Please, I need help on this diamond!

shyOmee · Apr 28, 2010

Hello everyone,

Any advice would be much appreciated on this diamond:

Round Brillant
Size: 1.38
Cut: Excellent
Clarity: VS1
Color: G

I was quoted around $11,000 for this stone.
The HCA score was 5.4 -Fair, purchase only if price is main criterion.

Light Return: Fair
Fire: Good
Scintillation: Good
Spread: Very Good

These are the cut measurements:
Depth: 62%
Table: 57%
Crown: 36 degrees
Pavilion: 41 degrees
Culet: None
Girdle: Medium, faceted

GIA cut grade: excellent
GIA polish: excellent
GIA symmetry: excellent

The only main inclusion is a tiny pinpoint near the center of the diamond. It is not visible with a loupe.

My main concern is that the HCA is 5.4. Does the proportions indicate there may be light leakage? Based on my lack of experience, would I be able to differentiate a diamond that has a score of 5.4 vs. a score below 2.0?

This was my first time viewing stones, and I thought it looked very sparkly in person, though. But could jewelry store lighting make any diamond sparkle? I didn''t see it in any other lighting, nor did I ask if the vendor had Idealscope, ASET images, etc. I just viewed the diamond in person and looked at the GIA report. The vendor is willing to hold the diamond for a day, but I am uncertain what to do next. Is using independent appraiser the way to go? Should I attempt that or should I just weed this diamond out and continue my search?

Please advise!

Thank you!

Lorelei · Apr 28, 2010

Date: 4/28/2010 11:14:00 AM
Author:shyOmee
Hello everyone,

Any advice would be much appreciated on this diamond:

Round Brillant
Size: 1.38
Cut: Excellent
Clarity: VS1
Color: G

I was quoted around $11,000 for this stone.
The HCA score was 5.4 -Fair, purchase only if price is main criterion.

Light Return: Fair
Fire: Good
Scintillation: Good
Spread: Very Good

These are the cut measurements:
Depth: 62%
Table: 57%
Crown: 36 degrees
Pavilion: 41 degrees
Culet: None
Girdle: Medium, faceted

GIA cut grade: excellent
GIA polish: excellent
GIA symmetry: excellent

The only main inclusion is a tiny pinpoint near the center of the diamond. It is not visible with a loupe.

My main concern is that the HCA is 5.4. Does the proportions indicate there may be light leakage? Based on my lack of experience, would I be able to differentiate a diamond that has a score of 5.4 vs. a score below 2.0?

This was my first time viewing stones, and I thought it looked very sparkly in person, though. But could jewelry store lighting make any diamond sparkle? I didn't see it in any other lighting, nor did I ask if the vendor had Idealscope, ASET images, etc. I just viewed the diamond in person and looked at the GIA report. The vendor is willing to hold the diamond for a day, but I am uncertain what to do next. Is using independent appraiser the way to go? Should I attempt that or should I just weed this diamond out and continue my search?

Please advise!

Thank you!

Hi Omee and welcome!

You are right, with those proportions the chances are high there is going to be light leakage and I doubt even overall cut precision or other cutting techniques could save it....This is a good example of what we call the steep deep diamond.

You have a very nice budget and can get something incredible with it, I would personally pass on this diamond. Yes jewellery store lighting can make anything sparkle so it can be misleading viewing stones in that way, take badly cut stones into plain daylight and they go dead....I think the chances are good if you compared this diamond to a better cut stone in this store lighting you could notice a difference between them and once in normal daylight the difference would be more apparent. If you go back, look at the stone closely to see if you notice a dark ring around the table or dark areas on the surface of the stone, this could be light leakage. Also hold the diamond under a table or desk, if you can do this test with a better cut stone to compare with, so much the better. Watch the diamond once it is held under a desk where the lighting is reduced, you might notice it appears to shrink but it could also lose a lot of steam and go quite dark in reduced lighting. A well cut diamond will withstand the light reduction far better than a lesser cut stone.