Diamonds of Istanbul

Throughout the history of the Ottoman Empire, Istanbul remained the privileged first city of the empire. New works and monuments were continuously added to the city, and the historical monuments of every period and people were protected with constant care. Especially, the forty-six year period between 1520 and 1566, when Sultan Süleyman the Lawgiver witnessed the “Era of Ascendance” for both Istanbul and the Ottoman empire as a whole.
Istanbul was not only the capital of the Ottoman empire, but also the capital of economy and diamonds. Diamonds of Istanbul has always been very popular and famous throughout the history.

The good thing is as of August 14, 2007 Turkey has been included in the Kimberley Process Certificate Scheme, which prevents the trade in conflict diamonds. The diamonds that are not accepted as ‘clean’ according to the data bank established in Belgium will not be allowed to be brought to Istanbul and Turkey. 

Did you know that Turkey is the world's third-largest polished diamond exporter after Italy and India? Other semi-precious stones are also found in Turkey and their market potential is expected to be exploited soon. Particularly fire opal, jet stone (black amber), and amber are the most popular precious stones that are extracted in Turkey.

You can read more about the diamonds in Istanbul by visiting following pages:

Turkey Diamonds

Pırlanta

History of The Missing Turkish Diamonds

Turkey's Diamond Market Sparkles