Book Description

Although Rock Mechanics addresses many of the rock mechanics issues which arise in underground mining engineering, it is not a text exclusively for mining applications. It consists of five categories of topics on the science and practice of rock engineering: basic engineering principles relevant to rock mechanics; mechanical properties of rock and rock masses; design of underground excavations in various rock mass conditions; mining methods and their implementation; and guidelines on rock mechanics practice. Throughout the text, and particularly in those sections concerned with excavation design and design of mining layouts, reference is made to computational methods of analysis of stress and displacement in a rock mass. The principles of various computational schemes, such as boundary element, finite element and distinct element methods, are considered. This new edition has been completely revised to reflect the notable innovations in mining engineering and the remarkable developments in the science of rock mechanics and the practice of rock engineering that have taken place over the last two decades.

Based on extensive professional, research and teaching experience, this book will provide an authoritative and comprehensive text for final year undergraduates and commencing postgraduate students. For professional practitioners, not only will it be of interest to mining and geological engineers but also to civil engineers, structural and mining geologists and geophysicists as a standard work for professional reference purposes.

 

B.H.G. Brady is Emeritus Professor and former Dean of the Faculty of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics at The University of Western Australia, and a consulting rock mechanics engineer.

E.T. Brown is Senior Consultant, Golder Associates Pty Ltd, Brisbane, Australia and formerly Senior Deputy Vice-Chancellor of The University of Queensland, Australia.

Reviews (1)

Clever!
Tomie de Paola, a talented and prolific author perhaps best known for Strega Nona, has another winner here. The text is clear, packed with information, and humorous. DePaola keeps his young readers diverted by using a fictional device: a little girl is sinking in quicksand while a boy proceeds to lecture on the subject-- at length-- until the last minute. Of course, she gets her revenge in the end and the readers are lefted wiser and happier. I wish more children's nonfiction authors would appreciate how much information children will sit still for -- even enjoy -- if it is presented imaginatively. ... Read more

Book Description

Book Description

Rare, romantic, and forever: The diamond industry depends on these myths to reap billions of dollars of profit. This sensational investigation explodes such fallacies and -reveals how multimillion dollar advertising campaigns create the impression of rarity and romance. It reveals, too, a very secret and unromantic world, one that is dominated and controlled by a handful of mighty corporations.

Taking us through seven decades of intrigue and manipulation that span the globe, Janine Roberts has written the most expansive and explosive expose ever on diamonds; among Roberts_ revelations:

* How De Beers hides away rich diamond deposits_and where some of these are located.

* How a long-term companion of Jackie Onassis was a CIA-linked millionaire diamond merchant tied to coups and dictators in Central Africa.

* Just how diamonds are "fixed" to make them more expensive.

* How major diamond companies cooperated with Hitler_s Germany_and how much they were paid.

* How industrial diamond supplies were artificially -restricted to the United States during World War II, severely damaging its war effort and how U.S. Intelligence came to suspect treason.

* How a major diamond deposit in Arkansas was sabotaged to stop it coming into production.

* How the White House was manipulated into buying millions of diamonds it did not need and now must sell.

* How terrorism found its way into the diamond trade, not recently but many decades ago.

* How diamonds are secretly moved by the millions around the world.

The inquiry the diamond cartel did not want and tried to stop. . . . If you have ever wondered what tales might lie behind the glitter of a diamond ring, read this account of the most international media investigation ever launched!

Reviews (5)

Reviewed in the Independent as "enthralling" and "brilliant!
A glittering account of the diamond trade
This review was in The Independent newspaper in the UK on May 22nd. It is by Boyd Tonkin. I think it one of the best.

"After Disney apparently refused to handle Michael Moore's celluloid polemic, Fahrenheit 9/11, the row over market censorship rumbled long and loud. That's America - and Hollywood - pundits over here might say. In Britain, and in the book world, we take such liberty for granted.

We can't, of course. Publishers' fear of libel suits - in particular, of "libel tourism" by foreign claimants - acts as an often-invisible brake on controversy. Mostly, it inhibits not vapid tittle-tattle about private lives but serious reportage. Take Craig Unger's House of Bush, House of Saud, acclaimed in the US for a careful exposure of the close ties between the two first families. Here, Secker & Warburg announced the book but then failed to release it. In other cases, news of the suppression of books may emerge very late, or not at all. Thanks to an intrepid US firm, an extraordinary example has just come to light.

