Here are five random facts about jewelry that live rent free in my mind and now hopefully yours too. The more you know… 🙂
1) In Europe, Nickel is banned in all alloys for widespread allergy reasons. In the U.S. White Gold commonly contains Nickel (unless specifically indicated).
2) A person’s right fingers are generally half a size larger than the left hand (possibly excluding lefties and the ambidextrous).
3) Diamonds with high fluorescence glow in the dark under a black light.
4) Microscopic amounts of gold can be found on the leaves of eucalyptus trees. Their incredibly long roots are quite literally able to extract gold from deep deposits in the earth’s crust.
5) Natural and synthetic diamonds are chemically indecipherable; however, some diamond testers can identify the lab-growns based on their thermal conductivity… Fascinating!
At the least, I hope one or more of these facts helps you win a round of trivia. You never know… Random facts do sometimes come in handy.
–Helena, Associate Curator
