Question on Asscher Cuts

It depends on if you are asking about a Royal Asscher, the trademarked cut created by the Asscher company, or if you are talking about the generic "asscher cuts" that have been created to somewhat resemble the true Royal Asschers.   most of what you will see out there will be the generic version, as the royals are difficult to come by.  The Royal Asschers are GORGEOUS and do demand a premium -- a premium well worth it in this case because the cut is so unique and beautiful.  Most generic asschers resemble square emeralds -- some are truly gorgeous, but lots are quite "blah", so you really need to know what you''re looking at.  I think, more than any other cut, you need to seem them in person to decide.

BUT you were asking about price.   The generic asschers should not cost any more than other fancy cut diamonds (radiant, princess, etc.) -- but the royal asschers will be pretty steep.  

I''ve heard that Asscher is a term that is thrown around quite loosely, sort of like ideal. Most asscher''s are "square emeralds". A branded Asscher like the Royal Asscher will cost you BIG BUCKS! However a generic square emerald or an emerald will generally cost less than a round brilliant. RB''s are the most popular shape of diamond and thus command a premium over fancy cuts.

One thing I didn''t mention -- like other fancy cuts, the asscher (generic) will be less expensive than a round brilliant (round brilliants are always the priciest of the non-trademarked cuts).

Here''s a generic asscher with similar specs to your #2 on bluenile.com (for $14,883:
http://www.bluenile.com/diamonds_details.asp?pid=LD00164535&query=2&filter_id=0

and here''s a round brilliant with similar specs for $18,480
http://www.bluenile.com/diamonds_details.asp?pid=LD00670698&query=2&filter_id=0

and then here''s a princess for $13,635 (not as good of a cut, which is probably the difference in price)
http://www.bluenile.com/diamonds_details.asp?pid=LD00160810&query=2&filter_id=0

in general, i would say that a great square asscher will command more than a generic emerald but less than a round brilliant.

and on a slight tangent, are asschers priced using the pear rapaport sheet?  i had a jeweler quote me prices off of that page, which i found really interesting...