Disinformation, a New York outfit, has issued a formidably well-researched and widely-sourced account of the global diamond trade by the Australian-based investigative journalist Janine Roberts. It strikes this lay reader as one of the most dogged and damning exposés of a near-monopolistic industry to appear in years. The greater wonder is that it has appeared at all.

Roberts first began to unearth the stories of diamond miners and traders while reporting a clash between Aboriginal people and prospectors more than 20 years ago. The project meant, above all, following the trail of De Beers. In Africa, De Beers still mines "about 45 per cent by value of the total annual global diamond production". Through its selling arm, the Diamond Trading Company, it "markets some two-thirds of global supply". In partnership with the luxury-goods group LVMH, it is currently looking for new ways "to exploit the value of its brand". The quoted phrases don't come from Roberts's enthralling and alarming history of the company's activities. They appear on the official De Beers website.

Glitter and Greed records two decades of hair-raising research in Africa, Australia and India. It explores with - if anything - a surfeit of documentation the tangled links between diamond trading, civil strife, child labour and semi-slavery. As Roberts writes, "When Princess Diana met with Angolan land-mine victims, she met victims of the proceeds of diamond sales".

Many of Roberts's discoveries entered the public domain in a two-part BBC documentary, The Diamond Empire, screened (with cuts) in 1994. By that stage, she had also completed a book. Doubleday's reader called it "sensational, well-documented and very controversial". Too much so, it seems: the investigation featured in the catalogue but never appeared. Later, Little, Brown declined to publish, hoping that Roberts could find a "less cowardly" home. Now she has.

Fully updated, Glitter and Greed traces the radical overhaul in the diamond industry's image and practice over the past five years. De Beers itself now stands in the forefront of the campaign against "conflict diamonds" sold to fund civil war. Roberts follows the refinement of the "Kimberley Process" designed to certify that the rocks on your ring come from a clean source. She decides, with a wealth of evidence, that a "Kimberley" stone offers no guarantee that the diamond "will not have been cut illegally by a child" or "mined by a miner breathing asbestos dust". As a feat of investigation, her complex but gripping book for once merits that tarnished plaudit, "brilliant". As for the performance of British publishers faced with its revelations - "lacklustre" would be kind. "

A severe disapointment..
While the subject of this book is facinating, and the information this book contains is wonderful, it is a very badly written book.

The jumpy, disjointed prose lends itself more to reader confusion than to any sort of enjoyment or edification. If I were writing a thesis this would be one of my first picks for reference material, but for the casual reader who wants to be informed on this important subject I recommend skipping this book entirely.

Multiple lines of narrative collide and crisscross from the first chapter, and throughout the book is peppered with tiny black and white photos which, more often than not, have nothing to do with the topic on the page.

It feels like Ms. Roberts had so much to say that she wanted to say it all at once with no regard for good writing. The best and most powerful books are those that combine solid reporting and superb narrative. Unfortunately this will not be the book to blow the covers off the diamond industry because neither Ms. Roberts nor her editor have a grasp on how to sell a story at the same time as shoveling facts onto the lap of the reader.

Excellent
This is about the best and most up to date record of the offensive cartel that is De Beers. Roberts details pretty much everything I have learned in the last six years as a synthetic diamond grower. There is some seriosuly good investigative journalism in this text, only let down by the diamond growth chapter - but hey, she isn't a scientist one doesn't expect perfection. However, it would have been nice if she cited Hazen's "The Diamond Makers", especially since the person who she credits with the first man made synthesis of diamond is largely thought of as having only grown silicon carbide (relatively easy to confuse the two on hardness at least).

Roberts maages to gain access to some places thought untouchable such as the De Beers mines, and it is depressing to find that everything you hear on the grapevine is basically true. This industry is hard to fathom at the best of times, with the corruption and unethical treatment of human beings.

Worse still is the wool being pulled over the consumers eyes over conflict diamonds, exploiting the progession of consumer conscience. This is horrible and there needs to be some real action from the UN, rather than getting into bed with the problem!

Don't buy diamond!!!!!!!

Ollie.

glitter and greed
Read this book and you will never buy a diamond product. Virtually each page reveals how rotten the diamond industry is and those associated with it. Interestingly this book has been ignored by most major papers i.e. Washington Post, NY Times, Wall St. Journal which makes one wonder if the powerful diamond industry is able to limit review of this book.

