Gorgeous green-colored emeralds are always breathtaking. Emeralds today have become an extremely popular alternative to diamonds in the choice of engagement rings. In many occurrences, an emerald is as expensive as a diamond, therefore it is actually a matter of one’s choice and preference. If you are also wondering to go for an elegant emerald gemstone for your engagement, you can buy emeralds online.
Nowadays, we have options to buy gemstones online too. Emerald is a very popular and precious member of the Navratna gemstone clan. Generally, there are 4 famous ‘C’s’ of any gemstone that determine its quality and price. Below, let us study the famous 4 c’s of Emerald. Here we are discussing the cut, color, clarity, and carat weight of an Emerald in detail.
To explore in detail the sourcing of fine quality emeralds, visit the previous blog of our series, The world of Emeralds – I.
Cut – Emerald Shape
Emeralds are cut in a variety of shapes and sizes. The most common of all the shapes are the round cut, the faceted cut, the cabochon cut, and the octagon “emerald” cut. Besides regular oval, octagon, and heart shapes, there is pear, cushion, and carving cuts also available in the market. However, the color of any gemstone is paramount and creates a huge difference in its price, quality, and overall value; shapes also play a vital role. Effective cutting of a gemstone can surge its cost by up to 20-30%. It is so because of the amount of rough wastage and the traditional cycle of demand & supply for these shapes.
Round and emerald-cut emeralds are considerably more expensive than a fancy-shaped emerald. Whereas, a profoundly faceted-cut emerald can even cost more than an oval or round-shaped emerald. The round cut enhances the refractive quality of an emerald, making it more lustrous. Cushion cut emeralds are commonly available in 6mm+ sizes. These cushion shapes have also become quite popular in the emeralds in the recent few years, following closely behind round-shaped emeralds in popularity. Emeralds in oval and pear shapes are generally accessible in all sizes. Peach, Princess, and Marquise are some of the other shapes found in the emerald gemstone. A princess emerald, also known as square emerald, usually exists in a smaller size than 5mm.
Color – Emerald shades
The greatest factor in deciding the value of an emerald is its color. The color of an emerald gemstone weighs pretty much above than its every other quality factor. In this precious gem, the rule goes as brighter and greener is the color, higher is the price of emerald in the gemstone market. Too many components of iron can create a bluish tint and reduce the value of an emerald. Since the majority of emeralds come from Colombia, they are vividly saturated and display a fine and perfect balance between green and blue hue. Natural Colombian emeralds are considered to be of the finest quality in terms of color. Therefore, the per-carat price of Colombian emerald costs higher than any other origin.
Typically an emerald or any other gemstone is examined and graded on the basis of its color tone and saturation. Both these elements eventually determine whether the emerald will rank in AAA (highest) quality or in C (lowest) quality category. However, evaluating color is subjective and there is no standardization that exists across the industry, color is graded in AAA, AA, A, B, and C categories.
The color of Emerald is evaluated by viewing it face up, without any magnification. Ideally, emeralds are green, without additional undertones in their colors but many of them hold tint of blue, yellow, and brown. The purer the green hue, the higher the color is. The value of this Navratna member increases with its rich saturation and consistent color. In the best quality emerald, the color tone is vivid and deep, it’s neither too dark nor light. The saturation should be fluid and even throughout.
Navratan provides the best-colored emeralds online at the best price in the industry. Explore a wide range of original Colombian Emeralds in all shapes and sizes, along with an authenticity certificate and worldwide shipping. For the remaining two ‘Cs’ of the emerald gem, let us move to our next blog of the series ‘The world of emeralds – III’.