What Makes Red Diamonds Red
But which one to pick?
Nature offers us many different colored diamonds, but if you’re looking for something truly unusual, red diamonds are the way to go.
Simply looking at how many there are on the market proves how rare these stones are.
Did you know that for 30 years (’57 to ’87), GIA—an institution with nine labs across the globe, that grade many diamonds each year—didn’t have any records mentioning these red stones.
Note that ‘red’ is used when talking about a stone that has no secondary hues—purple for example–, but only red as the main color.
But how is this hue formed? If you love mysteries, this stone is for you, because even experts at GIA aren’t sure exactly how the dark color is formed.
They use advanced tools and equipment, but still the reason isn’t clear.
It could be due to gliding: this happens when atoms move along the octahedral direction.
This gliding may cause the atomic structure of the diamond to have certain defects and cause a stone to seem red.
Your next question may be regarding famous red diamonds.
Then you’ll want to know about the Hancock Red.
It weighs 0.95ct and in 1987 it was purchased at an auction for $880 000—a price 8 times what experts predicted it would fetch before the auction.
That price tag also means it had a per-carat value of $926 315.
At that time in history it was the highest per-carat price ever charged for a gem.
So, why the fascination with the red stones?
According to a senior analyst at GIA, R Shor, publicity around the Hancock Red and many other colored diamonds could be why people started getting interested.
The ‘people’ also included celebrities and even diamond cutters play a role in the hype: over time their expertise improves, empowering them to obtain striking hues during the polishing process.
For red stones, GIA allocated the word ‘Fancy’ to describe the red gems.
So, their reports will mention one of these terms:
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Fancy Deep
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Fancy Vivid
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Fancy Intense
If you want a more intense hue in your red diamond, pick a ‘Fancy Vivid’.
Let’s end off with another famous red diamond: the Moussaeiff Red.
This one is 5.11ct and it’s a triangular brilliant stone.
In 2003 this gem could be seen at the Smithsonian as part of the ‘Splendor of Diamonds’ event.
It may not have been the biggest—four other exhibits were markedly larger—but its color still made it spectacular enough to be part of the exhibit.
The publication ‘Gems and Gemology’ even stated this stone’s hue is ‘astounding’.
Do you also want a red diamond as part of your collection of gems?
A natural red diamond is very expensive, but you can get one with a slightly lower price tag: a treated natural or synthetic diamond. Experts use irradiation, annealing and coating to produce diamonds with red hues.
They’re not cheap, but less pricey than the real thing.
Will you start putting money away to own your own red stone?