What should you do when a stone can''t be "mapped"?

[diamondnovice]

My mom has a 1.23 ct, F color, internally flawless diamond in her engagement ring. Because she wouldn't let them take the diamond out of the setting when she got it appraised, they said they had to list it as a VVS1 because something may be under a prong, but they couldn't find anything under 100X (not 10x) and the original jeweler who sold the ring to them told them it was flawless. The diamond also has a faint blue flouresence.

My dad bought the diamond 40 years ago and at that time, it was from an estate piece, thus the cut is definitely not ideal. In fact, the table is quite large but boy does it sparkle anyway.

Because her stone has no flaws to map, she really has no way to determine that the stone is her's if she ever needs to have her ring worked on. Is there another way to "fingerprint" her diamond (maybe using the other parameters) besides a mapping? Also, would you recommend her being with her ring at all times when she does get any "fingerprinting" done since she can't map the diamond?

Thanks.

 

[Richard Sherwood]

Hiya Novice. Sounds like a nice stone.

There's basically two options for you.

(1) A detailed gemological report will list several characteristics which will identify that particular diamond. It will have measurements, color, fluorescence, clarity, cut percentages & detailed descriptions, along with a photo. That should be enough to cover you, if done by a professional.

(2) You might consider getting a "GemPrint" of the stone. A beam of light is shot into the stone and a picture taken of it's reflection pattern. No two stones will have the same reflection pattern. A little pricey, but some people enjoy the peace of mind.

As far as being there and watching it done, you'll get different responses from different jewelers and appraisers. Not everybody has the time to do things "while you wait", and some jewelers get rankled if they think you don't trust them.

Personally, I don't think it's an unreasonable request. My entire appraisal business is founded on doing appraisals while you wait in the client's presence. I feel better doing it that way, and so do they.

Rich