Illinois, Arizona and California.

Please check out the audio track of Watson singing “Diamonds and Daughters.” The lyrics are below if you'd like to sing along…

“Diamonds and Daughters”
Written and performed by Aaron Watson.

First moment I saw your face
I was moved by amazing grace
And I cried like a baby
Just like I’ll do walking you down the aisle
I found fortune like diamonds
In the love of a daughter
Worth more than all the gold in the world
And they say that a son
Is the pride of a father
But my heart belongs to my little girl

Diamonds and daughters
Precious and few
Diamonds and daughters
Timeless and true
Don’t you ever forget that your heart is divine
You belong to the one who made you sparkle and shine
Diamonds and daughters

And I’ll be there for you
Every step of the way
From your very first breath
Until my dying day
And the women I see
In that white wedding gown
Is just my little girl
Saying "Daddy won’t you spin me around?"

Diamonds and daughters
Precious and few
Diamonds and daughters
Timeless and true
Don’t you ever forget that your heart is divine
You belong to the one who made you sparkle and shine
Diamonds and daughters
Diamonds and daughters

Diamonds and daughters
Precious and few
Diamonds and daughters
Timeless and true
Don’t you ever forget that your heart is divine
You belong to the one who made you sparkle and shine
Diamonds and daughters
Diamonds and daughters
Diamonds and daughters
Diamonds and daughters

First moment I saw your face
I was moved by amazing grace



Credit: Screen capture via YouTube.com / Aaron Watson.

Kaley Cuoco, who starred for 12 seasons on The Big Bang Theory, turned to Instagram Stories last Wednesday to show off her "once-in-a-lifetime slice of perfection." The actress was referring to her asymmetrical three-stone diamond engagement ring, featuring a colorless cushion-cut center stone accented by light yellow diamonds of unlike sizes and orientations.



Cuoco's long-time boyfriend, Tom Pelphrey, who is best known for his role as Ben Davis on the Netflix crime drama series, Ozark, had popped the question last weekend.



The engagement came as a surprise to many of Cuoco's fans, who were aware of her statements about never marrying again after suffering through two divorces.

She had told Glamour magazine in April of 2022, "I would love to have a long-lasting relationship or a partnership. But I will never get married again. Absolutely not. You can literally put that on the cover."

But Cuoco made that statement only weeks before she met Pelphrey at the premiere of Ozark. She said it was "love at first sight."

On Instagram, the 38-year-old actress gushed about the love of her life, writing, "What a wild, beautiful journey life can be. Grateful for every road that led me straight to you @tommypelphrey."

The couple shares a 17-month-old daughter, Matilda (Tildy), who looks adorable in a photo Cuoco shared on Instagram. Mom, dad and daughter are all clad in matching black T-shirts.



Cuoco also thanked designer Shahla Karimi and Pelphrey for collaborating on her new engagement ring. "My heart can't take it," she wrote in an Instagram caption.

The designer shared a close-up shot of the ring on her Instagram page, noting how "the center cushion is beautifully complemented by two perfectly matched light yellow diamond baguette and emerald-cut stones on either side." One stone is set in a north-south orientation, while the other is set east-west.

Three-stone engagement rings traditionally symbolize the couple's past, present and future.

Interestingly, the 42-year-old Pelphrey was living off the grid when he met Cuoco and had never seen The Big Bang Theory. He had no idea that she was such a big star (She was earning $1 million per episode during the later seasons of the hit series).

"I hadn’t seen Kaley in anything," Pelphrey told W Magazine. "Look, I live in a cave. Before I met Kaley, I was living in upstate New York, on a dirt road, in the middle of the woods, without much Wi-Fi. She’s brought me into modern times."

Cuoco was previously married to tennis player Ryan Sweeting from 2013 to 2015 and Olympic equestrian Karl Cook from 2018 to 2022.

Credits: Images via Instagram / kaleycuoco, Instagram / shahlakarimi_jewelry.

It's been 105 years since a 19-year-old Belgian PhD student at the University of London named Marcel Tolkowsky penned Diamond Design, a book that outlined the perfect mathematical formula for the “brilliant-cut” diamond. Tolkowsky’s accomplishment has stood the test of time and prevails as the most iconic and successful cut in history due to its ability to maximize a diamond’s fire, brilliance and sparkle.



