Against the backdrop of spectacular jewellery and stunning gemstones, a rich and storied history of an extraordinary material is told. The Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) presents The Nature of Diamonds, the most wide-ranging exhibition ever developed on the allure of diamonds. From Saturday, October 25, 2008 to Sunday, March 22, 2009, the exhibition will be displayed in the Garfield Weston Exhibition Hall, located on Level B2 in the ROM’s Michael Lee-Chin Crystal. At this time, the ROM is the sole Canadian venue to host the exhibition during its exclusive North American tour.
Exploring humankind’s ongoing fascination with the diamond, The Nature of Diamonds provides an in-depth examination of it as a natural substance, digging into its geologic origins, how it is mined, its cultural significance in art, literature, and ornamentation, and its numerous uses in modern science and technology.
The Nature of Diamonds is organised by the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), New York in collaboration with the ROM; the Houston Museum of Natural Science; and The Field Museum, Chicago. Exhibition curator is George E. Harlow of the AMNH’s Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences. The exhibition showcases approximately 500 brilliant objects, drawn from private collections and major museums from around the world. Lenders to the exhibition include esteemed companies such as Cartier, Tiffany & Co., Van Cleef & Arpels, and the ROM’s Presenting Sponsor, De Beers Canada.
William Thorsell, ROM Director and CEO, states, “The Nature of Diamonds is a remarkable exhibition, brilliantly highlighting the ROM’s dual mandate of natural history and world cultures. Once again, we have worked with renowned institutions, including our good friends at the American Museum of Natural History, to bring our visitors an extremely comprehensive, and utterly beautiful, exhibition focusing on a fascinating subject.”
Exhibition curator at the ROM, Dr. Kim Tait, Associate Curator of Mineralogy in the ROM’s Natural History department, says, “The ROM is producing an insightful video entitled "Crystal Clear: Diamonds from Canada's North" that showcases the fairly recent discovery of Canadian diamonds, as well as highlighting the mines in Canada, and the ones opening this year. The ROM is particularly proud that this video will travel to other venues hosting the exhibition during its tour.”
De Beers Canada is the exhibition’s Presenting Sponsor. “For thousands of years, diamonds have held a special place in many cultures around the world,” states Jim Gowans, President and CEO of De Beers Canada. “We are proud to be associated with the ROM and The Nature of Diamonds to showcase the origins, history and allure of one of the rarest materials on earth.”
Magnificent highlights are showcased throughout the exhibition. Among them is the ROM’s own oil painting of Marie de Medici, Queen of France (1573-1642) and the second wife of Henry IV. She is adorned in an impressive amount of jewels, including diamond upon diamond. An imposing 1.2 by 3 metres (4 by 10 feet), it was painted by Flemish Frans Pourbus the younger, circa 1610. Other exhibition highlights include a 15 cm long shoulder brooch produced as a special order by Cartier, New York in 1928. Composed of round old-cut diamonds and platinum, the dazzling accessory was formerly owned by Sir Elton John. A stunning layered white gold mesh necklace dotted with rough diamonds and cultured keshi pearls recently created by acclaimed Toronto-born architect Frank Gehry for Tiffany & Company is also noteworthy.
THE EXHIBITION
The exhibition is divided into seven informative sections, each of which focuses on different qualities of the diamond. What is Diamond? introduces visitors to the diamond as a natural substance through an exploration of its physical qualities. A hands-on model of the diamond’s crystal structure, an interactive display demonstrating its remarkable ability to conduct heat, and an extensive variety of diamond specimens, as found in nature, demonstrate the mineral’s diversity and highlight the dazzling beauty that has led to its legendary status.
The Source of Diamonds on Earth illustrates that diamonds are moved from deep within the Earth to the surface by the action of rare, explosive volcanoes that create “diamond pipes”. Rarely seen samples of diamond still embedded in kimberlite are displayed in this section, including the 25-carat Engelhard diamond and the transparent and colourless 4-carat Minton diamond. These diamonds are from the Kimberley Mine and De Beers Mine, respectively, both of South Africa.
The Historical Galleries section illuminates the fascinating cultural and historical significance of the mineral. This section presents a historical panorama of diamond legend and lore, as well as the diamond’s role in adornment. Ancient and medieval jewellery, manuscripts, and artifacts demonstrate how diamonds moved from India to the west. An intricately engraved sapphire ring, showing a Winged Victory figure, is notable as it offers indirect evidence of early diamond technology: diamond is the only natural material harder than sapphire and, therefore, capable of inscribing it. A magnificent selection of jewellery from the 15th through 19th centuries, as well as an impressive collection of diamond betrothal rings, illustrates historical adornment. Other modern pieces, including a platinum eternity ring with 35 baguette diamonds weighing nearly three carats, created in 2002 and based on Marilyn Monroe’s ring from her 1954 marriage to Joe DiMaggio, beautifully demonstrate the transition from “royal diamonds” to “everyone’s diamonds”. An assortment of historically significant artifacts loaned by the Hispanic Society of America is showcased in this section. Many of these objects, including a beautiful tiara-like hair ornament, have not been seen by the public in 50 years and have never been on loan. Toronto-based designer Niki Kavakonis’ innovative Tip of the Iceberg, saluting an iconic wonder of the Canadian landscape, is also included here. The 2007 ring features a natural, uncut 2.78ct octahedral diamond from the Ekati mine (Northwest Territories) set in Palladium.
