diamonds from DNA

Diamonds from DNA: crass or class?

Isaac Mostovicz writes...


Would you pay a million dollars to own a diamond that was created from Ludwig van Beethoven’s DNA? The proposition using of DNA as the basis for unique gems is currently being tested by a company called LifeGem, who have taken 10 strands of Beethoven’s hair to create three small (.56 carat) round brilliant cut diamonds. From those 10 strands they extracted 130 milligrams of carbon, and used that in three separate diamond presses to make the diamonds.

One diamond is going to LifeGem’s ‘Chain of Fame’ (they hope to create a series of diamonds from famous DNA), the second is going to the man who donated the hair, and the third is currently being auctioned on eBay–four days left, with a buy-it-now price of $1 million.

Is creating a diamond from DNA a respectful way to create something truly unique, personal and priceless: a great way to remember and celebrate people important to us, living or dead? Or is it gaudy, crass and unnatural, playing on people’s emotions and ‘unreal’ because it was created in a lab and not over billions of years in nature?

LifeGem expects this to be the first of many ‘celebrity’ diamonds–whether there’s public demand for them will be suggested by the results of the auction.

[via the UK Telegraph]

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