History of Moissanite

This stunning jewel has a brilliant past

Fifty thousand years ago, a meteorite crashed into the Arizona desert, creating what is now known as "Meteor Crater." Fragments of this meteorite were scattered across the desert. Hidden in these fragments was a brilliant secret waiting to be discovered.

In 1893, Nobel-prize winning scientist Henri Moissan began studying fragments of this meteorite from nearby Diablo Canyon. In these fragments, Dr. Moissan discovered minute quantities of a shimmering new mineral with fire and brilliance never before seen on earth. After extensive research, Dr. Moissan concluded that this mineral was made of silicon carbide.

In 1905, this mineral was named moissanite, in Dr. Henri Moissan’s honour. Despite this amazing discovery, since naturally occurring quantities of moissanite are so minute, it would be another century before this stunning mineral would emerge as the brilliant moissanite gemstone it is today.

A moissanite stone’s hardness ranks only second to diamond, and its availability on Earth is scarce and very limited. However, scientists have found a cost-effective way to synthetically create moissanite in the lab, lowering the cost significantly while still ensuring the same stunning quality in all moissanite jewellery.

Learn more about Moissanite Cuts