Let's Talk About Certs
Hello. Let's talk about a tool that can help you know more about your diamond. This tool is what we call a diamond certificate, or cert, for short. A diamond cert is a quick and easy way to have an idea of a particular diamond's pedigree and statistics.
It is important to remember that a cert is not a guarantee of any kind.
First we'll look at what you can expect to find on a cert and how to read it.
A certificate, also called a diamond grading report, lists grades for the various attributes of the diamond. This means that you can expect to find grades for the Carat, Color, and Clarity, and Cut. Each of these will be listed on either the side or bottom of the report, depending on where the image of the diamond is located.
In addition to the grades that are listed, there will also be a listing of any of the major flaws that are found in and on the diamond. Most grading reports will use a picture or diagram of the diamond to show where these flaws are to be found.
Of course, you will need to know what each of the grades mean, so that you can get the most out of your certificate.
This takes us into the issue of who issues the certificates.
Certificates are issued by gemological laboratories. In order for a lab to issue legitimate certificates a diamond must be studied under 10X magnification by three different certified gemologists.
The most respected of these labs is the Gemological Institute of America, better known as GIA. Coming up a close second is the American Gemological Society or AGS. These are the two labs that have set the bar for grading standards.
There are many other labs including the European Gemological Laboratories, or EGL, and the International Gemological Institute, or IGI, but no one has the reputation of GIA or AGS.
Both GIA and AGS have grading scales for Cut, Clarity and Color. They each use different terminology for their scales, but they aren't too difficult to line up. For example, the GIA uses a scale for Clarity that runs from FL for flawless, to I for Inclusions visible. The AGS scale for clarity runs from 0 for flawless to 10 for inclusions visible. Color and Cut have similar differences in terminology between the two labs.
So, if you want to have evidence that a diamond is what the seller claims it to be, or if you simply want a diamond's fingerprint, look for a certified diamond. Each diamond is unique and the certificate can provide you with this uniqueness in writing.
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