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From deep within the earth, over a mile
down, diamond ore is brought up to the
surface. It takes over 250 tons of earth
removal to produce just one carat of gem
quality diamond. Being true miracles of
nature, of the diamonds discovered,
only one out of 10,000 is a
Natural Color Diamond. |
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Once at the surface, the diamond ore is
processed and the diamond crystals are
removed. The rough diamond crystal is
then sorted and prepared for cutting.
Eighty-five percent of rough crystals
do not meet gem quality standards and
are removed from the sorting, leaving only
the gem quality crystals for the next step. |
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Once selected, the rough crystal is
analyzed to achieve an appealing cut that
will produce the largest yield along with the
best face-up color. Once the ideal shape
is revealed, the diamond is ready
to be cut. |
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The first step in diamond cutting
is to "saw" the crystal in half, creating
two workable pieces. Today, this very
time consuming process is achieved by
using a high speed diamond-charged
saw blade. In the past, this was
accomplished by "cleaving" the diamond
with a hammer and chisel. |
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Diamond, being the hardest substance known to man cannot be "cut" into a round shape. Instead, the two pieces of crystal are turned against one another and "ground" into roundness. This often delicate process is called "brutting.” |
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Each facet is carefully "cut " by pressing
the diamond against a spinning wheel
charged with diamond dust. The faceting
of rough diamond crystals is done by
spinning the wheel in one direction,
while polishing a diamond is done by
changing the direction to flow more with
the "grain" of the diamond...very similar
to wood working. |
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Great attention is paid to every detail
of the cutting and polishing process,
facets often being re-cut and polished
several times, all to create a dazzling
work of art out of a true miracle of nature.
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"Before" rough diamonds are samples only, not the actual rough diamonds that yielded the polished diamonds.
"After" polished diamonds are from the Aurora Gem Collection
