Most of the black diamonds that you see in jewelry are typically enhanced. Genuine real diamonds are exposed to radiation which makes their color appear black. This process creates the popular, classy look of the black diamond.
But are they natural?
Well yes, they're just enhanced. It's doubtful that you would ever see a natural black diamond piece of jewelry.
Natural black diamonds, or Carbonados, are thought to be older than 3.8 billion years. Compare that to regular diamonds that formed deep in the middle of the earth and only came to the surface around 100 million and one billion years ago, and you've got a mystery on your hands.
While regular diamonds are found throughout the world, black diamonds are only found in Africa and Brazil.
Some scientists believe that black diamonds emerged on earth during an asteroid event that may have hit the planet, but no one can say for sure.
Regular conventional diamonds were formed deep underground. Diamonds are basically carbon that's been pushed together with tremendous pressure and heat to form the hard, but beautiful formations we cherish today.
Carbonado diamonds are extremely hard. It's extremely difficult to work them into jewelry settings, because of this. Cutting and polishing them takes tremendous work. In the early 1900s when the Panamá Canal was being built, they were typically used as drill bits.
