Diamond Cut Grade A major characteristic among consumers today is how a diamond is cut; how does the diamond of choice appear? To determine how a diamond is proportioned to allow the most brilliance takes a lot of information and understanding. The cut of the diamond is considered one of the most important factors when determining which diamond to choose. The proportion and finish of a diamond is what determines the sparkle of it, the cut, which also refers to the shape of the diamond. The beauty of a diamond is how well of a sparkle it gives out, the way the light enters the diamond and how much of that same light returns back to your eye. Listed below are illustrations of how light is reflected through a well proportioned, ideal cut diamond. As you can see by the illustration provided, when the light hits the diamond, all of the reflections of the light are coming back to your eye. There are other directions how light travels once it enters the diamond. The illustrations below show you how light leaks from the side and also from the bottom of the diamond. , Diamonds that are too shallow or too deep may result in light leaking from the side and bottom of the diamond. Another fact that results for diamonds being to shallow and/or too deep is that the appearance of the diamond may look larger than it really is. Technically speaking, shallow and deep diamonds are not poor diamonds. They just happen to have those features which results in light leaking from the diamond and not having as much light reflect back to your eye. They are still “high quality” diamonds that are uniquely produced and cut to the best proportion available.
Star Facets has provided you a chart of GIA and AGS cut grade scale. GIA Cut Grade Scale Most Desirable -------------------------------------------------------- Least Desirable Excellent Very Good Good Fair Poor AGS Cut Grade Scale Most Desirable ------------------------------------------------------------------- Least Desirable 0 1 2 (3-4) (5-7) (8-10) Ideal Excellent Very Good Good Fair Poor
Listed below are the depth and table percentages that help Star Facets determine a cut grade on a diamond:
Star Facets Round Diamond Cut Grade Chart | | | Ideal/Excellent | Very Good | Good | Fair | Poor | | Depth % | 58 – 63 | 57 - 65 | 56 - 65 | 55 - 67 | <55 or >67 | | Table % | 52 – 58 | 51 - 62 | 51 - 64 | 50 - 70 | <50 or >70 |
The depth and table percentages are very important in determining the cut grade of a diamond but there are others factors involved to also help classify the cut grade. Face-Up appearance, design, craftsmanship, light performance, proportion factors, and finish are also some of the criteria’s that are taking into consideration while determining a cut grade. We hope that the information provided here is intended as a basic, standard guide in helping you understand and selecting the finest cut grade of a diamond of your likings. |
