The gem is valued for its brilliance, iridescence in the sun and transparency. The color of the stone, the number of inclusions and traces left by nature affect the clarity of the diamond. Masters rate each mineral, looking for defects in the stone. The cost of a crystal is determined by the transparency of the gem. The assessment is confirmed by a certificate and an expert assessment of the master. It is not always possible to trust the opinion of a jeweler. In order not to be deceived, learn how to determine the clarity of a diamond.

Criteria for evaluation

You don't have to be a gemologist to determine the clarity of a diamond. The main thing is to understand what characteristics are taken into account when studying a stone. When examining a gem, the following criteria are important:

• the number of foreign inclusions;
• location;
• the presence of cracks on the surface of the stone;
• the presence of other defects.

Defects are divided into two categories: internal and external. The first group is flaws that do not go away even after careful polishing or disappear, but the stone loses weight. External defects are eliminated during the processing of the mineral and affect the quality of the crystal.

The characteristics of a diamond include the color of the stone. Shades of green, yellow, gray, brown reduce the value of the mineral.

A colorless diamond is valued or evenly colored in one color - emerald, blue, pink

Crystal purity in numbers

After examining the pebble, the master gives an assessment. It is determined in numbers 1-12. The lower the value, the purer the gem. The indicator is affected by and . On a 0.3 carat mineral with a grade of 5, flaws are visible to the naked eye. A stone weighing more than 0.3 carats will reveal defects at a clarity of 7. There is a second number on the diamond tag, which means the color of the stone.

A perfect clarity diamond with an index of 1/1 and 2/2. Such a stone is a rare guest in a jewelry store. The diamond is for sale on order. The average characteristics of a mineral with a purity of 3/3 and 3/4. A diamond is bought for the purpose of investment, for cutting into precious stones. Gems from one are always valuable.

How to determine purity diamond 3/4? Permissible defects when examining a gem through a magnifying glass:

• bright dots in the form of clouds or feathers, no more than three;
• dark stripes - 2 pcs.

A stone with a value from 4 to 6 has a small number of points, natural inclusions. Scratches on the side of the mineral are acceptable. It is impossible to notice defects without a magnifying glass. A diamond with a clarity of 7 closes the line of stones that surprise with the play of color. There are noticeable cracks and graphic spots on the gem. Choose a crystal with defects located near the edge of the diamond.

Buy a stone with a purity of at least 8. It is better to concede in the color of the mineral than in transparency.

Stones with a score of 10 or more are used in industry. When they fall, they will break into fragments!

Finding flaws in a mineral

How to determine the purity of diamonds at home? First, arm yourself with a magnifying glass that magnifies the object 10 times. Now we take the crystal in our hands and carefully study it. Not only the number of defects is important, but also where they are located. The sides of a diamond have their name:

1. Area. The upper part of the crystal is the widest and most visible. Scratches and chips on the surface will reduce the brilliance of the stone, it will lose its beauty. Internal inclusions are not so detrimental to assessing the clarity of a diamond. Defects on the stone platform reduce its value. It is better not to buy such a diamond.
2. Pavilion. The bottom surface of the stone. Flaws on the edges of the stone are acceptable. When cutting and creating jewelry, the jeweler will close the defect with a frame. As a result, the flaw will be eliminated, the diamond will not lose its transparency and brilliance. A stone with such a defect is valued at the price of a pure mineral.
3. Crown. Covers the entire area of ​​the diamond on the top. When examining the crown, the number of inclusions and its size are important. The higher it is, the less the mineral shines.

How to determine the clarity of a diamond in a store?

The cost of a completely transparent stone starts at $35,000. It is impossible to notice the difference between 1/1 or 3/4 crystals with the naked eye. Therefore, do not chase high performance.

When purchasing a diamond in a store, ask the jeweler for a magnifying glass with 10x magnification. After examining the stone yourself, request a gemological quality assessment. Then study the price tag of the diamond. It includes many letters and numbers. For example, 1 KR 57 - 0.59 - 3 / 4A. How to determine the purity of a diamond on a tag? For transparency, the number in front of the letter is responsible. The color of the stone is -3, the clarity is 4, 0.59 is the weight (carat), 57 is the number of facets. This number is characteristic of round diamonds.

The quality of diamonds is determined by their clarity, color and shape. A beautiful shine will give a stone round shape. The transparency of the stone depends on the weight. Do not buy a diamond weighing less than 0.29 carats. The stone should be with a clarity of 4-6 and a color of up to 3.

