Diamonds are notoriously known for their sparkle and shine, but in the rough this is not the case. The crystallised carbon has to go through several processes in order for it to look like the finished product. Included in these processes is the cutting and polishing of the diamond, which are the main factors determining the sparkle and lustre of the diamond.
Diamond Cut
Being one of the four C’s the diamond cut is signalled as an important factor when choosing a diamond ordinarily. The cut is frequently classed as the most important characteristic of a diamond, and has the greatest influence on the diamonds beauty and appearance. Therefore, it is also the greatest determinate in the general sparkle of the stone. The cut refers to the overall polish of the diamond from rough and is a measurement of the amount of light able to travel through the diamond. GIA rates the cut of diamonds on a scale from Excellent, Very Good, Good, Fair to Poor.
Excellent to Good rated diamonds allow the most light to be reflected. In these diamonds, the light enters through the table (the flat top part of the diamond) and travels through the stone from one side to the other and then reflects back out of the diamond. The reflected light creates the sparkle or bright fire effect that makes diamonds so brilliant in appearance. In Poor or below rated stones, the light travels through the table and escapes from the bottom or the sides of the diamond not allowing the light to be reflected back. Therefore, the less sparkly in appearance these stones are.
Diamond Polish
The polish affects and refers to the overall finish and influences the ability for light to pass through the diamond, ultimately affecting the brilliance of the diamond. As rated by GIA, the quality of the polish is similarly measured on a scale starting at Excellent, Very Good, Good, Fair and finally Poor. Excellent to Good rated stones are recommended as the ideal stones, ensuring maximum sparkle. Diamonds rated Fair to Poor appear to be less brilliant in their appearance as they will have polish lines on the surface of the diamond.
The process of polishing means that some stones are left with polish lines which blur the finish of the diamond. The polish lines reduce the amount of light that is able to pass through the diamond. Good and above rated diamonds may have polish lines however, they are invisible to the naked eye and can only sometimes be seen under 10x magnification. Whereas, Fair and below rated diamonds may have polish lines that are visible to the naked eye, resulting in a significant difference in sparkle.
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