The Allnatt diamond takes on a particularly greenish-yellow hue, and was believed for some time to be of lesser value than the clearer diamond. These diamonds were found in abundance in the heart of the diamond industry at that time, South Africa. These particular diamonds are octahedral in shape. The Shah of Persia at that time, Nasir ud-Din Shah (1848-1860) was the first to truly appreciate these diamonds. He added many of these to the Crown Jewels of Persia, one of which is 135 carats!
This diamond is named after one of its famous holders, Alfred Ernest Allnatt, a soldier, sportsman, art patron and a benefactor in many groups. It was cut down to size, and some was sold, and a portion was sent to the Smithsonian for a while.
Diamond is a transparent, optically isotropic crystal with a refractive index of 2.417, a high dispersion of 0.044, and a specific gravity of 3.52.
In the late 18th century, diamonds were demonstrated to be made of carbon by the rather expensive experiment of igniting a diamond (by means of a burning-glass) in an oxygen atmosphere and showing that carbonic acid gas (carbon dioxide) was the product of the combustion.
In response to public concerns that their diamond purchases were contributing to war and human rights abuses in central Africa, the diamond industry and diamond-trading nations introduced the Kimberley Process aimed at ensuring that conflict diamonds do not becoming intermixed with the diamonds not controlled by such rebel groups.
This diamond is named after one of its famous holders, Major Alfred Ernest Allnatt, a soldier, sportsman, art patron and a benefactor in many groups.
The Allnatt's origins are unknown prior to Major Allnatt's purchasing of the diamond in the early 1950's.
The Allnatt was displayed as part of the Smithsonian's "The Splendor of Diamonds" exhibit, alongside The De Beers Millennium Star, the world’s largest top colour (D) internally and externally flawless pear-shaped diamond at 203.04 carat (40.608 g) and The Heart of Eternity, a 27.64 carat (5.528 g) heart-cut blue diamond.
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