Diamonds are often synonymous with love, glamour, and longevity. Believe it or not, they weren't always the coveted rocks we know them as today. For that, we have the De Beers Group of Companies. From their ambitious start in African mines, to the American offices of N.W. Ayer & Son, De Beers has managed to influence the public's perception of these gemstones (for better or worse) in a big way. Watch the brand evolution of De Beers and see just how instrumental they've been.

[Photos: The Advertising Archives / Alamy Stock Photo (De Beers ad); The Advertising Archives / Alamy Stock Photo (De Beers ad); The Advertising Archives / Alamy Stock Photo (De Beers ad); The Advertising Archives / Alamy Stock Photo (De Beers ad); ClassicStock / Alamy Stock Photo (1960s MALE HAND SLIPPING ENGAGEMENT RING ONTO FEMALE HAND); Nicholas Eveleigh / Alamy Stock Photo (Large cut diamond with drop shadow); Portrait Essentials / Alamy Stock Photo (Cecil Rhodes); Aflo Co., Ltd. / Alamy Stock Photo (World map and magnifying glass); Sueddeutsche Zeitung Photo / Alamy Stock Photo (Cecil Rhodes); Eric Nathan / Alamy Stock Photo (Diamonds); Pictorial Press Ltd / Alamy Stock Photo (CECIL RHODES (seated centre) and Directors of De Beers in 1895); Paul Fleet / Alamy Stock Photo (Diamond studded dollar symbol); World History Archive / Alamy Stock Photo (Diamond mine); De Klerk / Alamy Stock Photo (The Orange River); Preto Perola / Alamy Stock Photo (red lips isolated on white); The Advertising Archives / Alamy Stock Photo (De Beers ad); The Advertising Archives / Alamy Stock Photo (De Beers ad); Bill Bachman / Alamy Stock Photo (Argyle Diamond Mine, Australia); Ingvar Björk / Alamy Stock Photo (Magnifying glass isolated on white background); Nir Alon / Alamy Stock Photo (Diamonds); Eric Nathan / Alamy Stock Photo (Uncut diamonds); Jewellery specialist / Alamy Stock Photo (Eternity ring); Edward Karaa / Alamy Stock Photo (diamond wedding ring); The Advertising Archives / Alamy Stock Photo (De Beers ad); The Advertising Archives / Alamy Stock Photo (De Beers ad); Jewellery specialist / Alamy Stock Photo (Diamonds on a black background); Bettmann/CORBIS (Barney Barnato); Hulton-Deutsch Collection/CORBIS (Kimberley diamond office); Jose Luis Pelaez, Inc./Corbis (Large Cut Diamond); Tim Clayton/Corbis(NYC skyline); Hulton-Deutsch Collection/CORBIS (Harry Oppenheimer (1908-), the South African industrialist, 1967. He succeeded his father as the chairman of Anglo-American.); William Whitehurst/CORBIS (Diamond); Luiz Roberto Lima/Demotix/Corbis (UN General Assembly.); David Muir/Masterfile/Corbis (Diamond); Jason Pineau/All Canada Photos/Corbis(HP Billiton's Ekati Diamond mine); Corbis (Round Cut Diamonds); Peter Macdiarmid/Getty (blue diamond ring); Bloomberg/Getty (blue diamond); Eugene Gologursky/Getty (Forevermark)]