The First Diamond

It was Tiffany & Co. that introduced the engagement ring as we know it today. The
celebrated six-prong “Tiffany Setting” lifts the diamond above the band and into
the light. The result is a ring whose beauty has never been equaled.

In 1848 the New York City newspapers dubbed Charles Lewis Tiffany “The King of Diamonds.” And with good reason. The quality of Tiffany diamonds was then, and remains, exemplary. In the spring of 1887, Tiffany shocked the world by purchasing the French Crown Jewels. From this time on, Tiffany became the world’s authority on the finest diamonds.

Soon Tiffany designers were creating brilliance of their own. From the glittering 1890s on, timeless Tiffany designs graced women from the finest families: the Astor's, the Vanderbilt's, the Morgans. Celebrities from the theater, sports and ultimately European royalty and Hollywood stars began to prize Tiffany diamond designs.

Around the world, museums treasure the Tiffany design aesthetic, from the Art Nouveau period to Art Deco to today’s modern classics. Year in, year out, the passion for Tiffany diamonds is clearly demonstrated in the world’s auction houses. Today, the world-famous 128.54-carat Tiffany Diamond is on permanent display in the New York flagship store—proof positive of Tiffany’s diamond legacy.

But nowhere is a Tiffany diamond more beautiful or more treasured than in its place of honor: on the hand of a woman.