how can i tell a dimond in the rough??

Question

I THINK I HAVE COME ACROSS SOME ROUGH DIMONDS ,IN AN OLD CREEK BED, BUT NOT SURE HOW TO TELL WITHOUT GOING AND BUYING A DIAMOND INDENTIFING KIT. THANKS

Answer 1

One way to tell is to do a hardness scratch test.

Go to a shop that sells minerals and buy a piece of corundum - you only need a small piece so it shouldn't be too expensive.

Diamond is the only mineral capable of scratching corundum, so if you can scratch you piece of corundum the you have a diamond.

I suspect more likely you have found some quartz! ;-)

Answer 2

This is really just an expression, but most diamonds are all found in the rough and are rough themselves.

What the expression means is that you are finding a treasure in the last place you would expect to find it.

What I mean by saying that diamonds are both rough and found in the rough is that before they are jewelry quality, what most people think of when then think diamond, they are cut and polished so before that they are rather ugly and "rough". A diamond is really just a crystal that is found deep in the earth (the rough).

Answer 3

take it to a jeweler.

and if he tells you it's not a diamond, but he'll "buy it anyway" for a small sum, well...