“The diamond only one job – to dazzle,” says DeGem’s design and communication director Choong Jiayueh at the recent launch of the BrilliantC Grand Tea Party event. According to Choong, the C that denotes the cut in a diamond’s grading is a holdover of the 20th century, based on a 1919 definition of the 57-faceted brilliant-cut diamond and its ratios by Belgian diamond cutter Marcel Tolkowsky.
For regional upmarket jeweller DeGem, a jewellery business which has operated across the span of 40 years and two generations, and has sold millions of diamonds, there was a sense of the potential to further improve on the stones’ brilliance and sparkle. Hence, starting from 2019 and continuing over the course of the pandemic, DeGem was able to realise the BrilliantC in collaboration with American Gem Society (AGS) Laboratories: diamonds that sparkle with such vivacity that their extra degree of scintillation is visible even to an untrained eye.
This effort largely came about via AGS Laboratories’ patented ray tracing test, which analyses how light travels through each BrilliantC diamond. In order for it to earn this qualification, the BrilliantC would need to score an AGS Ideal Cut Grade (also known as AGS Triple Zero), which involves getting top marks in all four criteria; cut grade, light performance, polish and symmetry. Such stringent parameters mean that only one in 1,000 diamonds will have the necessary requisites to be shaped into a BrilliantC diamond, with the potential to achieve that incredible light performance once cut.
Exclusive Formula
Across a space of three years, DeGem, working in collaboration with AGS Laboratories, analysed and measured light performance using mathematical extrapolations of proportions and angles. The BrilliantC Ideal Cut proportions are an update of the original Tolkowsky ratios for the diamond’s table, pavilion and crown – minimising and eliminating leakages of light with a formula that is now pending a patent.
Scientific Proof
At AGS Laboratories, founded by Robert M Shipley, who also started the Gemmological Institute of America (GIA), the diamond is graded and measured three-dimensionally through its ray tracing tests. AGS Laboratories’ objective methods in reviewing diamond-cut grades possess 11 specific grades (versus five of other gem laboratories); these grading reports are made accessible on smart devices. Its Angular Spectrum Evaluation Tool lets users magnify the diamond in 360 degrees. Each BrilliantC diamond will come with a physical and digital copy of the AGS Laboratories certification.
Traceability Rocks
DeGem’s partnership with global diamond cutters ensures that all its BrilliantC diamonds that are above 0.3 carat come with a Diamond Time-Lapse report. These stones are sourced from conflict-free mines that conform to United Nations regulations. DeGem is the first in the world to offer this degree of traceability for ideal-cut diamonds. In addition, the jeweller is a registered member of the World Federation of Diamond Bourse, which is a commitment to using only conflict-free diamonds from reliable sources as well as an industry that supports the livelihood of 10 million people worldwide.
Generational Wisdom
“BrilliantC is a story of science meeting human craftsmanship,” says Choong Jia Chen, DeGem’s operations and business development director. “Our diamond cutters are from Surat (a city in the western state of Gujarat, India), a main hub of diamond-cutting expertise and innovations, where generations of experience are inherited and reflected through the artisans of the present day.” The scientific application comes in the form of a so-named ‘Galaxy machine’, each costing approximately US$1.2 million, which is used to map out the BrilliantC proportions of diamonds that make the grade.
Galaxy Time
Using a polishing wheel that is weighted to eliminate any potential vibrations, the craftsmen work on individual facets to achieve the perfect proportions of a BrilliantC diamond. It takes about a year for these diamond polishers to train and become proficient in operating these diamond wheel cutting tools.
Qualifying Brilliance
The quality control segment of the process then determines that each BrilliantC is as it is supposed to be. The diamonds that fall under the BrilliantC category usually take about double the amount of time to polish versus a conventional diamond, with each stone taking between two and two-and-a-half days to bring to life.
Contemporary Heirlooms
When finally assembled, the BrilliantC diamonds sparkle with flawless beauty, delivering consistent light performance notwithstanding their colour, clarity or carat weight.
Collection Quartet
DeGem currently offers four distinct collections under its BrilliantC range: Ultimate with bold signature settings, Hurricane for trailblazers with its upward-swirling hurricane designs, Apex with its inclined architectural designs, and Legacy that pays tribute to human values and the circle of life. Shown below are pieces from the Ultimate (left) and Legacy collections.
BrilliantC diamonds are now available at DeGem’s six boutiques across Klang Valley.
