Diamond Lessons

There are many different considerations for you to take into account when you look into diamonds, and one of the most important of these considerations is the diamond's shape. Many people overlook this factor, instead placing their focus entirely on the 4 Cs of cut, clarity, color and carat. While it is extremely important to consider the 4 Cs, the actual shape of the diamond itself is going to contribute immensely as to whether or not you enjoy your diamond.

Shape itself is often mistaken for cut, or seen as interchangeable with cut; be aware that this is not the case. When speaking of a diamond's shape it is not in reference to the cut, just as the diamond's cut is not its shape. The shape of a diamond may be the result of the cut, but it is not the same thing as cut. A diamond cutter must cut and polish the rough diamond in order to give it its shape. In other words, shape refers to the actual geometric form and structure that the diamond cutter has cut and polished.

For many people, when they think of diamonds they either equate diamonds with the common round shape, or they do not consider shape at all. This does not prove to be much of a problem for most people as far as actually purchasing a diamond goes, as most people choose the typical round diamond. However, when looking into acquiring a diamond, following the approach of looking only at round diamonds, or not taking shape into account at all, will not only cause you to possibly miss finding the perfect diamond to match your individual tastes, but it also eliminates a world of diamond shape possibilities.

The round brilliant diamond can be a wonderful diamond choice for just about anyone, but it is far from the only choice in diamonds. Just as there are many different diamond cuts, colors and carat weights, there is also a world of different diamond shapes. Amongst these myriad diamond shapes are the Marquise, Oval, Pear, Heart, Asscher, Emerald, Princess, Cushion, Trillion, Radiant, Baguette, Old Miner, and European. Today, many of the Fancy shapes are approaching the light display of the round brilliants, and more people are discovering the unique character and distinctiveness that can be found in each of these Fancy shapes.

Perhaps one of the most important reasons for the development of different diamond shapes is due to financial reasons. When diamonds are found, in order for them to become the shining, scintillating objects of desire that we have come to know them as, they must be cut and polished. During the cutting and polishing process, much of the rough diamond's carat weight is lost, therefore various shapes were created to minimize this loss.

There are many more diamond shapes than could be reasonably listed, and there are a number of good reasons for this. The history of the diamond for use as a gemstone is long and rich, and this means that there has been a long time for diamond cutting to develop. Throughout this long history, diamond cutters around the world have developed various techniques for shaping diamonds. In addition to the individual diamond cutters desires for unique shapes, there have also been many people, such as France's King Louis the XIV, who have commissioned new diamond shapes to meet their own desires.

Some diamonds, such as the round ideal cut diamond, are intensely wasteful of the rough diamond. This is one important reason why purchasing a Fancy shape over a round can be a good budget saving decision. Over the centuries, as diamond cutters would sit down to cut and polish rough diamonds, they discovered and developed shapes that can best utilize the greatest quantity of the diamond's carat weight. For example, if a cutter is looking at a rough diamond and sees that by squaring the diamond, rather than rounding it, he could get a much larger diamond out of the rough, it will often make financial sense to choose the square shape.

Another reason for the development of different diamond shapes comes out of the advancement of technology. As the techniques of diamond cutters developed, so too did the tools that they used in their diamond cutting. The greater the technology became, the more it allowed diamond cutters to use not simply their imagination to come up with new shapes, but it allowed them to develop diamond shapes based on research into the study of light and its effects on and within diamonds.

The most famous of these studies has to be Marcel Tolkowsky's 1919 published paper on light and its reflection and refraction on and within the diamond. In this study, Tolkowsky found that the round shape of diamond was the ideal shape for creating the greatest display of light. The study helped to create the ideal cut diamond, which was developed out of the round brilliant shape, using specific mathematical measurements for the size and placement of facets, table size, and crown and pavilion depth. This study marked the beginning of the round brilliant shape as the most popular of diamond shapes.

