Gemstone Cuts & Shapes
Rough gem material is pulled in its natural form from the earth. In order to become a wearable gemstone, this material is usually shaped, faceted, or carved by humans. Evolving technology resulted in an increased number of available cuts and shapes with jewelry designs adapting to accommodate them. To understand more about the transformation from rough gem to beautiful gemstone, select from the Gemstones Cuts & Shapes pictorial glossary below.
Vignettes
The question most frequently asked of our jewelry experts at Lang is “what is the difference between antique cut and contemporary cut diamonds?” The answer is to be found primarily in...
You shall make a breastpiece of judgment, in skilled work. In the style of the ephod you shall make it—of gold, blue and purple and scarlet yarns, and fine twined...
Glyptography comes from the Greek word glyptos which means to carve. In jewelry, glyptography is the art of gemstone carving and applies to both intaglios and cameos. Begun in ancient times as one of the earliest forms...
Terms & Definitions
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In 1902 the Dutch diamond cutter Joseph Asscher developed the cut that would carry his name on into the future. The square, step-cut, design had been around for ages but...
The baguette cut represents an elongated, rectangular table cut. The modern version, as in the ring on the right, was (re)introduced for diamonds by Cartier in 1912. The linear, rectangular cuts from which...
When we think of a diamond, most of us will form an image in our mind which closely resembles the image above. This cutting design has become the ultimate standard...
Briolettes are drop-shaped, multi-faceted stones. They are unique in the sense that they lack a girdle, a feature all other gemstone cuts have and by which they are usually set....
Cushion cut is a sexy and romantic name for a squarish (“cushionesque”) antique brilliant-cut diamond, sometimes referred to as an old mine cut. Cushion cuts precede an older brilliant cut, known as...