Humans have been making jewellery since almost the beginning of time; pieces have been found that pre-date the appearance of homo-sapiens. The oldest known pieces of jewellery were recently discovered in a cave in South Africa; these pieces, made of mollusc shells, date back at least 100,000 years, to the mid-Stone Age. Since then, jewellery making has come a long way, so much so, that today’s products can be mass produced with the help of computers, jewellery making and diamond cutting tools and machinery.

The “lost wax” method is a process that has been used for centuries. The wax is then covered in plaster and fired in order to make a durable mould in which to pour the liquid metal. The wax is not removed, rather, a hole is cut in the bottom of the mould; the molten metal melts the wax, which then flows through the hole. When the metal hardens and the cast is removed, the product is ready to be finished.

Diamonds are the hardest surface on Earth, and have long been used for jewellery making. The reason that diamonds are so expensive is not that the jewellery making process is difficult, but that the mining of the mineral is dangerous and difficult. Diamond cutting tools most often include other diamonds, as there are not many materials that can cut through diamonds; lasers are a fairly new, but popular, method of cutting diamonds. The types of jewellery making and diamond cutting tools and machinery needed differ depending on the jewellery being manufactured.