“In 1919, my uncle Marcel unlocked the secret of light within a diamond,” said the late Gabi Tolkowsky during a celebration of the cut's 100th anniversary in 2019. “He figured out how to get the greatest amount of light to shine out of a diamond, calculating the number and arrangement of facets to maximize the light return. This was Marcel’s gift to the world, perfecting the journey of light, giving all those who came after him the knowledge of how to turn a diamond into a unique beauty.”

(Gabi Tolkowsky, one of the world’s most renowned diamond cutters in his own right, died in May of 2023 at age of 83. Marcel Tolkowsky passed away in 1991 at the age of 92.)



Marcel Tolkowsky proved that if a diamond was cut too deep or too shallow, the light coming down from the top would escape out the sides or bottom, resulting in a loss of brilliance. His solution: 57 precisely placed facets cut to exacting proportions so the light coming into a diamond is refracted up through the table and crown to the viewer’s eye.



In Tolkowsky's formula, the crown, which is the upper part of the diamond, would have 33 facets, and the pavilion, which is the conical base underneath the girdle, would have 24 facets. The diamond would also include a tiny 58th facet at the bottom of the pavilion called the culet.

Tolkowsky also suggested that the depth of a round brilliant diamond should be 59.3% of its diameter and that the table facet should be 53% of the total width. What's more, he deemed the perfect crown angle to be 34.5 degrees, and the ideal pavilion angle to be 40.75 degrees.

Of the 4Cs of diamonds — cut, color, clarity and carat weight — cut is arguably the most important. Poorly cut diamonds will likely appear dull or glassy, while a finely cut diamond will appear fiery and alive.

In the 1950s, Tolkowsky's work was further elevated when the American Gem Society adopted his proportions as its standard for grading a diamond's cut.

Even though 105 years have passed since Tolkowsky published Diamond Design, his formula is still considered "ideal" in the world of diamond cutting. Today, Tolkowsky's innovation is called the “American Ideal Cut” or the "Tolkowsky Brilliant.”

Credits: Round brilliant diamond courtesy of Petragems, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Ideal cut proportions by See page for author, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

A 22-year-old archaeology student from Denmark's Aarhus University recently unearthed seven Viking-Age silver bangles dating back 1,200 years.



The seven bangles represent three distinctive design styles that underscore Aarhus' status as an international trading hub of the Viking Age. Researchers believe the silver bangles also may have served as a form of currency.



The student, Gustav Bruunsgaard, was using a metal detector to explore a known Viking site in Elsted, about eight miles north of Aarhus, when his device beeped loudly.

With a small shovel, Bruunsgaard successfully secured a single bangle. When he returned to the site a few days later, he found six more. The total weight of the seven silver bangles is about 500 grams, or a little over 1 pound, according the Moesgaard Museum.

Danish and international experts assessed the hoard and concluded that the items were fabricated during the early part of the Viking Age, which spanned from 793 AD to 1066 AD.

For the Vikings, arm bangles were not only statements of personal style and social status, but they could also be used as a type of currency. Bracelets like these, according to the Moesgaard Museum, were adapted to a common weight system, so that the value of the individual rings could easily be determined. In this way, the bangles served as a means of payment.

The bangle that looks like a coiled snake originated from Russia or Ukraine, according to the Moesgaard Museum, which added that the design was imitated by the Nordics.

The three stamped bands are of a South Scandinavian type that inspired bangles in Ireland, where they became very common. The museum explained that the three smooth bangles are rare and known to be from Scandinavia and England.

"The Elsted farm treasure is a fantastically interesting find from the Viking Age, which connects Aarhus with Russia and Ukraine in the east and the British Isles in the west," noted Kasper H. Andersen, Ph.D., and historian at Moesgaard Museum. "In this way, the find emphasizes how Aarhus was a central hub in the Viking world, which went all the way from the North Atlantic to Asia."

Bruunsgaard's seven silver bangles are currently on display at the Moesgaard Museum in Højbjerg, Denmark. The museum is just five miles south of Aarhus, which is Denmark's second largest city with a population of 330,000.

Credits: Jewelry image courtesy of Moesgaard Museum. Map by Google Maps.

Gold hit another milestone last Friday when the value of a 400-troy-ounce bullion bar surpassed the $1 million mark for the first time in history. The feat was attained as the spot price of gold surged beyond $2,500 per ounce just after 9 a.m.