Characteristics of diamonds that you should pay attention to in the first place

Usually, independent certification of stones in many cities of the world is carried out by special gemological certification centers and private gemologists. But, no matter how much you trust the experts, when choosing diamonds, additional knowledge will not interfere with you. Of course, without significant practice, it is unlikely that you will be able to see all the subtleties of the purchased stone, but, nevertheless, you will not get lost in all these letters and numbers after reading the basic information.

So, the value of a cut diamond is affected by four main characteristics that add up to 4C system. This diamond grading system includes such concepts: “carat” (ct, k) - weight, “color” - color, “clarity” - clarity and “cut” - cut. From the combination of these characteristics, the price of the stone is formed.

Appraisal of the value of a diamond.

There are quite a few subtleties in this process, but in general terms, we can say that the cost of diamonds with other similar characteristics always increases exponentially with increasing stone weight. The smaller the number (or the letter closer to the beginning of the alphabet) that characterizes the color and clarity of a diamond, the more expensive it is. The quality, type and proportion of the cut are also important in the evaluation. Fancy diamonds are graded on a special scale. Here are the nuances of the characteristics:

carat (weight).

It is not practical to measure the weight of a diamond in grams. In nature (and on sale), faceted diamonds weighing even around 1 gram (5 carats) are extremely rare and very expensive, while small and medium stones (up to 0.2 grams, which just correspond to 1 k) are much larger. Therefore, since ancient times, a constant value for measuring the weight of a diamond has been adopted, based on the weight of 1 seed of the Caribbean tree "carat", equivalent to 0.2 grams.

For convenience, all stones weighing up to 0.29 carats are considered to be small, over 0.3 and up to 0.99 carats - medium, and more than 1 carat - large. By the way, the concept of "solitaire" refers exclusively to large diamonds. And proper names ("Korloff Noir" - 88 ct, "Great Mogul" - 279 ct, "Orlov" - 190 ct, etc.) are given to faceted diamonds weighing more than 25 carats. The weight of a diamond less than 1/100 (0.01) of a carat is not specified and is considered a diamond crumb.

Transitional masses of diamonds.

Although with an increase in the mass of a stone, its value increases, this process is uneven (jump-like). A sharp price jump occurs at certain values ​​(0.3 ct, 0.5 ct, 1 ct 1.5 ct, 2 ct, etc.), which are called “transitional diamond masses”. Knowing this pattern will allow the buyer to save money by purchasing, say, a stone of 0.48 ct rather than 0.5 ct - the difference in weight (and visually) is negligible, and in price - very significant.

Color (color).

Often, the color of a diamond appears to the layman as “steel”, “white”, “transparent”. For a specialist, all the nuances of colors and shades are important - from this the price of a stone can rise and fall with a huge difference. An important condition for determining the color of a diamond is a 10-fold increase and comparison with the standard by the selection method, since the difference between "neighboring" colors can be very conditional. It is even more difficult to determine the color of the stone in the product - its removal is required for certification.

The color of a cut diamond can range from very rare, virtually colorless ("clear water"), through the scale of shades of grayish and yellowish, and up to a brownish color.

Fancy diamonds are a separate type, which have obvious saturated shades - black, brown, green, pink, blue (the most unique are bright red and blue). They are extremely rare and are valued on a different scale, often cost fabulously expensive, eclipsing "white" diamonds. Here it is important to catch the difference between a unique fancy diamond and its cheap dark-colored “brother”.

AT different countries different diamond color scales are used, but they are easily comparable and have similar criteria.

The system for grading the color of diamonds in Russia.

In domestic jewelry practice, the weight of the stone matters, so three scales are used:

• for 17-sided diamonds, the number of colors is divided into 4 groups;


• for 57-sided cut diamonds from the “small” group (up to 0.29 ct), the number of colors varies from 1 to 7;


• for all other 57-sided cut diamonds (from 0.3 ct), a different scale is used, which implies 9 color groups.

International Diamond Color Grading System .

It differs from the domestic international system (GIA) in the absence of separation of color scales according to the weight category of the stone.

All color values ​​for "white" diamonds are in the range of letters D to Z, where the price falls as the letter range increases to the right (and the color "darkens").

Fantasy colors of diamonds are evaluated according to a special scale of color standards, where, on the contrary, the darker, more saturated the shade, the more expensive the stone.

Clarity (purity / defectiveness).

The quality and, accordingly, the price of a diamond is also affected by the presence (absence) of inclusions of natural origin inside the stone, such as bubbles, haze, cracks, inclusions, etc. This is a completely natural phenomenon for a mineral, but that is why a large number of diamonds have a very low value. And only a small part of the extracted raw material is turned into high-quality diamonds.

