Girdle abrasion not noted on recent GIA cert?

[EmeraldDream]

Hello all,

I am turning to the wealth of knowledge here for advice. Please help with thoughts or any insight.

I found my dream diamond (3 crt G VS1 ex ex emerald with an amazing cut) on PS search. I contacted the online vendor and wire transfer bought it (not naming any names). When I received it I was thrilled beyond words and went to get it set. My local jeweler ran her fingernail over the girdle and found an abrasion. Also we both saw it comfortably with 10x loupe from side view.

I contacted the vendor immediately as I was shocked because the cert is from 4/14 and I received the diamond on 5/15. There is nothing notated on the cert about an abrasion and the clarity is graded a VS1 with excellent polish and there are no comments. The vendor got in touch with the cutter and got back to me letting me know that the cutter was aware of the abrasion when sent to GIA and elected not to polish it off as they thought it would still get the VS1 and ex polish grading even with the abrasion. I was having a hard time believing this as being true because I could see the abrasion in certain lights with my bare eyes if I look at the diamond from a tilted side view. Also I could feel it when running my fingernail over it. I called GIA and they confirmed that in their internal notes it is noted that there is a girdle abrasion but it was not significant enough to make it to the cert itself. GIA sent the cutter their internal notes and the email was forwarded to me and it says under "polish feature: Abr:girdle."

Fast forward one month and now the diamond is set in a simple four prong ring. The problem is now that it is set I know exactly what side the abrasion is on and so I keep looking at it! I don't see anything from face up but from a tilted side view it's apparent in certain lighting conditions with bare eyes. Now I am wondering if I should have returned the stone when I had the chance But on that same note I honestly don't think I could find a more perfect stone in all other aspects.

My questions are:
-Is it at all possible that the abrasion happened after certification and the cutter/vendor asked GIA to add the abrasion to their internal notes? Shouldn't there have been a comment about it on the cert at the very least? The cutter only had it for maybe three weeks after certification before it got to me so I'm thinking chances are slim the abrasion happened during that three week period but I just don't know... I do know that GIA is considered reputable but would this ever be a possibility?

-Does GIA only grade and note polish features from face-up view? I read this on this link (pg 81 under polish) and I'm wondering if this is why it wasn't notated in GIA cert but not sure. Even then if not plotted on the diagram shouldn't it have made it to comments?
http://diamondcut.gia.edu/pdf/polish_and_symmetry.pdf

-If I ever want to sell the stone in the future will the value be less because it has a slight girdle abrasion? Does it help that I have an email from GIA with an attachment of GIA internal notes with abrasion notated?

Sorry for the long drawn out post. It's late and I cant sleep because I am so conflicted with myself. From one hand I think I should have just sent it back because I am having a difficult time believing GIA would not notate something like this. On the other hand I am wondering if I am just being paranoid and that it's not a big deal and GIA saw it and thought it just wasn't significant enough. But it's just crazy to me that GIA notes teeny tiny inclusions I can barely see with 10X loupe but wouldn't note something I can see with my bare eyes. It just makes me wonder if I've been had and so I'm having a difficult time enjoying my beautiful stone

 

[proto]

can you link or scan the GIA certificate?

Does the girdle say "bruted" or "faceted"?

If it is exactly on 3.00 ct, the cutter may have decided not to polish the girdle to retain the magic 3.00 ct weight.

I am not sure I understand what you mean by "abrasion"

I doubt GIA would do this if some damage happened to the diamond post grading. Its simply not worth it for GIA where their entire business is built on reputation. Similar for the vendor.

As far as I know, the polish of the diamond has nothing to do with how the girdle is polished, which is why you can have a briued girdle with excellent polish.

My understanding is that most modern stones of this size would have faceted girdle, although occasionally girdles are left bruted to avoid unecessary additional body colour (presumably through girdle internal reflection).

Hope this helps/addresses your question somewhat.

 

[Lorelei]

Hello all,

I am turning to the wealth of knowledge here for advice. Please help with thoughts or any insight.

I found my dream diamond (3 crt G VS1 ex ex emerald with an amazing cut) on PS search. I contacted the online vendor and wire transfer bought it (not naming any names). When I received it I was thrilled beyond words and went to get it set. My local jeweler ran her fingernail over the girdle and found an abrasion. Also we both saw it comfortably with 10x loupe from side view.

I contacted the vendor immediately as I was shocked because the cert is from 4/14 and I received the diamond on 5/15. There is nothing notated on the cert about an abrasion and the clarity is graded a VS1 with excellent polish and there are no comments. The vendor got in touch with the cutter and got back to me letting me know that the cutter was aware of the abrasion when sent to GIA and elected not to polish it off as they thought it would still get the VS1 and ex polish grading even with the abrasion. I was having a hard time believing this as being true because I could see the abrasion in certain lights with my bare eyes if I look at the diamond from a tilted side view. Also I could feel it when running my fingernail over it. I called GIA and they confirmed that in their internal notes it is noted that there is a girdle abrasion but it was not significant enough to make it to the cert itself. GIA sent the cutter their internal notes and the email was forwarded to me and it says under "polish feature: Abr:girdle."

