Coster Diamonds is one of the oldest still operating diamond

Diamond

In mineralogy, diamond is an allotrope of carbon, where the carbon atoms are arranged in a variation of the face-centered cubic crystal structure called a diamond lattice. Diamond is less stable than graphite, but the conversion rate from diamond to graphite is negligible at ambient conditions...

 polishing factories

Factory

A factory or manufacturing plant is an industrial building where laborers manufacture goods or supervise machines processing one product into another. Most modern factories have large warehouses or warehouse-like facilities that contain heavy equipment used for assembly line production...

 in Amsterdam

Amsterdam

Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...

, The Netherlands. They were responsible for the creation of a few historical masterpieces, like the re-polishing of the Koh i Noor, mounted in the Crown of Queen Mary

Crown of Queen Mary

The Crown of Queen Mary was the consort crown of Mary of Teck, Queen Consort of King George V of the United Kingdom. It was manufactured for the coronation of George and Mary in 1911....

, to be admired in the Tower of London

Tower of London

Her Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress, more commonly known as the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, separated from the eastern edge of the City of London by the open space...

, amongst the other Crown Jewels of the United Kingdom

Crown Jewels of the United Kingdom

The collective term Crown Jewels denotes the regalia and vestments worn by the sovereign of the United Kingdom during the coronation ceremony and at other state functions...

 and the Dresden Green Diamond

Dresden Green Diamond

The Dresden Green Diamond, also known as "Dresden Green", is a natural green diamond, which probably originated in the Kollur mine in the state of Andhra Pradesh in the Indian subcontinent....

, which belongs to the Saxon dynasty.

History

• 1840: Moses Elias Coster, diamond cutter in Amsterdam, founds Coster Diamonds in a factory building at the Waterlooplein in Amsterdam.
• 1848: Son Meijer Moses Coster (Martin) succeeds his father. He leaves for Paris for new business.
• 1910: Felix Theodoor Manus purchases Coster Diamonds from one of Coster’s inheritors. It becomes a company and remains so until the German occupation in 1940.
• 1945: After World War II
  World War II
  World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
  
  , Wim Biallosterski, owner of a diamond sawing company, purchases the former Coster Company which is still situated at the Waterlooplein.
• 1962: Ben Meier purchases the Coster premises together with partner Max Meents, Joop Schoos and Simon Cohen.
• 1970: The old diamond factory has to make way for the construction of the town hall (Stopera), forcing Coster Diamonds to move to its current location at the Paulus Potterstraat (Museumplein).
• 1995: The well-known Van Moppes Diamonds was purchased by Coster Diamonds.
• 2005: Coster Diamonds was obliged to close the Van Moppes Diamonds factory due to events in the world like terrorism, Sars
  Severe acute respiratory syndrome
  Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome is a respiratory disease in humans which is caused by the SARS coronavirus . Between November 2002 and July 2003 an outbreak of SARS in Hong Kong nearly became a pandemic, with 8,422 cases and 916 deaths worldwide according to the WHO...
  
   in the Far East. There were hardly any visitors left.
• 2007: The opening of the Diamond Museum Amsterdam
  Diamond Museum Amsterdam
  The Diamond Museum Amsterdam is a museum located at the Museumplein in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.The permanent collection consists of diamond jewelry and tells background information about diamonds.-External links:*...
  
  
• 2008: The introduction of a new diamond round cut with 201 facet
  Facet
  Facets are flat faces on geometric shapes. The organization of naturally occurring facets was key to early developments in crystallography, since they reflect the underlying symmetry of the crystal structure...
  
  s.

Famous diamond polishers

In 1852, Mr J.A. Feder and Mr L.B. Voorzanger, both diamond polishers at Coster Diamonds in Amsterdam, left to London to re-polish the famous Koh i Noor.
Mr J.A. Fedder died in 1864. Louis Benjamin Voorzanger wins the silver medal for his achievements at the World Exhibition in Paris in 1855. He also polished the “Star of the South”. He died in 1886. The family of the deceased diamond polisher still owns the silver plates with the inscription of this price for the diamond polishers, who polished the Koh i Noor.

Ben Meier polished in 1959 the many diamonds which were used in a white gold watch, which was given as a present to Queen Juliana by the Dutch people.
Between 1991 and 1994 Pauline Willemse, diamond polisher at Coster Diamonds polished the smallest diamond in the world, a stone with 57 facets, weighing 7.43E-05 carat (0.01486 mg). 0.16–0.17 mm in diameter and with a height of 0.11 mm. This event was published in the Guinness Book of Records.