The section Diamond Sources and Diamond Exploration and Mining looks at the story of worldwide historical and contemporary diamond exploration. Different types of mining are looked at, as is the diamond’s progression from mine to dealer and its use in industry or as a gem. The ROM is proud to include a video on the Canadian Mining Industry, providing information on the history and current state of the country’s diamond industry. Visitors may be surprised to learn that since the 1998 opening of the Ekati mine, Canada’s first diamond mine, the country has quickly become the world’s third largest diamond producer by value. This section also explores the unique Canadian diamond deposits and the manner in which they are mined, emphasizing the often hazardous diamond exploration in the Canadian tundra and describing the mining at the Snap Lake and Victor mines. Highlighted is a case of natural diamond crystals from around the world, including Australia, Brazil, the Central African Republic, Canada, China, Congo, Guyana, Namibia, South Africa and the United States. Beautiful rough and cut diamonds from the ROM’s renowned collections are among this section’s highlights.
The walk-in Gem Vault houses some of the exhibition’s most dazzling objects. Included here is a stunning array of outstanding gems from around the world, including a corsage ornament belonging to Princess Mathilde, niece of Napoleon Bonaparte, measuring approximately 11.5 by 14.5 cm and containing more than 250 carats of diamonds and the dramatic and delicate Question Mark necklace (1890) created by the famed House of Boucheron of France. The Vault’s Milky Way necklace consists of a platinum grid intricately adorned with 2,000 diamonds. A De Beers Diamonds International Award winner in 2000, the massive piece was created by Torontonian Dieter Huebner for Vancouver’s Brinkhaus Jewellers in a salute to the millenium. On exclusive loan to the ROM’s engagement of Diamonds, the magnificent Oppenheimer Diamond is also displayed in the Vault. Weighing an incredible 254 carats, the Oppenheimer was found in Kimberley, South Africa and was a gift by Harry Winston, Inc to the Smithsonian Institution.
Near the Vault, jewellery pieces worn and enjoyed by the stars of yesterday including Mae West and Joan Crawford and, more recently, Salma Hayek are also on view. The Aurora Butterfly of Peace, a unique work of art, is positioned near the Vault's entrance. Consisting of an astounding 240 multi-coloured diamonds that demonstrate the amazing range of diamond colours in nature, and weighing a total of nearly 167 carats, the Butterfly was collected and assembled over twelve years by New York’s prominent Aurora Gems.
The Four Cs section informs the visitor that cut, carat, colour, and clarity are the standards by which diamonds are judged as gemstones. This section enlightens visitors as to how a diamond is prepared for trade, and the transformation of raw diamond into gemstone is illustrated in a specially produced video, “From Rough Cut to Cut Gem”. It is here that the visitor is advised on the Kimberley Process, named for Kimberley, South Africa, where several diamond-producing and trading countries, the diamond industry and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) first met to address the issue of conflict diamonds (rough diamonds used by rebel, military and terrorist groups to finance civil war). The Process was instituted to staunch the flow of these conflict diamonds (or “blood diamonds”) from entering the international market. A global response to the issue resulted in an international diamond certification scheme. After a three-year negotiation process, the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPSC) was implemented in 2003. A voluntary certification system, it is helping to protect legitimate trade by imposing extensive requirements on participating countries (currently 74 nations, including Canada) to certify that shipments of rough diamonds are free from conflict diamonds. Today, it is estimated that approximately 99% of rough diamonds are from conflict-free sources.
The final section, Diamonds in Industry, Science and Technology demonstrates that the diamond’s unique qualities render it perfectly suited to dual roles as a gem and in industry. Recent breakthroughs in synthetic diamonds have facilitated their widespread use in technology. For example, the diamond’s ability to conduct heat has major new applications for electronics and its resistance to becoming wet makes it invaluable as a surgical knife (in that it cuts cleanly and won’t stick to tissue). A number of these applications make it clear that the diamond’s future role in technology and industry is both boundless and intriguing.