The discovery of the round brilliant as the ideal shape for use in the ideal cut diamond is one of the main causes for it being set apart from, and so more expensive than, the other diamond shapes, known collectively as Fancy shapes. Whereas the Fancy shapes of that time had been shaped for the low-level light effect of gas and lamp light, the new brilliant round was faceted with the use of the then-new electric lighting taken into account. Out of all the shapes being used at the beginning of the 20th century, the round brilliant diamond quickly became seen to be the diamond shape that produced the most brilliant and scintillating light display under this new type of much brighter lighting.

Why Choose Different Diamond Shapes

When looking for a diamond it is important to be familiar with the diamond shapes that are available. One of the most obvious reasons is personal choice and taste. While it is true that personal taste is quite important in choosing your diamond or diamonds, there are extremely practical reasons as well. A short list of these to consider include hand size and the actual use of the ring.

Remember, when all is said and done, the diamond you are buying is going to be worn on someone's hand. Oftentimes, people do not look into the effect that a diamond's shape is going to have on the hand that will be wearing it. This can be an enormous mistake, as different shapes can have markedly different effects on a given hand. For example, a round diamond tends to have a foreshortening effect on hands. If the hand wearing the diamond has short fingers, this will be accented when wearing a round shaped diamond. A rectangular shaped diamond will produce the opposite effect, causing fingers to appear longer. Think of it this way, would you spend money on an item of expensive dress clothing without first finding the size and cut of dress or suit that was right for you? Would you buy it without trying it on first? Diamonds and diamond rings are no different.

A second important consideration that you should keep in mind is the issue of the actual use of your diamond ring. What this means is that you should be as cognizant as possible of the situations in which the ring will be worn. Will it be daily? Will it be worn to work? Will the wearer regularly wear clothing that could easily snag on certain diamond shapes? For example, if you work with your hands, you might want to consider diamond shapes and settings that do not have points or sit high on the hand, as these could be more easily damaged than by shapes and settings that sit more flush to your hand. By putting some thought into these questions you could avoid a diamond shape that would not fare well under certain circumstances, and so cause you to be displeased with your ring.

An Important Note on Step Cuts

It is important to be aware that if you are thinking of choosing a step cut shaped diamond that you should look into a diamond with high clarity, VS2 or higher. The reason for this is found in the actual cut of step cut shapes, such as the emerald cut. The step cuts are not cut for the same effect as the round brilliants. While round brilliants have 58 facets in order to bring out the maximum of scintillation and light dispersion, step cuts have fewer facets, with each of them cut into wide, window-like mirrored panes. Due to the longer larger facets step cuts tend to be cut for greater carat weight.

These long, window pane facets are not capable of producing the fire and brilliance of brilliant stones but they allow for a wonderful luster. The many facets of the brilliants, and the resultant brilliance itself, allow for a lower clarity in the diamond, as many of the clarity flaws can be muted, or "hidden," within the cut. The long planes of the step cut facets do not allow for this. Flaws become far more apparent in lower clarity step cuts than in brilliant stones of the same clarity level. By simply choosing a higher clarity for a step cut, you will have a diamond that will have a luster and warmth that will delight.

Diamond shapes that are not round brilliant diamonds fall into the broad category of Fancy shapes. This is an enormous category with an ever-growing list of diamond shapes. In the world of diamonds there are currently 13 shapes that have been able to both withstand the test of time and remain popular shape choices. These are the Marquise, Oval, Pear, Heart, Asscher, Emerald, Princess, Cushion, Trillion, Radiant, Baguette, Old Miner, and European. Having a working familiarity with each of these shapes can be a wonderful aid in helping you to find the perfect diamond.

The Fancy shapes can be difficult to have the proper proportions, because the fancy shapes, by their very nature, do not have the kind of symmetry and set proportions that are found in round brilliants. The shapes found in Fancy shaped diamonds often have facets that are asymmetrical and elongated. These irregularities found in the facets result in not only a loss of brilliance, but can also cause shadows within the diamond. It is this shadowing that causes such effects as the "bowtie" effect to occur in some Fancy shapes. The "bowtie" effect is a dark shadow seen within the diamond that resembles a bowtie. This effect is typically found in Fancy shapes such as Oval, Marquise and Pear.