Glitter and Greed is a definitive work on diamond intrigue
Being part of the family who mined Arkansas Diamonds, I saw
much detail, painstaking research, and insight about the topics. A fascinating read and honest reporting. ... Read more

Reviews (8)

Stunning photography; an amazing collection
"The National Gem Collection," by Jeffrey E. Post, features photographs by Chip Clark. The book is a beautiful celebration of the title collection, which is part of the Smithsonian Institution. The informative text discusses the history of the collection, facts about types of different gemstones, and specific pieces in the collection.

The full-color photography is really stunning, and brings a rich assortment of gems to glorious life. Some of the historic pieces pictured are the blue Hope Diamond, the diamond Napoleon Necklace, the Hooker Emerald, and more. Also shown are a colorful collection of "fancy" diamonds, a rare red diamond, the 858-carat uncut Gachala Emerald, the delightful "pink tutu" (a band of dainty rose quartz crystals on a large smoky quartz crystal), a dazzling group of fire opals, a lapis lazuli carving from Afghanistan, and more.

I appreciate how the book celebrates gemstones at various stages: uncut, cut, and set in artfully crafted pieces of jewelry. Many different types of gemstones--aquamarine, garnet, spinel, chrysoberyl, turquoise, etc.--are covered. Features such as a scanning electron microscope photo of the inner structure of an opal give the reader a deeper understanding of the science behind gems. From start to finish, this book is a marvelous feast for both the eyes and the brain.

Beautiful
This is a beautiful book with lots of interesting information on the gem collection.

Superlative Photography & Informative Text
If you have visited the National Collection and want a souvenir to remind you of the stunning array of unique World Class Gems then this is the book for you. Both the format of the book and the superlative quality of the photography make this book the next best thing to being in the exhibition hall. There is a fairly light weight coverage of the gemmology in the text, but it mostly focusses on the history and ownership of these fabulous gems. The National Collection is unique, no where else in the world is there such a concentration of fabulous jewels with such an interesting history, with the possible exception of the British Crown Jewels in the Tower of London. This book is a fitting celebration of such a marvellous collection.

very nice to peruse
This book is more suited to enjoying the pictures than the text, but both are fine in every way. Almost all the stones in the book have exceptional color - or colors as the case may be. The front cover, going roughly from top to bottom counter clockwise, features a 99.82 carat fluorite, sitting on top of the 858 carat uncut Gachala Emerald (and the original cover looks way better), the lower left features a 34.07 carat red spinel from Mogok, next is a 52.26 carat calcite, and to the right a 17.85 carat diamond crystal from Murfreesboro, Arkansas. The back cover has a spectacular 181.9 carat Cooper Pedy white opal, that I initially mistook for a black opal. This book is published by Harry N Abrams, Inc. of New York, and is well up to this company's superior standards - and that also helps to explain the rather high price. The book is divided into six sections: an introduction, some gems of signficant historical interest, a chapter on diamond, corundum and beryl, a chapter on other important stones, one devoted to stones with special properties (eg opals, cat's eyes and star sapphires) and finally ornamental gems. The appendix is also very useful and informative.

It is very helpful to use this as a reference for benchmark color. There is little or no commentary on evaluation, appraisal or strategic purchasing.

This book is expensive but there are few others like it. Recommended.

The National Gem Collection
I agree with the other reviewer that it's a good coffee table book, but it's not worth the money. It has some good pictures and general historical information, but it could have been a little more detailed and presented in a better format. ... Read more

Book Description

The Northwest! The San Diego region was born in volcanic fire and torrential flood from the western slopes of the Sierra Madre, hundreds of miles to the south. Global tectonic forces drive it northwest as part of the Baja peninsula, possibly fated to perish against icy Alaskan shores. Fear not, however. The itinerary for this voyage is many millions of years long.JOURNEY THROUGH GEOLOGIC TIME,With the narratives and road logs of this guidebook as your passport. Use its numerous photos, illustrations and maps to begin understanding the features and processes of earth science which profoundly influence the lives of San Diegans. Start to identify the signs of this journey from late dinosaur ages to the present as recorded in the sands, shell fragments and stony sentinels of San Diego's beaches, mountains and deserts. ... Read more

