As you may know, The Wall Street Journal published a story this week on GIA. This article is a follow-up to recent stories focusing largely on isolated incidents of ethical violations by a handful of ex-GIA employees and diamond dealers.

We realize that GIA and the entire diamond and jewelry industries suffer greatly when a few dishonest players damage the reputation of the honest majority.  In addition, inaccuracies in reporting and misrepresentations by the press do a disservice to all, including the public at large.  The Wall Street Journal article from March 8^th erroneously states that the “Gemological Institute of America fired four employees it accused of accepting bribes from diamond dealers as part of an inquiry into inflating the grades of stones.” This statement is not true. The employees were terminated, following an extensive investigation conducted by independent counsel on behalf of a Special Committee of GIA’s Board of Governors, for violating GIA’s Professional Ethics and Conduct Compliance Statement.  We have therefore requested that the paper publish a written correction to set the facts straight.

We would like the industry and the public to know that GIA is committed to operating with the highest ethical standards, and they can have full confidence in our laboratory operations and the reports we issue.  Over the past several months, we have communicated openly about the actions we have taken to uncover the facts related to the ethical violations and the numerous measures we have implemented to ensure that nothing similar can happen again.   As we have reported previously, after completing nearly 100 interviews and reviewing over 100,000 documents spanning a 10-year period, the independent investigators concluded that any violations of GIA’s policies were very limited in scope.  In addition, we have taken a number of steps to enhance our already stringent laboratory procedures and controls, and we continue to monitor our processes with great diligence.

In addition, we are offering free verification of any GIA-graded diamond to dispel any lingering concerns.   Any retailer or customer who owns a GIA-graded diamond can have their report verified free of charge.  Submission procedures for this free verification service can be found on the GIA website. The website also contains detailed information about the Institute’s grading methods for those who wish to learn more about our processes.

GIA has a 75-year history of ensuring trust in gems and jewelry by upholding the highest standards of integrity, academics, science, and professionalism. We take this mission seriously and are firmly committed to continuing to take the appropriate steps that will enable us to serve the public and the industry even better in the future. 

Celebrities dampened the fire of “bling-bling” for the Academy Awards telecast March 5. Although jewels by Chopard, Fred Leighton, Hearts On Fire, and Kwiat made appearances on some of the top actresses, and several male personalities sported diamond ear studs, the outsized, beyond-extravagant pieces of past award ceremonies were not in evidence, which was also in keeping with the more conservative dress.

The bling-bling trend has helped drive U.S. demand for larger diamonds and colored diamonds during the past four years, and its passing may bring a reduction in sales at the top end of the market.

On a more down-to-earth level, the diamond and colored stone markets are experiencing “stagflation”—a combination of high prices and slow sales. Diamond sales have been generally soft since the beginning of the year, though dealers and manufacturers of high- quality, 2 ct.–plus goods have reported a mild improvement this month. Colored stone dealers also noted very slow demand since Tucson, adding that the staples – ruby, sapphire, emerald, and tanzanite – have fared somewhat better than other gems.

However, these same dealers noted that prices have remained firm since Tucson, despite spotty sales there, because many producers are refusing to lower them.

“We can still buy well, but it takes a lot of searching,” said one New York dealer.

Retailer demand for diamonds continues to languish, even as prices keep rising at the production level. Retailers remain reluctant to pass the increases on to consumers, further squeezing profits in the middle. Sightholders of the De Beers Diamond Trading Company report that following the recent price increase, premiums on sight boxes have declined dramatically, sharply reducing profits on rough. The result is that manufacturers are now absorbing losses on some goods, especially diamonds under a carat.

Israeli diamond manufacturer Lev Leviev will open a branded retail store on London’s New Bond Street at the end of this month. The shop will compete with the likes of Cartier, Bulgari, Graff, and, of course, De Beers LV. Another Leviev store is scheduled to open on Madison Avenue in New York this fall.

Leviev, who operates diamond mining ventures in Angola and Namibia, will be the industry’s fourth mine-to-retail counter operation. The others are Canadian mining company Aber Resources, part owner of Diavik, which has a controlling interest in Harry Winston; Tiffany, which has contracted with Tahera Resources of Toronto to purchase or market the entire output of the latter’s Jericho operation in Nunavut; and De Beers. However, De Beers LV will be the only one of the four ventures sourcing diamonds from the market instead of its parent company’s mining operations.