The hefty million-dollar bars are the type you might see in photos of a Fort Knox vault or in scenes from the James Bond 007 thriller, Goldfinger (1964). They are impressively beautiful and impossibly dense (a 7-inch long, 3 5/8-inches wide, 1 3/4 inch-thick brick weighs nearly as much as a three-year-old child, at 27.4 pounds).

The spot gold price at 4 p.m. EST on Wednesday was $2,525, which put the value of the 400-ounce bar at $1,010,000. Gold hit its all-time high-water mark on Tuesday morning at $2,541.

Known as Good Delivery bars, these 400-ounce behemoths are typically bought and sold by large investors, governments and institutions.

Economists cite geopolitical tension, inflation hedging, stock market volatility and anticipated Federal Reserve interest-rate reductions as the key drivers of gold's price ascent. Gold is considered a safe-haven asset.

The price of gold is up 33% compared to a year ago ($1,895) and is almost 68% higher than five years ago ($1,503).

The US Bullion Depository at Fort Knox, KY, secures about half of the US Treasury’s gold reserves. Holdings amount to 147.3 million ounces (4,176 metric tons), and it’s believed that Fort Knox houses 2.3% of all the gold ever refined in the world.

In Lower Manhattan, the basement of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York houses 507,000 gold bars weighing 6,331 metric tons and valued at more than $200 billion.

The major difference between the Fort Knox and New York City facilities is that 95% of the Federal Reserve Bank’s holdings in New York is gold owned by foreign governments and international investors.

Credit: Photo by Stevebidmead, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Welcome to Music Friday when we bring you some of our all-time favorite songs with jewelry, gemstones or precious metals in the lyrics or title. Today we feature Journey’s romantic, Grammy-nominated anthem, “When You Love a Woman.” In the memorable refrain, lead vocalist and songwriter Steve Perry sings, “When you love a woman, you can see your world inside her eyes,” and compares a joy that lasts forever to “a band of gold that shines.”



Originally released in 1996 as the third track and lead single from the group’s Trial by Fire album, “When You Love a Woman” quickly ascended to #1 on the US Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary chart and topped out at #12 on the US Billboard Hot 100. In 1997, the song earned a Grammy nomination in the category of Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group.

Former members of Santana and a 1960s psychedelic rock band called Frumious Bandersnatch formed Journey in San Francisco in 1973. After a long string of hits, which included "Don't Stop Believin'" (18-times platinum, 1981), the group disbanded in 1987 only to reunite in 1995. When lead singer Steve “The Voice” Perry went down with a hip injury and was unable to tour in 1998, the group made numerous — and mostly unsuccessful — attempts to fill Perry’s formidable shoes.

In 2007, original band member Neal Schon was viewing Journey covers on YouTube when a video by Filipino Arnel Pineda caught his attention. Pineda had a golden voice similar to Perry’s and Journey had their man. He has been singing lead vocals for Journey ever since.

In April of 2017, Perry rejoined his bandmates for a special celebration that saw the group inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Journey is one of the best-selling bands of all time, with worldwide sales of more than 100 million albums. The group is currently touring with dates scheduled through the beginning of September in Arizona, California, Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Colorado.

We invite you to be entranced by Perry's soaring vocals in the official video of “When You Love a Woman.” The video has been viewed more than 94 million times. The lyrics are below if you’d like to sing along…

“When You Love a Woman”
Written by Steve Perry, Neal Schon and Jonathan Cain. Performed by Journey.

In my life I see where I’ve been
I said that I’d never fall again
Within myself I was wrong
My searchin’ ain’t over… over
I know that…

When you love a woman
You see your world inside her eyes
When you love a woman
You know she’s standin’ by your side
A joy that lasts forever
There’s a band of gold that shines waiting somewhere…oh yeah

If I can’t believe that someone is true
To fall in love is so hard to do
I hope and pray tonight
Somewhere you’re thinkin’ of me girl
Yes I know…I know that

When you love a woman
You see your world inside her eyes
When you love a woman
You know she’s standin’ by your side
A joy that lasts forever
There’s a band of gold that shines waiting somewhere…oh

It’s enough to make you cry
When you see her walkin’ by
And you look into her eyes

When you love a woman
You see your world inside her eyes
When you love a woman
Well you know she’s standin’ by your side
A joy that lasts forever
There’s a band of gold that shines
When you love a woman…
When you love, love, love, love
When you love a woman
You see your world inside her eyes



Credit: Screen capture via YouTube.com / Journey.