It can be easier to understand these 13 Fancy shapes by looking at them divided by their shape type. The four shape types are Modified Brilliant Cut, Step Cut, Mixed Cut and Old World Cut. As can be inferred from the names of these divisions, the basis for the four categories is the manner of the cut of the diamond. The type of cut is used as the division because the final shape is dependent on the type of cut the diamond cutter decides to utilize.

A 57 facet diamond, the Asscher cut diamond was developed at a time when the round brilliant diamond was the common diamond shape. The Asscher shaped diamond is named for its creator, Joseph Asscher, owner of the Amsterdam based diamond company, the Asscher Diamond Company. The Asscher cut was developed in 1902, coming in the beginning of the Art-Deco movement that embraced and championed the straight lined geometric form. Its square, step cut shape was the forerunner of the later emerald cut shape of diamond.

Like the emerald cut, the Asscher cut has large step-cut facets. However, its facets tend to be larger than those of the emerald cut, and its shape tends toward the square as opposed to the rectangular. With its deep pavilion, faceted culet, high crown and small table, the Asscher was designed to do more than just highlight larger stones. The Asscher is designed to bring out their inner fire, while its small table and high crown bring out more fire and scintillation than the similar emerald cut. The Asscher has an ideal length to width ratio of 1 to 1.

The Asscher is a distinctive diamond, with a number of unique identifiers. When choosing the setting for an Asscher, it is important to make certain that the blocked corners are not hidden. It is these blocked corners that add to the unique quality of the Asscher cut diamond. Yet another of the singular aspects of the Asscher is found in the shape and faceting of its pavilion. The pavilion is faceted in a "scissor cut" fashion, in which the step cut is used to facet the pavilion down to the culet.

The broad, flat-faceted step cut nature of the Asscher allows for tremendous luster, but it will also illuminate any flaws. It is for this reason that when choosing the Asscher, as with the emerald cut, it is best to use stones of high quality in order to ensure that the diamond has the greatest, unadulterated luster and shine. The Asscher Diamond Company has recently resumed production of this bold cut. This is definitely a cut of diamond for those who wish to express a sense of elegance and beauty.

The baguette cut is named due to its long, rectangular shape after the French word baguette, for "long rod", coming down from the Latin baculum, meaning "a stick". This cut came out of the 1920s and 1930s, as a fashion reaction to the functionality and geometric form preferred in design and architecture of the time, such as the Bauhaus movement. Used primarily as a side stone, the baguette cut shape is a step cut diamond that is similar to other square to rectangular shaped step cuts, such as the emerald cut.

The baguette cut shape came to the fore during the early 20^th century Art Deco and Art Nouveau movements. Originally used primarily in costume jewelry, the simple rectangular to square shape worked well with the art movements that came to dominate the culture of western society at the time. The straight, clean lines, and simple geometric form of the baguette cut, along with its ideal use as an accent stone, inspired jewelers at the time to create jewelry pieces that would utilize numerous baguette cut stones.

The baguette cut shape normally comes in small weights, less than one carat. Due to its smaller size, it tends to be measured by its dimensional size, rather than its carat weight. The length to width ratio of this accent stone is ideally 1.5 to 1. As a step cut stone the baguette cut shape usually has only 14 facets, fewer than the number of facets used for the emerald cut. Like the emerald cut, however, the baguette cut diamond should be of high quality, as its shape and cut can reveal more of its flaws.

The baguette cut of diamond is usually used for side stones for other cuts of diamonds, as they can serve to hide the shoulders and girdle of centerpiece diamonds. The uniform and easily matched size of this stone makes it the ideal stone for use in pave and other channel settings. Unlike round diamonds, the shape of the baguette allows them to be set side by side without gaps. The effect of this unbroken display of diamonds in a channel setting can create a startlingly beautiful light display accent. The luster and clarity, as well as the muted display of fire, that is found in the well-cut baguette shape is what allows it to function so well as an accent stone to a larger centerpiece.