Book Description

Here at last, is the ultimate guidebook to actual locales that can be driven to for collecting rocks, minerals and fossils in Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Wisconsin. The four volumes, with over 1,200 maps, describe over 5,000 specific sites; this Volume 1 includes over 300 to-scale maps marked with over 1,000 collecting sites and detailed directions on getting there, the types of rocks, minerals and fossils to be found at each site, and how and where to search once you've arrived. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

A Gem of a Book
One of a fantastic series of 4 chuck full of informational volumes dedicated to a particular geographic area. A must for any rock hound weather you travel or just live in the geographic area of the volume. If you can afford it, get all 4 regional volumes. Start with your area. The location information brake down of the minerals to be found in each state counties is so valuable you can't do with out it. Saves time, eliminate barren hunting grounds and it's so detailed as to where and how you find the minerals. This is just one of a fact full accurate guide series you'll want to have in your rock library. Don't settle for an older printing, this one is reprinted and has been updated.

Love it, love it, love it!
This book looks like it's going to be a GREAT asset in my mineral hunting! I like the way it's set up, by state and then by county within the state. It lists the various sites, tells what has been found at each site and (by a code explained in the front of the book) where in each site the minerals were (in a field, in a mine, in the water, etc.). There are directions of varying degrees to each site. That's the one thing I'd quibble about -- some of the directions aren't that precise. But I understand that some of these sites are private lands, or not completely documented, and he can't come out and say, "Go fifty feet past the blue house, down a ravine, and to your left." In general, the directions seem good enough to get you close, and after that it's up to you.

He lists the rocks and minerals found at each site and gives some information about the quality at most places, including size of crystals found, color (and quality of color), and so on.

My only regret? I don't know if I'll have time to visit each site he has listed! So many rocks, so little time........ ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Sedimentary geology as an integrated discipline...
I think Leeder's textbook will appeal to anyone who's striving to learn more about sedimentology and dynamic stratigraphy. It's a concise, yet thorough introduction to many topics selected within the vast, ever-expanding (and worryingly so! ) field of sedimentary geology... The author's main goal was probably to provide readers with a clear sense of how well integrated sedimentary geology now is with many other branches of earth and life sciences, physics and chemistry. And in my opinion that aim is succesfully achieved. The book will be suitable read to all those who have already taken an introductory, comprehensive course in sedimentology, on the look for something else to be inspired in their reflections. Reading through many of the chapters, newcomers will learn how sedimentology gained many precious contributions from other sciences, as well as just how much of a contribution the discipline itself can be to the whole bandwagon of geology. It takes a holistic approach to Earth system science to highlight this, and the book hits this mark real well...
I appreciated particularly a brief, separate chapter dealing with the properties and stuctures of fine, cohesive sediments, which is a refreshing perspective on the physical and dynamical sedimentology of muds... And a longer one introducing sediment sources as resulting from the interaction of tectonics and erosional processes. What left me rather disappointed was a too cursory mention of base-level control on sedimentary successions, and its logical development into sequence stratigraphy, not as a preconceived model but as a new philosophy in tackling with the complexity of the stratigraphical record. But something had to be probably neglected or the tome would have become real cumbersome to handle physically! Also, I wonder whether Coriolis force really bears any influence upon such small-scale systems as lakes...? But this is an aside... All in all, the book is enjoyable and informative, the author's style pleasant and clear, the artwork excellent, and if you wanted to try out something alternative for mumbling on the hidden meanings of sands, muds and other slimy stuff we like so much, having a go at this book would be very much worth the price... ... Read more

Book Description

Gems The World fs Greatest Treasures and their Stories

By Bernhard Graf

This informative and visually stunning volume examines jewels and gemstones throughout history. It presents outstanding works of art from Europe, Egypt, the Middle East, India, China, and the Americas with full- color illustrations and expert commentary outlining the cultural background and individual qualities of the pieces. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Beautiful book
I bought this book for research on the world's fabulous gems. I'm glad I did.