When De Beers announced its retail brand in 2000, it took great pains to explain that it would use diamonds from diamond manufacturers, not its own mines, to avoid unfair competition with its sightholders. But some of De Beers’s retail competitors are, ironically, now gaining the upper hand by acquiring stones directly from the source and reaping the benefits of vertical integration.

MACRO: The Conference Board’s Consumer Confidence Index, which had increased in January, declined in February. The Index now stands at 101.7, down from 106.8 in January. The Present Situation Index rose to 129.3 from 128.8. The Expectations Index, however, fell to 83.3 from 92.1 last month.

“The Present Situation Index continues to hold steady at a four-and-a-half year high, suggesting that, at least for now, the start of 2006 will be better than the end of 2005,” said Lynn Franco, director of The Conference Board Consumer Research Center. “However, consumers are growing increasingly concerned about the short-term health of the economy and, in turn, about job prospects. The Expectations Index is now at its lowest level in three years, excluding the two months following Hurricane Katrina. If expectations continue to lose ground, the outlook for the remainder of 2006 could deteriorate.”

Russell Shor
Senior Industry Analyst

With the announcement and subsequent launch of the GIA Diamond Cut Grading System, I am frequently asked to explain the benefits of our system. Over the last several months, we have tried to address this and other aspects of the new cut grading system during the many presentations we have given on it, both domestically and internationally. At this time, I would like to share some of what we have presented.

The defining qualities of the GIA Diamond Cut Grading System are:

1. The system is Scientific. It rests on a foundation of peer-reviewed research, which included computer-modeled light behavior and statistical analysis of observations by members from all sectors of the international diamond community. Rather than starting with preconceived notions of which proportions and other factors lead to beauty and high cut quality in round brilliants, we used custom-designed computer ray-tracing and extensive observation testing to explore broad areas of proportion space. During the course of this methodical process, we scientifically proved what many in the industry had long felt about good proportions in round brilliants, but also discovered areas of proportion space that many in the trade never suspected could produce quality diamonds.

2. The system is Practical to use. It is visually intuitive—attractive diamonds receive favorable grades and unattractive diamonds are described as such. We also carefully considered what the “right number” of grades should be in a practical system—and arrived at five (excellent, very good, good, fair, and poor) based on the limitations of visual discrimination. The visual basis of the system also allows it to be taught (and learned) easily in our Education courses, and experienced members of the diamond trade can quickly see that GIA cut grades make sense and are easily understood.

3. The system is Comprehensive. Face-up appearance may be the most important part of a diamond cut grading system, but it is not the only part that should be considered. Our new system also includes aspects of physical design (such as weight and durability) and craftsmanship. All of these factors are considered in the determination of a final, overall cut grade.

4. The system acknowledges personal and regional Tastes and Preferences. One of the most compelling findings from our observation tests and interviews was that different people prefer different appearances in diamonds. Sometimes these differences are from one person to another, and other times they represent preferences in certain countries or regions. We knew that the GIA Diamond Cut Grading System had to be applicable around the world. In some cases, this meant recognizing that a certain face-up appearance might be favored by some but not others. This recognition, backed by the findings of our ray-tracing and observation tests, is incorporated into the final system. Even though there can be different appearances within a given GIA cut grade (a good thing from both a sales and consumer point of view), the overall performance (e.g., the brightness and fire) of each diamond with the same grade is similar.

5. The system is Predictive. Manufacturers, whether polishing a diamond from rough or recutting a polished diamond for a better grade, need to know before they start what cut grade they can expect from a certain set of proportions. The GIA Diamond Cut Grading System allows them to do this by using any of the GIA Facetware™ products—the free online Facetware Cut Estimator and Facetware Look-Up Tables, or the Facetware Database as embedded in non-contact measurement devices (such as those offered by Sarin and OGI).

6. Last, but certainly not least, the system is Accessible. Consistent with GIA’s status as a public benefit corporation, we have made the system available to anyone who wants to use it. To this end, we have developed software (GIA Facetware) that predicts cut grades and is available in several different formats, as described above. We have also dedicated a whole section of our website to presenting relevant information about the GIA Diamond Cut Grading System. In addition, since we announced the system in August of 2005, representatives of GIA Research and the Laboratory have been offering presentations at trade shows and in major cutting centers in the United States and internationally. Starting in January, GIA Education began teaching students how to use the new cut system in half-day seminars, and it now includes this instruction in all new diamond-related course material. Everything needed to use and understand the new cut grading system is readily available.