Lucara Diamond Corp. has unearthed a grapefruit-size, 2,492-carat diamond at its famous Karowe Mine in Botswana. The diamond ranks #2 on the list of the largest rough diamonds ever found. The 1,758-carat Sewelô, which was recovered from the same mine in 2019, is now in the third spot.



Of the top eight diamonds ever unearthed, the prolific Karowe Mine is credited with six of them. The still-unnamed discovery has a rugged silvery-white appearance and weighs in at 17.58 ounces (1.1 pounds). Maintaining the top spot is the 3,106-carat Cullinan, which was found at South Africa’s Premier Mine 2 in 1905.

Lucara's newest treasure remained unscathed during the recovery process thanks to the company’s state-of-the-art Mega Diamond Recovery ("MDR") X-ray Transmission ("XRT") technology, installed in 2017 to identify and preserve large, high-value diamonds. The stone was identified during the processing of EM/PK(S) kimberlite, the dominant ore type that Lucara has targeted during the first years of its underground mining operations.

Throughout history, diamond-bearing rock was typically drilled, blasted, hauled and put through crushing machines to expose the gems that may be hiding within. During that process, extremely large diamonds, some weighing hundreds of carats or more, were often damaged or even pulverized.

With the advent of XRT scanners, the mining process has become more delicate and discerning. As the rocky material comes down a conveyor belt, the scanners can pick out the diamonds based on their chemical composition. The diamond-rich material is then separated from the rubble and moved to a secure area for processing.



"We are ecstatic about the recovery of this extraordinary 2,492-carat diamond. This find not only showcases the remarkable potential of our Karowe Mine, but also upholds our strategic investment in cutting-edge XRT technology," said William Lamb, President and CEO of Lucara. "The ability to recover such a massive, high-quality stone intact demonstrates the effectiveness of our approach to diamond recovery and our commitment to maximizing value for our shareholders and stakeholders."

So, what will the future hold for a 2,492-carat rough diamond? It's likely to end up on the cutting wheel.

Nearly 120 years ago, the super-sized Cullinan was cut by the Asscher Company into nine principal diamonds and 96 smaller diamonds. The Cullinan I and II – known as the Great Star of Africa and the Lesser Star of Africa — are set in the Crown Jewels of Britain. They weigh 530 carats and 317 carats, respectively. The remaining seven principal diamonds, ranging in size from 94 carats to 4.39 carats, are in the collection of the British Royal Family.

Here's how the diamonds of the Karowe Mine rank on the list of the largest diamonds ever found.

2 - 2,492 carats, unnamed, 2024
3 - 1,758 carats, Sewelô, 2019
4 - 1,174 carats, unnamed, 2021
5 - 1,111 carats, Lesedi La Rona, 2015
7 - 1,080 carats, unnamed, 2023
8 - 998 carats, unnamed, 2020

Botswana's diamond industry delivers wide-ranging socio-economic benefits to the country that extend well beyond the mining sector. Its influence supports national development by funding critical areas such as education and healthcare.

Credits: Photos courtesy of CNW Group/Lucara Diamond Corp.

TV personality Sharon Osbourne is on a mission to track down the Good Samaritan who returned her diamond wedding band after she lost it during a high-profile meet-and-greet at Premier League soccer team Aston Villa’s new store at Villa Park near Birmingham, UK.



Osbourne, who became a household name during the early 2000s when she starred with her family on the MTV reality show, The Osbournes, turned to her 1.5 million Instagram followers for help in identifying the person who found the ring on the floor of the store and literally ran after the celebrity as she left the event and headed to her car.

Osbourne was so shocked to get the ring back that she neglected to offer a proper "thank you" to the woman.

In a heartfelt 90-second video, the 71-year-old Osbourne recounted how she "had the best time ever" at the meet-and-greet, and didn't realize that her band had slipped off her finger.

As Osbourne left the venue and headed to the car park, a woman came running up to her with a ring in hand.



"And she goes, 'Is this your band?' Osbourne recounted. "And it's my wedding band. And I was like, 'Oh, my god.'"