The book just proves that man from early times onward has placed value on precious gemstones. The stories tell tales of greed, treachery, faith, and murder. A good starting place for those interested in gemstones and precious artifacts made of the rare minerals. ... Read more

Book Description

Rise and Fall of San Diego tells the prehistory of the San Diego area as recorded in the layers of sedimentary rocks. The land here has risen and fallen independently from the sea level which also has risen and fallen. The ever-changing landscapes and animal life through time are examined in this book. Numerous field-trips direct the reader to key localities to observe and understand the history stored in the rocks. Author Patrick L. Abbott has been a Professor of the Department of the Geological Studies, San Diego State University for the last 20 years.Over 60 articles in various publications and more than 20 published books have given him a deserved reputation as a prolific author and a recognized authority on the geology of San Diego County.He is a popular lecturer and field-trip guide who is frequently called upon by the media to interpret geological phenomena to San Diego residents. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

A very local geology
I can understand that the two five star reviewers are both residents of San Diego, because they're the only people this book is addressed to. The actual geological story is thin and fragmented. Amazingly there is almost no references to the plate techtonic events that created California. There are no maps to direct you to the sites the author describes, making them almost impossible for a visitor to find.

If you (as I) don't live in or near San Diego, this book is, at best, mildly interesting.

Excellent insight to San Diego's geology
An excellent book! I find myself continuously recommending it. Fascinating from a geology and local interest point of view. I'll never look at La Jolla, Mission Bay and Point Loma the same way again.

Rise and Fall of San Diego: 150 Years of History Recorded in
AN EXCELLENT BOOK FOR THE AMATEUR GEOLOGIST, WHETHER YOU LIVE IN SAN DIEGO OR NOT. SO MANY QUESTIONS ARE ANSWERED IN A WAY THAT IS EASILY UNDERSTOOD. VERY WELL WRITTEN, AND VERY THOROUGH. I SEE SAN DIEGO IN A WHOLE NEW LIGHT. THANKS ... Read more

Book Description

Here at last, is the ultimate guidebook to actual locales that can be driven to for collecting rocks, minerals and fossils in Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas and Utah. The four volumes, with over 1,200 maps, describe over 5,000 specific sites; this Volume 4 includes over 300 to-scale maps marked with over 1,000 collecting sites and detailed directions on getting there, the types of rocks, minerals and fossils to be found at each site, and how and where to search once you've arrived. ... Read more

Book Description

This color atlas serves as a lab handbook to assist students and researchers in the study of sedimentary rocks. Photographs of all the major components and sedimentary rocks in their section are included, and detailed appendixes describe important lab procedures, such as the making of sections and acetate peel. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

This is an extremely usefull book
This book serves as an excellent companion to geology students in describing and identifying sedimentary rocks under a polarized microscope. The pictures are clear and colored. The descriptions are brief, but very informative. ... Read more

Book Description

The study of sedimentary chemistry and its associated processes is becoming increasingly mathematical. There is a growing desire to gain a quantitative understand of the reasons for the natural chemical changes observed in sediments as they are buried. Past textbooks have not emphasized the steps necessary to develop transport-reaction (diagenetic) models themselves nor methods for their solution. This book attempts to present a detailed account of model formulation by explaining some useful solution techniques. The choice of material illustrates methods that are simple to understand and implement, yet powerful enough to attack even the most complicated diagenetic problems. The cited computer programs are accessible on the Internet. ... Read more

Book Description

On a hot morning in May, 1999, three garimpeiros (small-scale miners) found a large pink diamond in the muddy waters of the Abaete River in Brazil, a discovery that captivated the entire diamond trade.Beginning with this dramatic and revealing tale, Matthew Hart embarks on a journey into an obsessive, largely hidden, and utterly fascinating world.

The geology of diamonds explains how hard it is to find them.Diamonds are accidents of nature, carbon crystals compressed deep underground billions of years ago; parts of them, it is even thought, may predate the Earth itself.They are also elusive, carried to the surface only in slender volcanoes known as "pipes," most of which are actually barren.Weaving science and history throughout his story, Hart follows the diamond trail around the globe-from the basement room where Gabi Tolkowsky, the world's greatest cutter, faced the 599-carat Centenary diamond, to the fog-bound smugglers' paradise of Africa's Diamond Coast, to the London sales rooms of De Beers, which manages the longest-running cartel in modern business history. The diamond story is peopled by characters like William Goldberg, the flamboyant Manhattan diamantaire, who are as memorable as the stones they seek.