The "cushion cut" diamond style is a diamond shape that had been the most popular cut of diamond in the days prior to modern electric lighting. First created in the 19th century, around 1830, the cushion cut diamond shape was cut and polished in a time when such techniques had to be preformed by hand. With its rounded corners, squared shape, and large faceted culet, the cushion cut lost popularity around the beginning of the 20th century. Nevertheless, under candlelight, its old world and antique charm, brought out by its look of great depth, still make it a cut of high and desirable quality. Today this type of diamond is seeing resurgence in popularity due to the use of modern techniques to cut and polish for such a romantic shape.

It is called "cushion cut" due to having the culet, or the bottom of the diamond, being cut as another facet. The large size of the culet in cushion cut diamonds is due to the fact that cushion cuts were cut and polished to give a great depth to the look of the diamond. Square or rectangular in shape, this type of faceting of the culet for such depth is designed for viewing by soft lighting such as candlelight. It is for this reason that the cushion cut is also known as the Candlelight diamond. Unfortunately, under bright electric lighting, the faceted bottom can create the look of a hole in the diamond.

The cushion cut is a cross between the Old Miner Cut and the modern Oval cut of diamond. The square to rectangular shape of this deep cut of diamond should have a length to width ratio of typically 1.1 to 1.2. The modern cushion cut typically has 58 facets to help give a greater display of scintillation when seen under modern lighting. There are no set proportions for an ideal cut with the cushion cut. The setting should have four prongs to help secure the diamond. The personality traits for this shape of diamond can be found in the origins and current state of the cushion cut itself. The cushion cut holds the traditional look of the older, pre-modern cuts, yet exhibits the brilliance and scintillation brought out from modern cutting and polishing techniques. The cushion cut melds the traditional and the modern and attracts those with the same melding within their own personalities.

The "emerald" cut of diamond is another square or rectangular shaped diamond. As opposed to the brilliant cut, however, with its triangular or four sided diamond cut facets, the "emerald" cut of diamond has step cut facets. The term "step cut" refers to the step-like look of the facet cuts.

This type of facet appears in long plate or plane-like facets, resulting in a more mirrored-type of effect, rather than the deep fire or shining brilliance of other diamond shapes. The emerald requires a diamond of higher quality of color and clarity than required with other shapes. This is due to the fact that scratches, inclusions and other impurities are more easily noticed with this bold type of cut. The emerald cut of diamond has an elegance and old world charm not found in brilliant styles.

It tends to have 50 to 58 facets, and a length to width ratio of 1.5-1.7 to 1. As with other square and rectangular shapes, the Emerald cut shape can be cut to be more square, to flatter the longer fingers, or more rectangular, thus flattering shorter fingers with the appearance of greater length. It tends to be 20% to 33% less expensive than round brilliants of the same weight, as is also the case with other square or rectangular shaped diamonds. The Emerald cut shape of diamond is linked to organized, resourceful, disciplined and decisive personalities.

The Heart shaped diamond is easily the most romantic of the diamond shapes. The symbolic shape of the heart diamond instantly evokes the innocence and purity of love. It is due to this that the heart shaped diamond has become so popular a shape around Valentine's Day as well as dates marking personal relationship touchstones.

The origin of the heart shape can be found with the pear shape diamond. If you look closely at the heart shape diamond, you will notice that it is quite similar to the pear shaped diamond. This is not simply a coincidence. The heart shape is actually derived directly from pear shaped diamonds.

The heart shape diamond often begins as a pear shape that has an inclusion within the rounded end. A skilled diamond cutter will cut the rough stone into a pear shape that has the inclusion located, ideally, centered in the rounded end of the pear. By excising the inclusion from the rounded end, the diamond shape is divided into two equal lobes, thus creating the heart shape. It is essential to the heart shaped diamond to have a highly skilled cutter, to insure that the distinctive lobes are balanced, smooth and well defined, while retaining a brilliant shine.

