Conclusion

Abstract

AbstractThe concluding chapter takes the international diamond trade into the twentieth-century, particularly the 1930s and 1940s. It zooms in on two Jewish trailblazers in the business: Henri Polak, the founder of the Dutch Diamond Workers’ Union and Ernest Oppenheimer, chairman of De Beers Consolidated Mining Company in South African and London. Juxtaposing these extraordinary figures, the conclusion brings together the multifaceted history of the international diamond trade. The conclusion underscores that Jews played formative roles in the creation of a lasting commodity chain in gems. In turn, diamonds helped shape the modern Jewish experience on three continents. But gemstones also exhibited their power outside the immediate orbit of commerce, influencing urban planning, spawning labor movements, manipulating spending habits, coloring stereotypes about Jews, and driving patterns of migration. A close analysis of the diamond reveals the interconnectedness of Jewish and imperial histories, as well as the complexities of the modern world.