"She found it on the floor of the store and presumed it was mine," Osbourne continued. "[She] came running after me and gave it to me, and I never got her name 'cause I was just in shock."

Osbourne explained why the diamond wedding band is so important to her and her husband, heavy metal singer Ozzy Osbourne.

"I just want to say a huge, huge thank you because my original one got stolen and Ozzy replaced it with this," she said, "and if I'd lost this it would have been terrible."

Osbourne requested anyone who knows the woman to provide her name in the comments of her Instagram post.

In the caption that accompanied the video, Sharon wrote to her hero: "Not only did you save me from losing one of my most cherished items, but you also restored my faith in people. I would love to thank you sincerely, if you are on Instagram or someone knows her Instagram page please post in my comments below!!!"

The Osbournes aired on MTV from March 5, 2002, to March 21, 2005 — for a total of 52 episodes. Ozzy, who fronted Black Sabbath, retired from touring in 2023 due to health issues. Sharon hosted her own daytime talk show, The Sharon Osbourne Show, and became a celebrity judge on the UK's The X Factor.

Credits: Screen captures via Instagram / sharonosbourne.

Kalani Hilliker, who impressed us with her grace and athleticism during her four seasons on Dance Moms, recently shared the story behind her brand new oval-cut diamond ring. The 23-year-old announced her engagement and showed off the ring in a series of Instagram pics taken in picturesque Lake Como, Italy.



Hilliker dished to people.com how she started the ring-shopping process determined to come away with an elongated cushion-cut diamond, but as she tried on different styles, she and her now-fiancé, Nathan Goldman, started leaning in a different direction.

She told people.com that her plans "completely flipped" after three visits to her jeweler.



Goldman explained, “The oval just looked much better on her hand, and with something like a ring she will wear forever, I thought it was important to make it perfect."

Hilliker was also indecisive about the metal type, so Goldman took the lead on that decision.



"I always loved the gold because of its contrast with the diamond," he said, adding, "I also added in the hidden halo on the band because I knew she loved that.”

Goldman reported that the diamond weighs 6.82 carats and carries a clarity grade of VS2. The band is fabricated in 18-karat gold.

Hilliker said that she will always cherish the experience of seeking out the perfect ring with her fiancé.



“It was also such a fun memory for us we will always love," she told people.com.

Lake Como provided the stunning background to Goldman's romantic proposal.

“I wanted to make the proposal beautiful and I knew she loved white flowers prior to doing so," he told people.com. "I was a little worried on how I would achieve it, but luckily some of Kalani’s friends are wedding planners and they helped me out."

“The set-up was more than I ever could have imagined and I couldn’t believe he pulled this off in Italy," commented Hilliker. "He is a true romantic and wanted to make sure it was so special for me and that is what he did. It was also special because friends of mine were able to be a part of this special moment.”

Hilliker joined Lifetime's Dance Moms during Season 4 in 2014 and left the show during Season 7. Just this past May, she appeared in Dance Moms: The Reunion. She is currently a dance teacher, mental health advocate and social media influencer.

Credits: Images via Instagram / kalanihilliker, Instagram / kalanihilliker and brilliantearth.

A romantic stroll along the scenic shores of Galveston, TX, turned into a nightmare for Sierra Rodkey and fiancé Brandon Jeffers-Calhoun when Rodkey realized she had lost her cherished diamond engagement ring in the surf.



"I didn't think about the ocean robbing me," Rodkey told Fox 26 Houston. "I was just in the waves and I looked up like this, and I noticed my ring was gone. I just cried."

For hours, the couple searched the coastline between Pleasure Pier and Stewart Beach, but came up empty.

That was more than a year ago.

"We never thought that it would be found," said Jeffers-Calhoun.

With nothing to lose, Rodkey recently decided to put out an alert on social media.



And as luck would have it, Clyde Longworth of Galveston Metal Detecting Services, quickly responded.

In an interview with Fox 26 Houston, Longworth revealed that he had found a diamond ring about a year ago on Stewart Beach.

"It was on the slope leading down to the water," he said.



Reporter Jade Flurry and her news team made arrangements for the metal detectorist to meet the couple and reunite Rodkey with her ring.

"Would that be it?" Longworth asked the couple as he held out the ring.

"That's it, Babe," said Jeffers-Calhoun. "That's the one."