The ideal length to width ratio is 1 to 1, with its cost being 20% to 25% less than a round brilliant of the same weight. The diameter of the heart shaped diamond is measured across the widest portion of the lobes, rather than from the tip to the bisecting of the lobes. Using this diameter the proportions of the heart shape is found, such as the table size, the girdle thickness, and the depth, crown and pavilion measurement.

This is an ideal pendant diamond, although it is popular for any type of setting. The setting itself should have five prongs to ensure security, stability and protection. The prongs should be distributed with two for the lobes of the heart, two for the heart's sides, and a V-shape prong to secure and protect the heart's tip. Personalities drawn to the heart shape of diamond tend to be sentimental, sensitive and romantic.

One of the primary reasons for the creation of so-called "Fancy Cuts" can be found in the fact that prior to the development of the round brilliant cut, diamond cutters would cut diamonds based on the shape of the raw diamond. While cutters still follow this guideline, the round brilliant cut has brought about more raw diamonds being cut down to the round brilliant as it the most desired shape in the market today.

An experienced cutter could see what type of shapes would best optimize the weight from the raw diamond, and would cut the diamond according to the raw diamond's characteristics. Lighting, be it by natural, candle or gas lighting of later centuries, is also considered by the diamonds cutter.

There are many reasons for fancy cuts, from the practical to the fashionable. Fancy cuts also tend to be broken up into four categories: modified brilliants, step cuts, mixed cuts, and rose cuts.

Modified Brilliants: Modified brilliants are, as the name implies, brilliant cut diamonds with shapes modified from the standard round brilliant. There are numerous shapes that modern technology and cutting mechanics can allow for, including the heart, marquise, trillian and navette. The modified brilliant cut is popular, as it gives the brilliance of the round brilliant cut, but in more unique and personalized shapes. The problem occurs in that modified brilliants are also prone to greater threat of damage, as the irregular shapes resulting from such cuts offer a fragility of form that can easily chip or fracture, and so additional precautions must be taken.

Step Cuts: Also known as trap cut, this cut is characterized by a rectangular or square shape, with the facets of the crown and pavilion running parallel to the girdle, and is one of the oldest forms of cut. The advantage of the step cut is that it preserves more of the weight of the raw diamond than the brilliant cut. One of the most popular examples of the step cut is the emerald cut. The emerald cut has the long faceted planes of the step cut, but has cut corners, which helps to avoid chipping or cleaving of the edges. The culet is not present in step cut stones, but rather they have a keel that extends along the length of the end or bottom of the pavilion. Step cut stones do not have the fire or flash of brilliant cut diamonds, but do exhibit brilliance and scintillation as the light moves clearly between the mirror-like facets. Due to the nature of the long facets, step cut stones must have tremendous clarity, as any flaws can be easily noticed. This means that step cuts have a high luster, and a warm glow. Triangle, obus and kite cuts are also included in the step cut category.

Mixed cuts: The mixed cut is the melding of both brilliant cuts and step cuts. The intended effect is to offer the brilliant finish of the brilliant cut, while preserving the weight retention of the step cuts. This effect is achieved through cutting the facets on the crown (or the part of the diamond above the girdle) in the step cut fashion, with the facets cut long and running parallel to the girdle, and with the facets on the pavilion (or the part of the diamond below the girdle) cut like the brilliant cuts. Mixed cuts are newer in the world of diamond cuts, with the first mixed cuts dating back to as recently as the 1960s. The extremely popular Princess cut is the most well known of the mixed cuts, and has grown popular enough to warrant its own grading system with most gemological laboratories.

Rose cut: These are, like the step cuts, an older cut of diamond. Developed prior to the use of electric lighting, rose cuts fell out of favor in the early 20th century, due to their lack of brilliance. Characterized by a lack of a pavilion, the crown rises from its base, with 12 or 24 triangular facets, reaching up to form a point. They are seeing a renewed rise in popularity as the market for older, antique jewelry makes the use of the rounded rose cut type stones more desirable.