We are confident that we have created a diamond cut grading system for round brilliants that is accurate, complete, and practical. It is a system that can be used and understood by the public to make informed buying decisions, and by manufacturers to maximize the beauty from rough. For more information about the new system, please visit our diamond cut microsite.

Thank you,

Tom Moses
Senior Vice President, GIA Laboratory and Research

Fingerprint-like inclusions are common features in many colored gemstones such as ruby and sapphire, but they are extremely rare in diamonds. In corundum, these “fingerprint” patterns are formed by fluid-assisted partial healing of pre-existing fractures. However, in the case of diamond, much higher pressures and temperatures are necessary to promote partial healing of fractures and, at these conditions, fluids are usually not present. A few instances of fingerprint-like patterns produced by groups of tiny inclusions in natural-color blue and colorless diamonds have been reported, but the interconnected channel-like structure that is common to sapphire “fingerprints” was not observed in these stones (see Lab Notes: Spring 1968, pp. 278–279; Spring 1993, pp. 47–48).

In recent years, fingerprint-like inclusions seen in colorless to near-colorless diamonds are most often associated with high pressure, high temperature (HPHT) treatment (see, e.g., figure 10 in T. M. Moses et al., “Observations on GE-processed diamonds: A photographic record,” Fall 1999 Gems & Gemology, p. 19). Similar to the HPHT-treated stones described by Moses et al., a small “fingerprint” extending from a graphitized inclusion was recently seen in an F-color, 4.79 ct., type IIa heart-shaped brilliant that was found to have been HPHT treated (figure 1).

Over the past few months, the West Coast laboratory has had the opportunity to examine three natural-color diamonds with a range of fingerprint-like inclusions. A pattern consisting of several groups of tiny crystals, very similar to those described in the 1968 and 1993 Lab Note references above, was observed in a Light blue, 0.64 ct., type IIb marquise brilliant. However, the most intriguing discoveries were two colorless type IIa diamonds (a 2.28 ct. D-color round brilliant and a 1.00 ct. F-color pear shape) that contained inclusions with an appearance remarkably similar to the “fingerprints” seen in rubies and sapphires (figure 2). The diamonds were tested very carefully and determined to be of natural color. The channel-like patterns (not composed of tiny crystals) very strongly suggested that these were partially healed fractures in natural, untreated diamonds.

The geologic environment in which these two diamonds may have been heated to the temperatures necessary to cause partial healing of fractures remains a mystery. The heating must have occurred very deep in the earth (i.e., at high pressures), in that the clarity of these relatively large gem-quality diamonds did not show any evidence of the intense graphitization that occurs in diamonds heated at lower pressures. These samples also serve as a caution to gemologists that fingerprint-like features in colorless or near-colorless diamonds do not always mean the stones have been HPHT treated.

This entry was prepared by Christopher M. Breeding of the GIA Laboratory in Carlsbad. For more of the latest from the GIA Laboratory, read the Lab Notes section in the upcoming Spring 2006 issue of Gems & Gemology. To subscribe, click here  or contact Circulation Coordinator Debbie Ortiz. Call toll-free 800-421-7250, ext. 7142. Outside the U.S. and Canada, call 760-603-4000, ext. 7142.

A gem’s apparent color is the result of how it interacts with incident light. Most colored gems selectively absorb portions of the visible spectrum in characteristic ways, while transmitting the remainder of the spectrum. This effect can be analyzed with a handheld or desktop spectroscope and can be used to help identify a gemstone. Besides visible light, a gem might also absorb invisible radiation from the infrared (IR) and ultraviolet (UV) ranges of the electromagnetic spectrum. When these forms of radiation interact with a gem, elements or atomic-level optical defects within it might absorb or give off characteristic amounts or types of energy. By measuring and analyzing areas of a gem’s spectrum, laboratory gemologists can often determine the elements or optical defects present in that gem.

Laboratory gemologists use a variety of instruments to analyze a gem’s absorption of electromagnetic energy. In general, the instruments used to measure and record this information are called spectrometers (spek-TROM-uh-ters).

One of the most useful of these instruments is the spectrophotometer (spek-truh-fo-TOM-uh-ter), which can analyze a gem’s absorption of radiation from the UV, through the visible, and into the IR portion of the electromagnetic spectrum. Among other advantages, a spectrophotometer is much more precise than a handheld or desktop spectroscope and can measure radiation absorption beyond the visible spectrum, in addition to detecting very fine details of a gem’s absorption.

