THE 4 C’s

One of most commonly used standards used for comparing diamonds is called the 4 C’s, and is a concept from within the diamond sector.  They refer to the following words: CARAT, COLOUR, CLARITY and CUT.

A Diamond is very valuable.  It is logical then that people have always made imitations.  They used to do it with ground glass, but nowadays, fake diamonds are produced chemically.  This is not a problem in itself, as long as fake diamonds, often used in cheap jewellery, are sold as such.  But it’s another matter when you have to pay the price of a real diamond for a fake one.  If someone wants to buy a real diamond, he or she should ask for a diamond that comes with a certificate or they buy a certified Diamond

Diamonds are not all equal.  In fact, there are significant differences in quality and, ultimately prices.  To understand a diamond’s value you must evaluate the diamond under the internally recognized standards of the 4 C’s.

CUT
This is the single most important aspect of a diamond.  The proportion, finish, symmetry and polish are what create the fire and brilliance in a diamond.  A diamond may be colourless and flawless but if it is not cut well it will appear dull and lifeless.

If you like the cut of diamnd is the only property that is totally dependent on man.  Cut refers to not only the shape of the diamonds, but its proportions and finish, factors that determine the sparkle of the diamond.

The goal in terms of extracting the greatest beauty from a diamond is to have light enter a diamond, disperse the light as it bounces inside the diamond.  A well-cut diamond will produce the different colours and sparkly effect, and finally returning as much light to the eye as possible.

COLOUR
A diamond’s colour is determined on a colour scale from D (colourless) to Z (yellow/brown).  The most sought after diamonds have no colour.  Whilst most diamonds appear to have no colour, in actual fact they have tints of colour as shown on the colour scale.  D colour is the best colour money can buy.  Colour is what you see.

CLARITY
Refers to the amount of size of natural imperfections in the diamond.  These may be internal (inclusions) or external (blemishes).  The fewer the inclusions in a diamond, the rarer and more valuable the gem.

The clarity of a diamond refers to how clear, or “clean” the diamond is.  The more “clean” the diamond, the higher the price.  Most diamonds have “imperfections” in them.  They include either black or white natural internal inclusions.  The clarity scale is a measure of the severity of those imperfections or “inclusions” as it is know in the trade.

CARAT WEIGHT
A diamond’s weight is measured in Carats, abbreviated Ct.  One carat can be divided into 100 points.  Therefore a diamond weighing one quarter of a carat can also be referred to as being 25 points.  The size of a diamond has the biggest impact on its price.  The metric carat, which equals 0.20 gram, is the standard unit of weight for diamonds and most other gems.  If other factors are equal, the more a stone weighs, the more valuable it will be.

The colour of a diamond has the second biggest impact on its price, after carat weight.  Did you know that diamonds come in every colour of the rainbow?

Grading colour in the normal range involves deciding how closely a stone’s bodycolour approaches colourlessness.  Most diamonds have at least a trace of yellow or brown bodycoloour.  With exception of some natural fancy colours, such as blue, pink, purple or red the colourless grade is the most valuable.

If a diamond does not have enough colour to be called fancy, then it is graded in a scale of colours ranging from colourless to light yellow, “D” through “Z”.  A diamond with a “D” colour is considered to be colourless.  If the colour is more intense than “Z”, it is considered fancy.  A fancy yellow diamond fetches a higher price than a light yellow diamond.