The round brilliant shape is currently the most popular of diamond shapes, with some figures showing it to account for over 75% of all diamond transactions. It is just one of many shapes within the diamond world, but it has been set apart from other diamond shapes. The primary reason for this is that the round brilliant shape is capable of maximizing the display of light within the diamond. Due to the popularity of this diamond shape, in addition to the available measurements for the round brilliant, gemological laboratories are set up to measure and report on the characteristics of this shape more than any of the Fancy shapes. It is within the round brilliant shape that the ideal cut diamond is found.

The greater expense of the modern round brilliant is not due only to its sustained popularity. There are two other primary reasons for the greater expense that is found in round brilliants, as opposed to other diamond shapes. The first is related directly to the greater amount of rough diamond that is lost when the round is being cut and polished. As a diamond's carat weight is one of the main determinants of the diamond's value, a shape that is costly to carat weight is going to demand a higher expense. The second is due to the longer cutting and polishing time required for round brilliants. The more labor the cutter has to put into a diamond, the more money the cutter will need in order to make it worth her or his time.

The 58 faceted round brilliant diamond has not been with us since the beginning of the use of diamonds as gemstones. The round brilliant shape finds its origins in the single cut type of diamond, which had a broad table with 8 facets on the crown, and 8 facets on the pavilion. By the 17^th century, this cut developed into the double cut, also known as the Mazarin cut, which had 16 facets on the crown (17 including the table), 16 on the pavilion, and had developed a culet. Within the same century, Vincent Peruzzi took the double cut and reshaped it into the triple cut. This became known as the Peruzzi cut and, complete with 58 facets, was the direct precursor of the first modern brilliant round.

The modern proportions for the brilliant cut were first developed by Henry Morse in the 19^th century. It due to his studies with the brilliant cut that Marcel Tolkowsky was able to formulate the mathematical models for the ideal cut round brilliant shape. In the first quarter of the 20^th century Tolkowsky utilized the available information on the brilliant cut and theorized that the round shape would be best suited to maximize the brilliance and fire displays of light in diamonds. The round shape had been in use up to this time, as is evidenced in the Old European cut, which both Morse and Tolkowsky had used in creating their respective models for the brilliant cut. However, with Tolkowsky's research and mathematical modeling, the modern brilliant round diamond came to the forefront of diamond shapes.

Ideal cut round brilliants are far more labor intensive than other round brilliants and this is due to the greater exactitude required of the diamond cutter during all phases of the diamond shaping. The table percentage, the pavilion percentage, and each and every facet must be cut and polished to a degree of perfection that has been laid out according to mathematical formulation for the greatest effect of brilliance and fire. The ideal cut round brilliant is also more costly to the overall carat weight of the rough diamond than other round brilliants. This is why ideal cut round brilliants tend to be the most costly of all diamond shapes, all other aspects being equal.

The brilliant cut actually includes the round brilliant within its parameters. While the round brilliant is not considered a Fancy cut, there are quite a few Fancy shapes that are the result of the brilliant cut, and these are put under the sub category of 'modified brilliant'. Essentially, diamond shapes that result from the brilliant cut are variations on the round brilliant. The brilliant cut is marked by the 58-facet form. As the name implies, this cut creates diamond shapes that are faceted for maximum brilliance and fire.

It is important to be aware that the modern brilliant cut was developed in early to mid 20^th century. It has variations in bezel facet length (which are longer in the early modern brilliant cut than the later modern brilliant cut) and position of the pavilion main facets (extending longer in the later modern brilliants than in the early modern brilliants). The diamond shapes that fall into this category include: Oval, Pear, Marquise, Heart, Trillian and various oddly shaped side- stones (such as the kite and moon shaped side-stone diamonds).

The step cut is also known as the trap cut. The name step cut is derived from the step-like shape of the diamond that results from this cut. The resultant shape can be square, rectangular or trapezoid, depending on the desired effect.

The table and girdle in step cuts are each long planes, either square or rectangular, with long parallel facets with four sides. The number of facets varies from diamond to diamond, depending on the particular shape and size of the diamond. The culet in the step cut type of diamond is referred to as its keel. Step cut diamonds with color are cut in order to place the color as deep into the pavilion as possible, to have the color appear to flood the entire diamond when looked at through the table.

