In the world of jewellery there are several types of diamonds that are used to make the beautiful pieces that we see in the market, in designers’ fashion shows and in celebrities’ bodies. Therefore, it is important that you know the different types of diamonds according to some classifications that we will explain next:
According to its form: Because gems crystallize in the cubic system, they have shapes such as the octahedron, with 8 triangular faces, 12 edges and 20 vertices; the rhombododecahedron, with 12 rhomboid faces, 24 edges and 14 vertices; or the dodecahedron, with 12 pentagonal faces, 30 edges and 20 vertices. Also, it is the typical cube with 6 faces, 12 edges and 8 vertices.
On the other hand, the types of diamonds can also be classified according to their quality with three different categories: the gem quality diamond, the industrial quality diamond and the crushing-bort or bort. Of these three categories, only 20% of the world production of rough diamonds is destined to jewellery, corresponding to the “gem quality”, which has more than 5000 possible classifications of rough diamonds while the other 80% goes to industrial uses.
Gem quality diamond: They are diamonds that are suitable for jewellery and imitation jewellery. For this they must have good colour and good purity. However, the shape is not taken into account because all diamonds are carved according to the design of the jewel in question.
The diamonds that are in this category are presented in subcategories such as stones that have more than one carat; the “fancy colours” in colours such as blue, green, pink, yellow and brown; the closed stones, which are monocrystals that have ideal shapes for sawing and polishing.
The irregular gems are also widely used in jewellery, with octahedral or dodecahedral forms that are directly carved; the particles, which must be split; the so-called “sands”, which are very small stones, less than 0.10 carats and intended for size 8/8, as well as the “commons goths”, which represent the limit of jewellery quality because they are of very low quality.
Industrial quality diamond: These diamonds are not intended for jewellery, but are used exclusively in the industry. They have very good quality, being the yellow ones the most used because they are harder; so they are generally used for the manufacture of drilling instruments, among other objects.
Crushing-bort or bort: They are the lowest quality diamonds, so they are usually ground to be used as diamond dust, which is used in the process of carving other quality diamonds. There are also different types of diamonds according to their colour, and the most used in jewellery are the following:
Red diamonds: Red is the rarest colour in a diamond among coloured diamonds. To date, only 20 stones in this colour have been found worldwide, which have been certified. The fact that they are so scarce makes them very expensive.
Blue diamonds: They are among the rarest types of diamonds that exist, and are usually found in different shades of blue due to the boron content. The largest amount of this type of diamonds has been found at the Cullinan mine in South Africa.
Pink diamonds: They can also present different shades as it happens with blue diamonds, so there are pastel pink diamonds, even raspberries. It is rare to find them, but most have been extracted from the mines of Brazil, Australia, Tanzania and Russia.
Green diamonds: Their colour is due to the natural radiation of uranium, and their origin dates back millions of years. It is very strange to find them, so it is unlikely to see them in jewellery; however, their very rarity gives great value and beauty to the pieces, which are highly admired by high jewellery lovers.
Yellow diamonds: They are more common diamonds than the previous ones, generally called “fancy”, and are widely used in the world of jewellery because they are more affordable, less expensive and very hard. These yellow diamonds are demanded by many jewel houses, and their extraction is done in greater quantities.
In addition to these colours, there are other types of diamonds in colours such as brown or black, which are very common in jewellery and are used to make high quality jewellery.
Undoubtedly, although diamonds have any colour and shape, they are one of the most desired gems by women around the world, and their demand has made that even diamonds in laboratories are already being created, which look like natural gems and have a quality very similar to these, to the point that it would be difficult to distinguish the difference without the help of an expert.
ALFA