History says that the round brilliant diamond cut had its debut in 1919. The man behind this creation is Marcel Tolkowsky’s. With the inclusion of the culet, this diamond cut is designed with 58 main facets, 33 on the crown and 25 on the pavilion. In addition to the main facets, the round brilliants diamonds have additional facets in the girdle which also vary from 32, 64, 80, or 96 facets. However, these girdle facets are not added to the main facets. The numerous facets and the shape (cone) of this cut give the diamonds their extraordinary fire and brilliance. The cone shape allows maximum light reflection through the top of the stone creating more brilliance.
What makes round brilliant diamonds special?
The small facets sizes of round brilliant diamonds hide the existence of any internal imperfection of the stone. Thus, unlike the larger faceted cuts such as Emerald and Asscher cuts, the use of high clarity and color grades diamonds is not critically necessary. Like for example, the naked eye visible inclusions of SI1 and SI2 diamonds may be visible with Emerald and Asscher cuts, but are well hidden in round brilliants.
Round brilliant diamonds are known for their ability to shine and bright at higher degree compared to other diamond cuts. They also exhibit the real beauty and elegance of any gemstones especially diamonds.
The last but not the least is their durability which could be accounted to their round shape. The round shape gives the diamond its solid structure without any weak points like that of the heart shaped diamonds, emerald cut, etc. Thus, many considered the round brilliants a better future investment compared to the other diamond cuts.
What makes round brilliant diamonds expensive?
Despite of their low color and clarity grade requirement, the round brilliant diamonds are still considered as examples of the most expensive diamond cuts available in the market today. One reason for this is the high stone losses during the polishing process. Generally, 50% of the rough stone is lost when it is polished to get the perfect round brilliant cut. Another reason is the time involved in cutting and polishing of the diamonds. The longer it takes for the cutter to get the final piece, the more expensive the diamond is.
Most popular types of round brilliant diamonds
The number of main facets of round brilliant diamonds is universally fixed as 58. However, there are no standard values in relation to the proportion of their depth, table, pavilion, crown and soon. As a result, a number variations or types of round brilliant diamonds are available in the market these days.
- American Ideal Cut
The American Ideal Cut is also known as the Tolkowsky cut or the modern round brilliant cut. This type of the round brilliants serves as the standard cut for the round brilliants diamonds in North America. It follows the Tolkowsky cut proportions which are: depth percentage (59%), table percentage (53%), pavilion depth (43.1%), crown height (16%), crown angle (34.5 degrees) and pavilion angle (40.75 degrees). However, this cut also varies from the original Tolkowsky cut due to the presence of a girdle which is not specified in the Tolkowsky cut. The girdle is important to prevent chippings during the setting process - Eppler Cut
This round brilliant variation was created in 1939. This cut does not vary that much from the American Ideal Cut. It has higher table size by 3% (56%) and lower crown height by 1.6% (14.4) compared to the American Ideal Cut. This cut is also characterized with an overall height of 57.7%. This is the round brilliant standard cut in several countries in Europe particularly in Germany.
- ScanDN
Another variation of the round brilliant diamonds is the ScanDN (Scandinavian Diamond Nomenclature) cut. It main features are: crown height (14.6%), width (57.5%), and overall height (57.7%).
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