A typical spectrophotometer exposes a gem to the full range of wavelengths in the visible range from the UV to the IR (from 250 to 800 nm), progressing one step at a time through a series of tiny spectral “slices” (typically 0.5 nm wide). For each reading, the radiation that strikes the sample represents only a very narrow region, or bandwidth, of the spectrum. A portion of the incident radiation passes through the gem and falls on a narrow, window-like detector in the instrument. The instrument scans the entire spectrum, one slice at a time, and builds a picture of the gem’s absorption pattern. This pattern, called an absorption curve, appears on a computer screen as a graph.

Instead of the pattern of broad dark bands and fine lines seen with a spectroscope, the absorption curve recorded by a spectrophotometer shows broad curves and sharp peaks. The broad curves and soft peaks correspond to bands, and the sharp peaks to fine lines. A spectrophotometer can detect very weak features that are not visible with a handheld spectroscope; it also provides an accurate wavelength position for each peak and even records features outside the visible portion of the spectrum (below 400 nm, and above 700 nm).

One challenge presented by this type of instrument is positioning the gemstone in the sample chamber so that sufficient transmitted light will reach the detector. Because polished gemstones vary widely in terms of color, transparency, and faceting shape, in some instances it may be impossible to record a usable spectrum. Mounted gems can also present difficulties. Depending on the optical properties of the gem material, it may be necessary to orient the stone in a particular way in order to record the most useful spectrum.

UV-Vis spectrometry detects the characteristic absorptions of color-causing elements common in many colored stones, such as chromium, vanadium, titanium, and iron. The shapes and positions of the absorptions can help identify many gems. Just as spinel, spessartite, almandite, peridot, and ruby produce distinctive bands and lines with a spectroscope, they produce distinctive absorption features that can be recorded with a spectrophotometer.

The technique can also detect a number of sharp peaks in the visible spectrum of colored diamonds that indicate they have been treated by irradiation followed by controlled heating. Treated pink or purplish pink diamonds typically show some combination of sharp absorption peaks at 575, 595, 637, and 658 nm. This is true whether they are irradiated natural stones or synthetics that were originally yellow or brown, as shown below.

Although the spectrophotometer is normally used in situations where radiation can pass through a transparent gem, a special attachment allows it to record reflected light from the polished surface of opaque or translucent gems. This is called the reflectance technique, and it is used to record the spectra of gems such as turquoise or pearls.

Interpretation of visible spectra can be complicated, so it is important to have a library of reference spectra of known gemstones for comparison.

Step-by-step procedures to identify natural, synthetic, and imitation gems in both rough and faceted form are taught in GIA’s Gem Identification course. Click here for information on this course and other GIA programs.

During the AGTA show in Tucson in February, Dr. Jim Shigley, director of GIA Research, and Shane McClure, director of West Coast Identification Services, presented results and discoveries from GIA’s current research efforts. The last Insider issue included highlights from Shigley’s presentation on diamonds. This article will focus on McClure’s summary of colored stone research.

McClure began the colored stone portion of the seminar by reviewing the use of laser ablation–inductively coupled plasma–mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) to detect beryllium diffusion treatment in corundum. After discovering that beryllium was being used to alter the color of corundum, the GIA Laboratory began a major research project to improve the gemological understanding of corundum.

“Corundum is an important gem material, it’s versatile and it’s susceptible to treatment,” explained McClure. “We need to truly understand the material and have it characterized thoroughly.”

As part of the research project, GIA is developing a database that will help analyze trace elements in corundum. GIA’s newly acquired mass spectrometer system, which produces a more detailed chemical analysis of materials and can detect lighter elements than previous systems, is being used to build the database. The goal is to allow gemologists to recognize untreated material more easily and help researchers anticipate future treatment processes that may come into the market.

One main focus of this project is to determine the differences between untreated corundum materials from known localities in order to detect if a material has been treated. “Thinking from the viewpoint of geologic source type, different growth environments produce different inclusions and react differently to treatments,” said McClure.

He then discussed the differences between two basic types of corundum: (1) those of metamorphic origin, as are generally found in Mogok (Myanmar), Kashmir, and Sri Lanka; and (2) those of magmatic origin, the typical geologic occurrence for rubies and sapphires mined in Australia, China, and Thailand. Because magmatic corundum is subjected to much higher temperatures during its formation process, it often contains different mineral inclusions, and detecting whether or not it has undergone heat treatment is more difficult.

In addition to the corundum research project, McClure also discussed a number of new gem finds, including p