Though many of the world's most famous stones had already been found, the modern history of diamonds began in 1869 when a native boy in South Africa found a large crystal on a farm, and Hart recreates the dramatic rush that brought Cecil Rhodes, Ernest Oppenheimer, and a diminutive adventurer named Barney Barnato their fortune.The great cartel that arose would not be shaken for more than a century: then, as Hart chronicles, a sensational race for diamonds erupted in the 1990s in Canada's Northwest Territories, and an audacious, young, female geologist, Eira Thomas, against all odds and enormous competition, discovered near the Arctic Circle one of the richest diamond fields in the world.Hart explores the physics of diamonds-the way light and color move through a stone- as he describes the suspense that attends the cutting of a priceless gem. He portrays the lives of the countless diamond cutters in India who have transformed the industry by making valuable the tiny stones that were once considered worthless. And he examines the ingenuity behind DeBeers's marketing, which has "forged a link between something people do not need, diamonds, and something they do need, love."

Diamonds also have their dark side."Malfeasance rustles in the background of the diamond world like a snake in dry grass," writes Hart as he documents the relentless and ingenious thievery that pervades the business, and the even more damaging revelations of "war diamonds" financing brutal conflicts in Africa. Who will rule diamonds now, and what form the once-secretive business will take, are the issues of the day.

By revealing the layers and inner workings of the diamond industry, and the inherent excitement and human drama that sustain it, Matthew Hart has captured the essence of an exotic substance and its world as surely as a diamond captures light: bending it, reflecting it, and returning it in a blaze of color. ... Read more

Reviews (21)

Hart's "Diamond" a good read, except for one thing...
Matthew Hart's "Diamond" provided an interesting and entertaining glimpse into the world of the diamond trade. Rather than giving a detailed treatment of the geology of diamonds and the history the diamond business, the author covers these in broad strokes, while highlighting key people and events that have shaped the diamond industry worldwide. More attention is given to recent events (nineties through to present), especially the diamond discoveries in the Canadian Arctic. Overall, it is a very readable book. However, I was quite disappointed by the utter lack of even a passing mention of man-made diamonds. I know there is an interesting story behind the development of the technology for making synthetic diamonds, and the impact they have had on the diamond industry.

A tale of carats, cartels, and "Conflict Diamonds"
There are various different levels of appeal with this book. Persons interested in the hard surface of the science in this business will enjoy reading about mineralogy, how to select excavation sites, and what constitutes a good "kimberlite pipe" which is the cone-shaped geological feature comprised of diamond bearing strata. Those that find the sparkle of a financial story appealing will be captivated from the first chapter, when Hart describes the bonanza that came the way of three small-time Brazilian miners. They uncovered a 81-carat pink diamond and ended up netting a glittering sum of 2 million. There are stories that have a bit of a rough edge to them and also required a bit of digging into the past. History buffs will approve. Here Hart is talking about the secretive and somewhat clouded history of the DeBeers cartel and it's current attempts to maintain control of 80% of the world's rough diamonds. What other term but "chipping away" could best describe the chapter on Eira Thomas, a young female geologist who discovered a huge cluster of high-grade diamond pipes in the Canadian Actic. This discovery more than anything else has begun to loosen DeBeer's grip on the industry. And finally for those who wish to get down in the trenches there are the descriptions of the "diamond conflicts". This is the warfare in Angola and Sierra Leone that is finaced by diamond revenues. Here we see the dirty and bloody side of the story.

Characters abound. The founders of DeBeers - Cecil Rhodes, Barney Barnato and Ernest Oppenheimer, the "garimpeiros" or miners of Brazil and Eira Thomas. The journey is around the world, from South Africa, Angola, and Sierra Leone, to Siberia, London, and the Canadian arctic. DIAMOND: A JOURNEY TO THE HEART OF AN OBSESSION is an appropriate title for the contents of this well written and very informative book.

Story of a cold blooded love affair
This is a good general account of the modern day diamond business, with the right mix of technical detail and story telling. The reader learns about how diamonds are formed, found and exploited, as well as the romance and large personalities behind the trade. As with most accounts of the gem-trade, the story inevitably revolves around the Goliath of the industry - the de Beers cartel, but Hart goes a long way to explaining how they rose to eminence and how they manage to exert so much control, even if this control is now waning. He also includes interesting details on the differing stages of diamond sales, from the selling of 'rough' to the marketing of the finished article that most of us associate with diamonds.

Hart is to be commended for including a section on conflict diamonds, and how the trade in these is effecting the lives of thousands for the worse. He is cynical about how much the industry will do to stop the trade of these tainted gems, but the reader gets the feeling that his cynicism is not misplaced - much of his story is taken up with the greed and backstabbing involved in the search for and trading of this precious commodity. This definitely is a cold blooded love affair. But Hart manages to tell it as it is, leaving the reader to decide if diamonds really are worth the trouble and money that they currently command.

