The Facets of Mankind is the name of the forthcoming World Diamond Museum. It is a virtual museum which is meant to explore “the story of man’s age-old affinity with this marvelous stone” (Gaitonde), and make it accessible to audiences that would otherwise have no way of experiencing it. The project seeks to combine history with iconic diamonds and jewelry in museums all over the world. It will focus specifically on diamonds instead of generally on all varieties of gemstones, as museum collections usually do. Noga Raved, the World Diamond Museum Coordinator, describes the aim of the museum thus: “We intend to tell the story of diamond by means of the cultural role they fulfilled….[this] will be the proverbial threat running through the WDMuseum, to tell the stories of diamonds and to enable our visitors and friends to find themselves back in those stories…. This thinking also explains our name ‘Facets of Mankind,’ as man’s fascination with diamonds and their stories goes back to the earliest times” (Raved). Because the museum in virtual, it is not tied to only one place or limited to only the collection it has on hand at the time. The World Diamond Museum will be able to experience all the great treasures of the world without having to travel to every continent to do so. And while it is no substitute for the magic of seeing some of these beauties in person, it is a chance for many who will never have that singular opportunity to enjoy and appreciate them still. The museum has not said when it will debut, but the have released a short promotional video about the project and announced that National Geographic will be doing a television special on the museum. Gaitonde, Aruna. “Diamonds Facets of Mankind.” Rough and Polished. 3 June 2016. Web. 19 April 2017. <http://www.rough-polished.com/en/news/102918.html> Raved, Noga. “Setting the Pace for the World Diamond Museum.” World Diamond Magazine. December 2016. Print. 19 April 2017.