"I have so many emotions," added Rodkey. "Actually I'm shook. I don't know what to say. This is unreal. I'm still trying to take it all in. It's unbelievable."

Jeffers-Calhoun was clearly overwhelmed by the whole experience.

"I'm still processing it, but this is just more proof that I'm the luckiest man in the world," he said.



Rodkey looked at him with an adoring smile because it was clear that Jeffers-Calhoun was referring to her.

Credits: Screen captures via fox26houston.com.

Welcome to Music Friday when we bring you exciting songs with jewelry, gemstones or precious metals in the title or lyrics. Today, Diamond Rio frontman Marty Roe puts a “big down payment on that itty bitty diamond ring” in the memorable 1998 singalong, “Unbelievable.”



In the song written by Jeffrey Steele and Al Anderson, an infatuated Roe is crazy in love with his “unbelievable” new girlfriend. His life had been lonely and boring, but now a magnificent beauty has turned his world upside-down — so much so that he stutters when he tries to speak to her.

Peppered with delectable harmonies, the hard-driving, crossover hit features the unforgettable refrain: “kissable, huggable, lovable, unbelievable.”

The song’s jewelry reference includes this line, “Elegant, intelligent, heaven sent, all my money spent / I put a big down payment on that itty bitty diamond ring.”

Released as the title track of the group’s fifth studio album, “Unbelievable” zoomed to #2 on the US Billboard Hot Country chart and #1 on Canada’s RPM Country Tracks chart. The song also had crossover appeal, as it topped out at a respectable #36 on the broader-based US Billboard Hot 100 chart.

“Unbelievable” was originally written for country star George Jones, according to Songfacts.com. When Jones passed on the song, Diamond Rio scooped it up. Recalled writer Anderson, “I know all of a sudden they liked it and cut it and put it out, and it was the most played Arista record that year.”

Founded in Nashville in 1982, Diamond Rio featured the same six members from 1989 until 2022. They included Gene Johnson, Jimmy Olander, Brian Prout, Dan Truman, Dana Williams and Roe. When Prout and Johnson left the band in 2022, they were replaced by Micah Schweinsberg and Carson McKee.

The group was originally named the Grizzly River Boys (a river rafting ride at Opryland USA). Few band members liked the name so it was changed to the Tennessee River Boys. The name would change one final time in 1990 after the group signed a record deal with Arista.

Band member Prout suggested the name Diamond Rio not because he wanted the band to be associated with precious stones or an exotic city in Brazil. The name was, in fact, a nod to the Diamond Reo truck company, which ceased operations in 2013.

The group is a 14-time Grammy nominee and was named the Country Music Association’s Vocal Group of the Year four times in the 1990s. Diamond Rio is also a member of the Grand Ole Opry.

The band is currently touring with performances scheduled in Indiana, Ohio, Illinois, Tennessee, South Dakota, Minnesota, Texas, Florida, North Carolina and Georgia through the middle of October.

Please check out the video of Diamond Rio performing "Unbelievable." The lyrics are below if you'd like to sing along…

“Unbelievable”
Written by Jeffrey Steele and Al Anderson. Performed by Diamond Rio.

She’s so kissable, huggable, lovable, unbelievable
She’s a mouthful of anything and everything a man could want
She ain’t typical, she’s unpredictable, she’s available, it’s a miracle
How my heart stumbled into someone so kissable, huggable, lovable, unbelievable

Up ’til now my life has been so lonely and boring
I never thought I would find someone so

Elegant, intelligent, heaven sent, all my money spent
I put a big down payment on that itty bitty diamond ring
She’s so beautiful, it’s indisputable, it’s undeniable, she’s got-to-havable
She’s music to my ears, and makes my heart sing, so kissable, huggable, lovable, unbelievable

There’s so many things
I want to tell her
Like I love her
But every time I talk
I start to stutter

She’s so elegant, intelligent, heaven sent, all my money spent
I put a big down payment on that itty bitty diamond ring
She’s so beautiful, it’s indisputable, it’s undeniable, she’s got-to-havable
She’s music to my ears, and makes my heart sing, kissable, huggable, lovable, unbelievable

Kissable, huggable, lovable, unbelievable
Kissable, huggable, lovable, unbelievable



Credit: Photo by Canadian Forces PO 1 Aaron Peterson, Navy Visual News Service, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.