The Nature of Diamonds is one prominent component of the ROM’s A Season of Gems. Another notable element is the Teck Suite of Galleries: Earth's Treasures, scheduled to open on December 20, 2008. This 6,900 square-foot permanent gallery space will showcase the ROM’s exceptional specimens of minerals, gems, rocks, and meteorites, a collection among the finest in North America. Occupying the entire length of Level 2 of the Weston Family Wing, the Teck Suite is divided into the Vale Inco Limited Gallery of Minerals, the Canadian Mining Hall of Fame Gallery and the Gallery of Gems and Gold. The fascinating displays are contextualized and illuminated by over 40 interactive touch stations and compelling video exhibits. Also part of A Season of Gems is Light & Stone: Gems from the Collection of Michael Scott, the inaugural exhibition in the Teck Suite’s Gallery of Gems and Gold. The private collection of Michael M. Scott, with few rivals in the world outside of the royal families, showcases approximately 200 pieces of stunning jewellery, gemstones cut and unset, as well as modern interpretations of gemstones as art. Also opening on December 20th, Light & Stone will be on display until mid-December 2009.
EVENTS
The ROM celebrates this stunning exhibition on November 13, 2008, with the gala fundraising event Material Ball: Diamonds, hosted by Jeanne Beker. The evening will feature the North American premiere of the spring 2009 collection by world-renowned fashion designer Giambattista Valli. This exclusive runway show is presented by Alex and Simona Shnaider. Proceeds from the evening will support the ROM’s Burnham Brett Endowment for Textiles and Costume and the Renaissance ROM campaign. A limited number of host and patron tables are available. For further information contact Kirsten Kamper at the ROM Governors at 416.586.8064 or kirstenk@rom.on.ca.
ROM Members already know that the best way to experience the ROM is through membership. A ROM Individual or Family membership delivers numerous benefits, including free general admission, newsletters, events, previews, discounts and much more. An exclusive Diamonds Members' Preview takes place on Friday, October 24, 2008. For additional information or to purchase a membership, call 416.586.5700 or visit www.rom.on.ca/members.
The Nature of Diamonds inspires programming which includes the film series Icons & Ice in which renowned lecturer Anthony Harrison oversees an eclectic look at diamonds on the silver screen. Taking place on three successive Tuesday evenings starting November 4, diamonds are never far from the spotlight in this selection of films crossing a number of genres. Each evening will be highlighted by a special guest speaker. Featured films are Howard Hawks’ Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953), Alfred Hitchcock’s To Catch a Thief (1955), and Guy Hamilton’s Diamonds are Forever (1971). Other confirmed programs include Introduction to Fine Gemstones & Pearls occurring on four Saturday afternoons commencing on November 8. Participants will learn about diamonds with special focus on Canadian stones. The popular Lunch ‘N’ Learn Series includes a catered sandwich lunch and an informative tour of the exhibition as the history of diamonds is explored from scientific and cultural perspectives by Katherine Dunnell of the ROM’s Natural History department. Participants can choose to attend either Tuesday, November 18 or Sunday, November 23 from 11:30 am to 2:00 pm. Other programs are to be announced in the coming months. Programming information, as well as start times, costs and how to register may be obtained at 416.586.5797 or at www.rom.on.ca/programs.
OTHER INFORMATION
A dedicated Diamonds Shop is located in the exhibition where its wide array of merchandise, including jewellery, home décor, clothing, stationary, and geologic specimens, creates memories for the exhibition-goer. A further Diamonds-inspired selection, including jewellery by Canadian designers Niki Kavakonis, Shelly Purdy and Polar Ice, is also available in the ROM Museum Store on Level 1. The flagship store will host exciting in-store events, such as trunk shows and Meet-the-Designer opportunities, with additional events and details to be announced at a later date. During the exhibition, Diamond Afternoon Tea, including an assortment of sumptuous menu items and a signature cocktail, is offered by c5 Restaurant Lounge and its Chef de Cuisine Ted Corrado. For more information on Afternoon Tea, visit www.c5restaurant.ca/press.html
Throughout its engagement, Docents from the ROM’s Department of Museum Volunteers (DMV) will offer free tours of the exhibition at regularly scheduled times. Closer to opening, Diamonds is to be featured prominently on the ROM’s website www.rom.on.ca.
The Nature of Diamonds is a significantly, and beautifully, enhanced reprise of an award-winning exhibition organized and toured by New York’s American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) in the late 1990s. Appearing at venues in North America and Japan, the original tour was enormously successful with both the public and critics. This highly updated exhibition is organized by the AMNH, in collaboration with the ROM as well as the Houston Museum of Natural Science (appearing May 9 to September 7, 2009) and Chicago’s The Field Museum (on display October 17, 2009 to March 28, 2010).
Admission to The Nature of Diamonds is included with paid general admission. Adults: $22; Students and Seniors with ID: $19; Children (4 to 14 years) $15; Children 3 & under are free. Half price admission prices, presented by Sun Life Financial, apply on Friday nights from 4:30 pm to 9:30 pm. Groups of 10 or more adults may call Mirvish Productions Group Sales at 416.593.4142 or 1.800.724.6420 for information on special rates and private guided tours. Schools and student groups should visit www.rom.on.ca/schools/ or call the ROM's Education Department at 416.586.5801 for information on Diamonds’ School Visits which are offered at both the elementary and secondary level
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