As with the determination of color, a 10x magnification is used to determine the defectiveness of the stone. The degree of visibility of these inclusions through a magnifying glass, as well as with the “naked eye”, is the criterion for the purity of a diamond.

Domestic system for assessing the purity of diamonds.

Our system, just like with color, takes into account the weight and cut of the stone, only the ranges of groups increase slightly: diamonds with 17 and 33 facets - from 1 to 6, for diamonds with 57-facets - up to 0.29 carats from 1 to 9, for stones from 30 carats and above - from 1 to 12.

International system(GIA) .

Unlike the alphabetical (in alphabetical order) designation of color, the international scale for the clarity of diamonds is indicated by an abbreviation with the addition of numbers (degrees) of defective stones. For example, the ideal clarity of a diamond has an index “F” (Flowless - flawless, devoid of inclusions), and the worst option is indicated by the letter “I” (Imperfect - imperfect, with noticeable inclusions) with an index of 1, 2 or 3.

Cut (cut).

The processing of the mined mineral is, of course, of paramount importance. In most cases, it depends on the professionalism of the jeweler whether a dull shapeless stone will sparkle with amazing brilliance or become mediocre "glass".

Rough diamonds can be cut in a number of ways, of which the round "brilliant" cut is the most popular, preferred in more than 90% of cases, despite being very expensive. This type of cut allows from 57 (classic) to 17 (simplified) facets. "Brilliant" processing is the most optimal for revealing the unique optical properties of the stone.

All other types of cuts belong to the group of fancy cuts, which, in turn, are wedge (round-oval proportions) and stepped (angular, polygonal).

The most popular types of fancy cut are: “oval”, “marquise” (oval with pointed top and bottom), “pear” (in the form of a drop), “princess” (square), “heart”, “baguette” (rectangle), "emerald" (polygon).

Diamond cut quality groups.

The maximum brilliance and play of a diamond is achieved as a result of the most precise proportions calculated according to a certain formula, which takes into account the following ratios: depth - diameter of the stone, diameter of the platform - diameter of the stone.

According to the international GIA system, the quality of a diamond cut can be: “Ideal” (ideal), “Premium” (excellent), “Very Good” (very good), “Good” (good), “Poor” (good quality). The foreign cut quality system (geometric conformity, polishing quality, symmetry) is very convenient in terms of clarity, unlike the domestic one, denoted by letters:

• for Kr-57 - ranges from "A" to "G";


• For Kr-17 and fantasy forms - "A" and "B";


• non-traditional cut proportions are usually classified as group "B".

By the way, often the proportions of a diamond cut are violated not because of the unprofessionalism of the master, but because of the need to preserve the size of the stone as much as possible.

What is written on the tag?

After reviewing the characteristics that make up the price of a diamond, we can understand what the tag attached to the product is talking about. The characteristic of the stone is placed opposite the "insert" column. The information is usually given in the following form:

Br. Cr. 57 1 pc. 3/4 A 0.07 ct

"Br. Cr." - type of cut, here - "round diamond";

"57" - the number of faces;

"1 PC." - the number of stones with the same characteristics in the product;

"3/4" - color / purity;

"A" - cut quality;

"0.07 ct" - carat weight.

In addition, the state of the tag itself is important, because it is the “face” of the manufacturer, and reputable offices do not save on it. Typically, the tag is located on a heavy-duty thread attached to the product, where there should be a seal-imprint with the manufacturer's emblem. It must contain information about the manufacturer and its legal address, product name, metal and sample, insert (characteristics of all stones), article number, regulatory documents, price for the entire product, size, have a quality control stamp.

Images: “© Depositphotos.com/Norman Chan”

Sparkling crystals are a symbol of prosperity, nobility and intelligence. They bring to the image an amazing originality, the confidence of women in their attractiveness. The problem that confronts the buyer is the desire to purchase the original. Main characteristics precious gem– clarity of diamonds and color palette.

The cost of the product is based on several parameters. The main one is the clarity of the diamond. Expertise and quality assessment are carried out by scientific laboratories of gemologists, independent expert companies.

The three leading institutions of this profile are:

• Gemological Institute of America - GIA.
• Supreme Diamond Council - HRD (Belgium).
• World Jewelry Confederation - CIBJO (Switzerland).