Fast forward one month and now the diamond is set in a simple four prong ring. The problem is now that it is set I know exactly what side the abrasion is on and so I keep looking at it! I don't see anything from face up but from a tilted side view it's apparent in certain lighting conditions with bare eyes. Now I am wondering if I should have returned the stone when I had the chance But on that same note I honestly don't think I could find a more perfect stone in all other aspects.

My questions are:
-Is it at all possible that the abrasion happened after certification and the cutter/vendor asked GIA to add the abrasion to their internal notes? Shouldn't there have been a comment about it on the cert at the very least? The cutter only had it for maybe three weeks after certification before it got to me so I'm thinking chances are slim the abrasion happened during that three week period but I just don't know... I do know that GIA is considered reputable but would this ever be a possibility?

-Does GIA only grade and note polish features from face-up view? I read this on this link (pg 81 under polish) and I'm wondering if this is why it wasn't notated in GIA cert but not sure. Even then if not plotted on the diagram shouldn't it have made it to comments?
http://diamondcut.gia.edu/pdf/polish_and_symmetry.pdf

-If I ever want to sell the stone in the future will the value be less because it has a slight girdle abrasion? Does it help that I have an email from GIA with an attachment of GIA internal notes with abrasion notated?

Sorry for the long drawn out post. It's late and I cant sleep because I am so conflicted with myself. From one hand I think I should have just sent it back because I am having a difficult time believing GIA would not notate something like this. On the other hand I am wondering if I am just being paranoid and that it's not a big deal and GIA saw it and thought it just wasn't significant enough. But it's just crazy to me that GIA notes teeny tiny inclusions I can barely see with 10X loupe but wouldn't note something I can see with my bare eyes. It just makes me wonder if I've been had and so I'm having a difficult time enjoying my beautiful stone

Hi Emeraldream and welcome!

I am sure in a little time, one of the experts will be able to address your concerns more fully but meanwhile, here are some thoughts for you that I hope might help.

Firstly, congratulations on your new diamond, it sounds wonderful! I can understand your feelings, it can be something of a shock to find something unexpected with a lovely new stone, but some things to consider.

Also I could feel it when running my fingernail over it. I called GIA and they confirmed that in their internal notes it is noted that there is a girdle abrasion but it was not significant enough to make it to the cert itself. GIA sent the cutter their internal notes and the email was forwarded to me and it says under "polish feature: Abr:girdle."

That you contacted GIA and they confirmed that they were aware of the girdle abrasion but that it was not significant enough to make the report, suggests to me that they were aware of the abrasion and as above, didn't think it was enough of an issue to affect the VS1 grade but with their internal notes it was recorded, it wasn't something that happened after the diamond was sent to them. Kudos to GIA for being so helpful! It is possible that the area of the diamond where the abrasion is situated wouldn't polish out or be removed completely and the cutter decided it was best left as its presence wouldn't affect the clarity grade or cause an issue at all, hence it being mentioned in the notes but not being added to the report.

Yours is a big diamond and as you can now find the abrasion within a second or 2 is completely normal, you now know where to look so your eye automatically goes there as well as the fingernail, I have seen this so much with diamond inclusions and the like! What I would suggest, is getting the stone inspected by an independent appraiser as that might give you some peace of mind, are you in the UK by any chance?

 

[Texas Leaguer]

Emerald Dream,
Sounds like you have a beautiful stone, but the girdle issue is a problem for you. Have you inquired with the vendor about repolishing it?

I do not think you should have any concern that something happened after the stone left the lab and that someone was able to dictate internal notes after the fact. That is extremely unlikely.

The labs are fairly forgiving of characteristics confined to the girdle. Having said that, it is a bit unusual that you can see it with the naked eye.

It is possible that it could be improved by relatively minor repolishing, so I would develop that possibility if I were you.

 

[EmeraldDream]

Thank you so much for the comments. Very helpful!

Proto, it says nothing about the girdle on the cert. My guess is that it is faceted because it is a shiny girdle. The carat weight is 3.24 so the magic weight thing wouldn't apply here. The only thing plotted is one needle and two pin points.

Lorelei, I actually did take it to an appraiser and he told me that it is not a durability issue and the value is in the cert. However initially when he first saw it he did say to send it back.

Texas Leaguer, I did address having it polished out with the vendor but I decided against it bc I didn't want to mess with it.



I think my issue is with the GIA cert mostly. I just cant seem to wrap my head around how it is possible that such tiny inclusions are noted but something I can see, with some difficulty but still, with bare eyes wouldn't be noted or plotted at all. If there was just a comment on the cert that said something like "girdle abrasions are not shown" I think I would feel so much better.