Diamonds Chirag

DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER

Introduction •Diamonds were discovered in India in 500 B.C., and the name "diamond" comes from the Greek word "Adamas" which means unconquerable - suggesting the eternity of love. •Since ancient Greece, diamonds and diamond jewelry have been the traditional symbol of love, and the ancients believed they were hardened dew drops, splinters from the stars or crystallized lightning. •A diamond is the hardest substance known to humankind, and is made of a crystallized CARBON that has unique powers of light reflection. •Since diamonds are composed of a single element, they are the purest of all gemstones. •Diamonds dazzle and delight - the eternal sparkling symbol of love and eternity

DIAMOND FORMATION Diamonds that are mined today were born more than 1000 million years

C

ago. Highly pressurized arbon formed this seductive and valuable mineral in the earth at depths over 150 kilometers and at temperatures greater than 10,000 degrees Celsius..

In dramatic geological events within the earth's core, melting fluids far underneath the Earth’s surface were pushed violently to the surface, causing volcanic eruptions. These explosions created conical pipes filled with kimberlite, or hardened volcanic rock. Once the original volcanic cone was removed by gradual erosion, the kimberlite pipes containing diamond is exposed.

Diamonds are in fact only accidental fragments brought to the surface of the earth hidden within this kimberlite rock

ROUGH DIAMONDS

R

In order to deal effectively with ough diamonds, one should be well educated in the identification and evaluation of the cut and polished diamonds. A good working knowledge of diamonds in their natural form, known as ìroughsî & is very desirable.

4 C’s OF POLISHED DIAMOND In selecting a diamond, the rarity, value and beauty is determined by the four factors mentioned here, called as:

4C’s

The

Of diamonds

C arat C larity C olor C ut

CARAT WEIGHT

Carat weight is the unit of weight measurement used for diamonds and other gemstones.

1 carat = 100 cents / 0.200gms / 200 milligram  0.075 - 0.02cts diamonds are known as ‘STAR’ 0.02cts – 0.07cts diamonds are termed as ‘MELEE’ 0.07- 0.13cts diamonds are termed as ‘+11 -14’ 0.14 and above are termed as ‘Pointer’  Carat weight refers only to the weight of the diamonds and not to the dimensions of a diamond.

CARAT WEIGHT 0.10cts 0.25cts

0.33cts

0.50cts 0.75cts

1.00cts

3.05 mm

4.10 mm

4.50 mm

5.20 mm

5.80 mm

6.50 mm *Not in scale – a relative comparison

DIMENSIONS

Sieves

are used to sort the similar size of diamonds from a mix lot of sizes. The metal sieve plates has a specified mm sizes of mesh holes drilled in it through which the diamonds, may or may not, pass. The Sieve sizes starts from: 000 = 1.00 mm 00 = 1.05 mm = 0.05 cts 0 = 1.10 mm 1 = 1.15 mm 1.5 = 1.20 mm ,and goes on to---------20 = 4.5 mm = 0.33cts (33 pointer)

CLARITY

Clarity is the occurrence of

inclusions, small crystalline fractures or irregular crystal growth, or the lack of them inside the diamond.

Clarity grading is done using a binocular microscope under 10X corrected magnification.

CLARITY IF / FL

FLAWLESS

Very Very Slight Inclusions

Very Slight Inclusions

Slight Inclusions

Imperfect

VS1 , VS2

S1 , S2

I1 , I2 , I3

VVS1 , VVS2

COLOUR

Colour is the amount of body colour in the diamond. The clearer a diamond, the more value able it is. Colorless “D” on the color scale is the most value able because it has the most clarity. However, when a diamond is graded as a fancy colour, the value

Colour – sometimes

increases due to the rarity of the refer as canary yellow diamonds.

GIA COLOUR GRADING Colourless

Near Colourless

Faint Yellow Very Light Yellow

Light Yellow

Fancy Yellow

K, L, M

N, O, P, Q, R

S, T, U, V, W, X, Y, Z

Fancy Light, Fancy, Intense

D,E,F

G, H, I, J

Colour Comparison It is not very much possible every time, even for an expert, to say the exact color of the diamond unless and until it is compared with other diamonds. Fancy Intense Yellow E-G COLOR

M-O COLOR

CUT  The Cut is the factor that determines the brilliance of a diamond. A classic round brilliant cut diamond has 58 facets : • 33 on the top • 24 on the bottom • And the culet (1 point at the bottom).

Each of the diamond's facets must be placed in exact geometric relation to one another when the stone is being cut. Quality diamonds must be properly cut and not "spread", which means that the proper proportions are compromised to make the diamond weigh more.

CUT Analyzing Cut To understand the sub-categories for well-cut diamonds, think of a pyramid with "Ideal" at the top. This narrow range is reserved for the most brilliant, rare and valuable diamonds. The "Excellent" range includes beautiful diamonds that return almost as much light. "Very Good" represents the balance between precise proportions and price considerations.

EFFECTS OF CUT Shallow Diamond “Fish-Eye” “Palcha Diamond”

Deep–Cut “Nail-Head” “Strong Cut” Well-Cut “Perfect Cut” “Ideal-Cut”

ROLE OF FACETS CROWN

Balance, Brilliance, Dispersion, and Scintillation

GIRDLE

Provide a Setting Edge for the gem

PAVILLION CULET

Reflect light back up through the crown Prevent Chipping at the tip

Culet

FANCY SHAPES

Fancy

shapes are less expensive than Rounds. There is one quality which can affect the cost of a Fancy Shape yet never appear on a Certificate, and that is "Shape Appeal". You don't need to be a gemologist to know if a Heart

Shape has an appealing

look to it. The best way to judge shape appeal is to look at the stone's girdle outline without a Loupe, and decide if it's attractive

COST The cost of a diamond is determined by: • The combination of the 4Cs. • The availability of diamonds in the market. • The choices you make about the combinations of quality / 4 Cs, finally determines the cost to you, & to the consumer. To calculate the price of a diamond -- multiply the carat weight by the price/carat. For example: if a 1.25 carat diamond was priced at Rs.40,000 per/carat the diamond would be sold for Rs. 50,000.

CZ Undoubtedly the best diamond simulant available today, Cubic Zirconia has been established as an affordable diamond substitute as well as an important fashion staple in itself.

CZ really took off in the

1980's, when Swarovski & Co., a world-renowned Austrian producer of leaded crystal, began producing cubic zirconia for mass consumption.

Recently, new developments in CZ production have led to a sparkling new array of CZs in every color of the rainbow. Most people, even trained gemologists, cannot tell the difference with the naked eye

CZ Like a diamond?

In appearance, cubic zirconia looks almost exactly like a good quality diamond, although there are some slight differences. WEIGHT

CZ is about 75% heavier than diamond. 1 carat (Real) Diamond = 1.75 carat CZ CLARITY

The finest CZs are perfect in clarity.

FIRE and BRILLIANCE

CZ has slightly less brilliance (sparkle) than diamond, while having more fire (flashes of rainbow colors). HARDNESS

There are very few substances on earth harder than CZ. With a hardness rating of 8.5, CZ comes close to matching diamond's perfect 10

CZ CUT The finest is cut to exacting tolerances, according to the proportions demanded in fine diamond cutting. Finely cut CZs will have a polished girdle and more fire.

CZ

Diamonds retain superb luster even after centuries of

CZ

wear wherein loses its luster very soon. However, The overall effect is so similar to diamond that trained gemologists often require special equipment to tell them apart.