There are few complaints about this book, only minor quibbles. One is very partisan - I would have liked to have read more about the Argyle diamonds of Australia, and how they have been attempting to make brown diamonds (champagne and cognacs to be more romantic) fashionable. I also would have expected more on the trading houses of Antwerp and Tel Aviv, but Hart was obviously more concerned with the swashbuckling nature of exploration. But as stated, these are minor quibbles - this is still a fascinating read.

A good book that makes you want to know more
After reading "Diamond", I wanted to know more. More about what the diamond trade has done for (and to) the people of Africa, about what the search for diamonds has done to the environment of Canada, and about what the whole of the diamond trade means to the world economy. What would a diamond really be worth today were it not for DeBeers? How and why did Cecil Rhodes start endow the Rhodes scholor program at Oxford?

A natural-born focus for human aspiration
I've become a real fan of that most ubiquitous form of covalent elemental carbon, since I've had the good fortune in my progress in years to acquire a few moderately-priced examples thereof and "live with them" in daily life. It is the incredible aesthetic appeal of the actual article of commerce that has propelled me into the recreational study that lead me to Hart's entry into the peripheral commentary. When I find myself "on" to something, I'll usually go cover-to-cover in a couple of days, which was the case here, so maybe I should rate the book a full 5 stars. I guess I could have been spared all the talk about Canada and the various financial intrigues of the many historical personalities in the business, but I was there for my own sight, upon diamonds, in and for themselves, and cannot say I was disappointed. Obsession is clearly the word for these objects, formed by the strange physical chemistry of the inner earth and now-vanished epochs of planet-building, and brought through immense effort to the full light of appreciation by the artisanry of such folks as we read about in chapters 10 and 11, which were my favorites. Anyone who touches the "provenance" of a diamond, from discovery to end-use, must necessarily take a share in just what the item will become in its own unending lifetime, be it the likes of the Tolskowskys to the barest of entry-level polishers in Gujarat, India. I would have liked to have read a little more on the modern-day prospects for maintaining price stability, especially in view of the kind of crushing potential from second-hand goods that must exist, should the population that has been sold on the diamond's perpetuity somehow decide that other, more weighty needs should direct their asset-retention decisions. Every polished stone, it is true, has something of a spiritual transcendance, and while Hart works to show us that the torrent of rough from the world's pipes shows no sign of lessening, he also has some of the diamantaire's reverent respect, of just what potential there is for that individual token, of vanishingly-small weight, that any person of any strength can carry and conceal. It would seem that in the diamond, human nature has formed a perfect bond with nature itself. I have to wonder, too, if the developments in large synthetic gems were simply too new at the time of Hart's writing to give them the kind of attention they deserve. It is, after all, the most colorless of the non-included that draws the greatest price, and what of the likes of General Electric, should they wind up being able to peddle unadulterated tetrahedral carbon by the bushel? Also, Mr. Hart could have treated us to a bit more about the final consumer industry, whereby the millions of polished diamonds see some of their greatest increase in financial clout. "What might now be in the back of the minds of the movers and the shakers?", I was left wondering when I finished the book. Is the fantasy sustainable? Well, for someone bent on building a lucrative enterprise of woefully-temporal currency upon what is for the admiring possessor a true taste of the immortal, the diamond was made to order. My thirst, though slaked for a moment, will continue, for the diamond beckons inexorably forth. ... Read more

Book Description

First published in 1995, The Allure of Turquoise—the book—has never lost its allure.

New Mexico Magazine is now bringing it back into print, revised and updated, in a second edition.

A symbol of New Mexico’s beauty and ancient history, turquoise is highly valued. The gem enthralls modern man just as it charmed the Ancestral Puebloans who lived in the great stone structures of Chaco Canyon. In 1967, the New Mexico legislature adopted turquoise as the state gem, acknowledging its importance in the culture and history of the Southwest. From early trade, to Native American ceremonial use, to trendy contemporary jewelry, turquoise inspires its collectors to trace the distinctive varieties of the mineral back to their individual mines.

This book includes articles on many aspects of the crown jewel of New Mexico, from geology and mining history, to its use and significance to American Indians. Fascinating chapters discuss the "allure" of the stone, old pawn, how to detect manufactured fakes, and even a special relationship between ants and turquoise.

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