The squared shape of this diamond type can put diamonds with this shape at risk for chipping, and so the corners are often cut away, making the cut-cornered look of the Emerald and Asscher cuts. Step cut diamonds do not have the brilliance or fire of the brilliant cut shapes, due to their shallow crown and pavilion. However, they are able to preserve much more of the original rough carat weight than the brilliant shapes. Shapes with the step cut include: Emerald, Asscher and Baguette, as well as other fancy shape side stones.

The mixed cuts first emerged in the 1960s and were the result of mixing the step cuts with the brilliant cuts. The melding of the two styles in the mixed cut is demonstrated with the crown normally being cut in the step cut style and the pavilion being cut in the brilliant cut style. The mixed cut has produced one of the most popular of current diamond shapes, the Princess cut.

The Princess cut diamond shape owes much of its popularity to its tremendous brilliance and fire. As it is also one of the most carat-weight saving of the diamond shapes, it is grown in popularity amongst diamond cutters as well. The Radiant cut and other innovative trademarked cuts are examples of the mixed cut.

Hearts and arrows diamonds are a rare and special type of round diamond. The name, hearts and arrows, refers to the pattern that is visible in such a round diamond, with the hearts being seen from the bottom and the arrows from the top. Only the arrows of this pattern are, however, visible to the unaided eye, and remain visible after the diamond has been set. The hearts of the hearts and arrow pattern can only be seen when the diamond is loose and viewed through a firescope.

The hearts and arrows patterning is the result of perfection in symmetry and proportion in the diamond's cut. In order for the pattern to appear in the correct form with sharp focus, the facets must be perfectly aligned with one another. The arrow pattern is formed as a result of the main pavilion facets being aligned perfectly so that any given main pavilion facet is reflected by the main pavilion facet directly opposite to it. The arrows pattern is seen when viewing the diamond from the table down, and is more prominent when viewed through a FireScope. The hearts pattern is formed when pavilion facets are reflecting one another, while the crown facets are also aligned to perfectly reflect one another.

The result of perfect symmetry in a diamond that has been cut properly is that it is capable of reflecting 98% of the light entering it. This level of light reflection is why the hearts and arrows type of diamond is known as a "super ideal cut", as opposed to those diamonds known as "ideal cut". This is not to say that all super ideal cut diamonds are hearts and arrows, however. Some of the finest in ideal and super ideal cut diamonds are not hearts and arrows diamonds. It is only a small percentage, about 1 tenth of 1% of all diamonds that can even be used for true hearts and arrows type diamonds, due to the tremendous symmetry requirement to achieve the proper hearts and arrows effect.

AGS, American Gemological Society, has a diamond grading for super ideal cut known as AGS"000"or Triple 0. Many mistakenly believe that this automatically indicates that a diamond is a hearts and arrows diamond. This is not the case, however, as AGS does not look for the hearts and arrows patterning, but simply gives a grade of 0 in three categories: cut, polish, symmetry. This indicates perfection in all three of these categories for a particular diamond.

Where the misconception occurs is in that most think that perfection in the three categories automatically indicates that the hearts and arrows patterning must appear, and appear in a sharp and clear focus. This is not always possible, and some "000" diamonds do not display clear hearts and arrows. It is for this reason that a hearts and arrows diamond will be notably more expensive than the same size diamond that does not display the proper hearts and arrows patterning, even should both be AGS "000" diamond grade. Much of the greater expense is due to the greater expenditure of time and effort in order to achieve the hearts and arrows patterning, taking up to 100 times as much time to produce.

The hearts and arrow diamond actually finds its origins in the firescope itself. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, the Japanese developed the FireScope as a tool designed to evaluate the overall quality of diamonds in relationship to one another. It was Takanori Tamura who first noticed the patterning that he saw as a mandala, or the Buddhist 8-spoked wheel of life, and which we recognize as a series of 8 hearts and 8 arrows.