CULLINAN DIAMONDS GLOSSARY

Below please find the diamonds glossary terms from M - R

 

Marquise Cut: A type of fancy shape diamond which is elongated with points at each end.

Melee: Small Diamonds under .20 carat. 

Mine Cut Diamond: An early form of the brilliant diamond with a squarish-shaped girdle, high crown, small table, deep pavilion, and very large culet.

Mohs Scale: The 10-point scale of mineral hardness. Diamond scores 10 on Mohs Scale. The diamond is the hardest of all known natural substances. Mohs scale: The ten-point scale of mineral hardness, keyed arbitrarily to the minerals talc, gypsum, calcite, fluorite, apatite, orthoclase, quartz, topaz, corundum, and diamond.

Naturals: Small parts of the original rough diamond's surface which are left on the polished diamond, frequently on or near the girdle. While these are blemishes, they might also be regarded as a sign of skilled cutting; the presence of a natural reflects the cutter's ability to design a beautiful polished gem, while still retaining as much of the original crystal's weight as possible. In many cases, naturals do not affect the clarity grade. In most cases, they are undetectable to the naked eye. Another type of natural is the Indented Natural; in this case, the portion of the original rough diamond's surface which is left on the polished diamond dips slightly inward, creating an indentation. Usually, the cutter makes an effort to cut the polished diamond so that the indented natural will be confined to either the girdle or the pavilion (making it undetectable to the naked eye in the face-up position).

Needle: A long, thin included crystal which looks like a tiny rod.

Nick: A notch near the girdle or a facet edge.

Old European Cut Diamond: The earliest known form of brilliant cut diamond with a very small table, heavy crown and large depth.

Oval Cut: A type of fancy shape diamond which is essentially an elongated version of a round cut.

Off-Make: A poorly proportioned Diamond.

Pavé: A style of jewelry setting in which numerous small diamonds are mounted close together to create a glistening diamond crust that covers the whole piece of jewelry and obscures the metal under it.

Pavilion: The lower portion of the diamond, below the girdle. (Pavilion - see graphic to right)

Pavilion Angle: The angle measured between the girdle and the pavilion main facet.

Pavillion Main Facet: The eight facets found on the pavilion of a round brilliant cut diamond. Their points touch the girdle.   

Pear Cut: A type of fancy shape diamond that resembles a teardrop.

Pinpoints: Miniscule spots internal to a Diamond. A cluster of pinpoints can form a cloud.

Pit: A tiny opening, often looking like a white dot.

Points:1/100th of a carat. For example, a 1/4 carat diamond weighs 25 points.

Polish: Refers to any blemishes on the surface of the diamond which are not significant enough to affect the clarity grade of the diamond. Examples of blemishes that might be considered as 'polish' characteristics are faint polishing lines and small surface nicks or scratches. Polish is regarded as an indicator of the quality of as diamond's cut; it is graded as either Ideal, Excellent, Very Good, Good, Fair or Poor.

Polish Mark: Surface clouding caused by excessive heat (also called burn mark, or burned facet), or uneven polished surface resulting from structural irregularities.

Princess Cut: A type of brilliant cut fancy shape that can be either square or rectangular.

Radiant Cut: A type of brilliant cut fancy shape that resembles a square or rectangle with the corners cut off.

Ratio: A comparison of how much longer a diamond is than it is wide. It is used to analyze the outline of fancy shapes only; it is never applied to round diamonds. There's really no such thing as an 'ideal' ratio; it's simply a matter of personal aesthetic preferences. For example, while many people are told that a 2 to 1 ratio is best for a marquise, most people actually tend to prefer a ratio of around 1.80 to 1 when they actually look at marquises. And though the standard accepted range for the length-to-width ratio of a marquise generally falls between 1.70 to 1 and 2.05 to 1, there are customers who insist on having 'fatter' marquises of about 1.60 to 1 and other customers who want longer, thinner marquises of 2.25 to 1.

Rough Girdle: A grainy or pitted girdle surface, often with nicks.

Round Brilliant cut: The most common cut containing 58 facets. Also the most brilliant cut, in terms of most efficient use of light to increase brilliance and fire, hence the name. (Round Brilliant cut - see graphic to right)

 

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