Why are diamonds and gold so valueable?

Question

Why not other stones and metals? Is it just that they're rare and so what about that too?

Answer 1

Ever heard of the "Gold Standard"? It comes from the weighing the price of currency against the price of gold. Governments used to base their economys based on the ammount of gold they had in their possesion, and they would use it as collatoral to borrow against. Anyway...Pretty much everyone here is correct. Price is determined by supply and demand. In ancient times, gold was widely used in religous art and archetecture so that cultures people understood it to be very vaulable. Today, companies control the ammount of gold that is in circulation around the world to maintain a certain level of value. There are other metals that are much harder to find like trinium, unobtanium and adamantium (ok ok...maybe platinum is a better example...hehe) and the prices of those metals are higher.

Diamonds are the same way. There are actually diamonds from the west coast of Africa that are illegal to buy, sell, or own due to an embargo on "conflict diamonds". People will actually pay more for these stones simply because they're not supposed to have them. There are places in the mid-west united states where you can dig your own diamonds for $30 and keep what you find.

Did you know that almost every chain jewlery store in the united states (Shaws, Kay, J.B.Robinson, Jareds, etc) are all owned by the same corporation? There are different standards of diamonds which also determind their value.

Besides...they're pretty and shiny!!!

Answer 2

Two separate answers.

Diamonds are rare, but even more importantly diamonds are marketed as a must have commodity for engagement rings. This was marketing genius by De Beers. Now it is just accepted that you must have a diamond ring to get engaged. Not so before about 1900. De Beers also controlled the market for many years to keep prices high. The power of marketing for you:
http://www.stayfreemagazine.org/archives/16/diamonds.html
In fact, artificial diamonds can be made from carbon and are becoming better quality than real diamonds. New marketing techniques will no doubt be brought forth by the diamond gurus.

Gold is actually a rare earth metal. It is used in some manufacturing processes and therefore there is industrial demand. It is also regarded as a store of value for historical reasons. Some people hold gold as disaster insurance in case things go horribly awry. Central banks also historically held gold to back their currency, however central banks have been selling off their gold stocks for years. Some cultures value gold as a savings method too.

Answer 3

Diamonds and gold are expensive beacause of the rarity, and all of he work and artistry involved to turn them into a piece of jewelry...a diamond or gold for that matter doesnt just come out of the ground looking the way it does on your finger...price is also reflected by supply and demand...other metals and gems are valueable also...do a little research....The most rare gemstone is the alexandrite....and some are only found in one place on earth --like tanzanite, chrome diopside or ametrine.....

Answer 4

Value is driven by two factors:

1) How rare or difficult to produce something is,

2) How much demand there is for that thing.

Gold is nearly impossible to create, and diamond are VERY expensive to create, while at the same time there is a constant high demand for them both for industrial use and for jewelry; among other things.

Anything that has both of the above 2 elements will be valuable.

Answer 5

Artificially inflated prices and monopoly holding in the market (diamonds)
BTW, diamonds may be more expensive (because of the above reasons) but emeralds are actually the rarest of gemstones. True "flawless" emeralds are more valuable than diamonds or gold.

Gold is the financial standard. Gold is what values (or devalues) every currency in the world.

Answer 6

Diamonds are the most precious gem and Gold is the most precious metal but platinnum is more expensive than gold

Answer 7

I love diamonds remember diamonds are a girl's best friend.
Other stones rubies, gold, after that it the fake cheap imitations

Answer 8

Rarity and demand. Other than being "pretty" they have become status symbols, so there is high demand and low supply. In addition, diamond is the hardest mineral and gold is an excellent conductor.

Answer 9

Diamonds are the most precious gem and Gold is the most precious metal
That's the way its always been....all the way back to biblical times

Answer 10

no object is worth more than what someone is wiling to pay for it supply and demand is the mother of capitolism strictly speakin. yes. because they are very labor intensive and rare, and other sem-i precious and precious stones, can be of equal or greater value due to many things, jeweler- artist for instance. .