A natural mineral is rarely found ideal in the form of crystals, so the number of deviations from the norm is being studied. The fewer flaws a sample has, the higher its cost and value. The clarity of a diamond is the presence or absence of non-diamond inclusions in the rock, the presence of cracks and chips. It is impossible to detect defects during normal viewing. The study requires special equipment: a powerful microscope. It allows you to enlarge the stone tenfold, to notice all the internal components. A tenfold increase is the indicator established by scientists for testing a stone. What minerals are found inside the crystal:

• ilmenite;
• magnetite;
• spinel (shade of brown);
• (reddish tone);
• enstatite;
• diopside (color green).

Their presence in diamonds changes the cost of the material and influences the craftsmen's approach to the future product. Jewelers try to play with all the features of the stone in order to preserve its uniqueness and value. Volumes, outlines of inclusions are also different. The most common are two types:

• coal;
• snowy.

Finding them inside the structure of the stone confirms the originality, affects the price.

Purity scale

Approaches to the purity gradation scale are different. In some countries, one characteristic is taken as a basis, in others - several separate parameters. It is believed that an excellent sample is one where there are no internal defects. Damage to the outer face is eliminated by surface polishing.

Approaches to creating gradations:

1. The first scale was developed in the USA. GIA diamond clarity is based on the division of samples into classes according to the degree of visibility of defects, their volume, and the number in one crystal. The US Gemological Institute's diamond clarity grade is the most widely used. She divides stones into 11 classes.
2. In Russian science, the classification of diamonds differs from the American one. The degree of purity depends on the weight of the crystal. Rounded samples weighing 0.29 carats are divided into 6 groups. The same weight, but a different shape - diamonds are divided into 9 types. Medium sizes and large specimens are classified into 12 types. The larger the number of the group, the brighter (more noticeable) and larger the defect.

Diamond 1 1

The nature of diamond purity defects 1

The clarity of a diamond is the amount of natural inclusions in the structure of the stone. They can be both internal (it is impossible to get rid of polishing without loss in mass) or external (surface defects that can be eliminated by polishing). A GIA grade 1 or IF diamond may have only minor external imperfections that are easily removed by secondary polishing. As for internal defects, it is possible that they are present in the structure of a diamond, but they are invisible when viewed through a 10x magnifying glass, and it is with its help that a diamond belongs to one or another clarity group.

Best Diamonds

Diamonds 1/1 are quite rare guests as in jewelry stores, and in the bins of diamond dealers, and they cost several times more than similar-sized stones, but with average characteristics. Usually such diamonds are ordered ahead of time.

Diamond 2 2

Diamonds with a clarity of 2 (GIA VVS1) are almost as rare in nature as the purest diamonds (of the first quality group).

Defectiveness of diamonds 2/2

Diamonds with a clarity of 3 (or VVS1) open the top-selling diamond category, both set and unset.

Defectiveness of diamonds of 3 purity groups

For the buyer, these minor flaws are completely invisible, he does not see difference between,

Defectiveness of diamonds 4 purity groups

When determining defects in purity, their size is evaluated,

A diamond with a clarity of 5 (VS1) refers to the stones of the so-called medium clarity.

Defectiveness of diamonds of the 5th purity group

A Clarity 6 (VS1) diamond is an excellent option for buyers who are looking for the largest possible presentation diamond on a budget.

Diamond 7

Diamonds of the 7th clarity group (SI1) are characterized by multiple natural inclusions in the structure.

In this case, the characteristics of diamonds will be the same, but the nature of the inclusions is different.

Everyone chooses what they like. There is only one thing to advise: if you are offered several diamonds of clarity 7,

Diamonds without a game

When buying a diamond, you need to take into account a lot of nuances, study dozens of offers and, with a limited financial budget, decide for yourself the following question:

Technical diamonds

The most expensive of all precious stones is a diamond. Few girls can resist such a gift, because jewelry with a diamond is everyone's dream. Such a gift costs a considerable amount of money, so I want the value of the stone to fully correspond to its value. The diamond clarity table is an ordered system according to which the clarity of a diamond is determined.

Until the middle of the last century, there was no single classification of the defining characteristics of a diamond; stones were distinguished according to the simplified Old Term color system. The question: what is the purity of a diamond, until that time, practically did not rise. After the perfectly cut diamond began to gain general popularity, in the 1960s the Gemological Institute of America introduced the GIA system to the world, which covers all the criteria that add up to the value of a particular crystal. The gia of a diamond is assessed according to four characteristics:

• Cut (Cut) - with high-quality cutting work, the light passes well through the crown of the crystal, plays inside it, and reflects back through the platform - the brilliance of the diamond depends on this. If the cutting is done incorrectly, then the light entering the inside of the stone does not have time to be reflected and passes through the lower face, while the stone looks dull. There are 5 cut categories that evaluate the ideal proportions and maximum brilliance of the crystal;
• color (Color) - this concept means the presence or absence of an additional color of the stone. This indicator depends on the natural chemical composition of the diamond, and remains unchanged over time. The more transparent and colorless a cut diamond is, the higher its price. This does not apply to fancy diamonds of a rare color, their value is much higher than “ordinary” gems;
• Weight in carats (Carat weight) - this unit of measurement is equal to 0.2 grams. Diamond is formed in natural conditions, large specimens are found very rarely, so than larger size stone, the higher its value.
• Diamond clarity (Clarity) is a collective concept, which means the presence or absence of defects inside or on the surface of the stone and determining the degree of their significance. When conducting an examination, which determines the purity index, it is customary to use a gemological 10x loupe. In the process, the gemologist is guided by the principle of finding internal and external flaws as much as possible. To make it convenient to classify the detected damage, a special table was developed. It details the gradations, according to which the stone has one or another number of defects.

Principle 4 C is basic for determining the value and value of stones.

The domestic Russian grading scale (TS) is slightly different from the gia system, it uses numbers to determine the purity of a diamond, the approach to assessing the color of small diamonds is somewhat different: stones are not compared with the standard, but verbal descriptions are used, in the domestic system there is a yellow and brown scale , which are not in the GIA system.

In world practice, the assessment of stones according to GIA is more common.

Diamond Clarity Table

Ratio of diamond color scales:

Ratio of diamond clarity scales:

How does the clarity of a diamond affect its value?

It is difficult for the naked eye to notice the differences on two stones that seem to be the same in weight, but as a result of an expert assessment, they can turn out to be completely different in terms of characteristics and cost.

The most popular category is VVS1, which is the clarity of a diamond 3 3.

This is a great purchase, both for a gift and for investment, the cost of such jewelry is constantly growing. At a tenfold magnification with a magnifying glass, such internal defects as two dark stripes (dots) or three barely noticeable light clouds (feathers) are visible. For the buyer, these defects are completely invisible and are visible only during the examination.

Clarity of a diamond 4 4 - this indicator means that the clarity and color of the stone are within these limits. These are round diamonds that are profitable for investment, as they give a constant increase in value. Defects are not always bad, because the presence of natural imperfections determines the authenticity of the stone. With a large-scale examination of a diamond of the fourth category through a magnifying glass, at least 2 barely noticeable inclusions in the center of the cut stone or 2-4 stripes (light dots) in other parts can be seen. For this category, a small crack on the side of the stone is acceptable.

The clarity of a diamond 5 5 is a light small cloud or a small crack in the center of the stone. A few light stripes (up to six) are quite acceptable. If the flaws are located on the periphery of the examined stone, the presence of three cracks is allowed. Natural defects are proof that the stone is natural and not synthetic.

Certificate for a diamond

It is impossible for an ordinary buyer to independently determine the authenticity of a diamond; this is a special category of “goods” that needs mandatory certification. Since 1931, cut diamonds have been independently peer reviewed by the GIA laboratory. To ensure that the gia of a diamond is authentic and unbiased, all stones are delivered to the institute in a standard case, without any information about their owner. At the end of the procedure, a report is filled in - a document that describes in detail all the characteristics of the stone, its value is determined. Report and gia certificate are synonymous words,

The certificate issued by the GIA laboratory is the most reliable guarantee of the authenticity and true value of the stone.

The document cannot be forged or manipulated with the data in it. This institute is an impartial organization that has no commercial interests in the expert evaluation of the value of diamonds.

What is the best purity?

The value of a stone, its strength, rarity and attractiveness directly depend on its purity.

This indicator is very important when evaluating a diamond, because it determines its final value.

It is often very difficult to determine the purity with the naked eye, for this they use a special tool - a magnifying glass.

This indicator is measured on a 12-point scale: from 1 to 12, the lower its value, the higher the degree of purity. Depending on the weight, defects are also visible. On a small stone, up to 0.3 carats, a clarity greater than 5 means that all flaws will be visible without a magnifying glass. For larger diamonds (above 0.3 carats), flaws become visible without a magnifier at 7 clarity.

When choosing which stone to buy, pay attention to the location of the defect, if it is on the “platform” - the quality of the play of light can significantly decrease, and if it is near the edge, this will not affect the quality of the stone, and the frame can completely hide this minor flaw. Internal defects should be treated more loyally, as they are natural, and external ones, of course, do not have such a good effect on the properties of the stone. A diamond is an undoubted luxury gifted by nature and created by man.