“The Nature of Diamonds”

“A crystalline form of carbon.” That’s all a diamond is, really. But in its latest show, “The Nature of Diamonds,”the Houston Museum of Natural Science will offer visitors both substance and style. Learn about the world’s hardest material and the processes that form it (most diamonds are more than 3 billion years old), then check out how diamonds are used in technology, how they’re mined and, mostly importantly, how they’re made into million-dollar jewelry. After all that science, you’ll get to the bling, including a layered gold mesh necklace covered in rough diamonds and pearls, an 1855 corsage ornament studded with more than 2,000 diamonds (owned by Napoleon’s niece), an arrangement of naturally colored diamonds and a number of nugget-sized single stones. Just crystalline carbon, eh? Sure it is. 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesdays and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sundays. Through September 7. One Hermann Circle Drive. For information, call 713-639-4629 or visit www.hmns.org. $10 to $22.
May 8-Sept. 7, 2009