In the history of diamond polishing, the name Asscher is well remembered and respected. A diamond dynasty based out of Amsterdam that gave us the Asscher cut, the royal Asscher cut, as well as the Royal Asscher Company, which is active to this day. The first name, Joseph, is also closely associated with Asscher. There we several of them. The first was Joseph Isaac Asscher, who founded the company in 1854.

The Las Vegas trade shows – JCK, Couture, Luxury, and AGTA – were active and positive this year, a clear departure from past annual June trade shows held in Las Vegas. The annual pilgrimage to the city was engulfed with a positive expectation by diamond traders, American retailers, and jewelry wholesalers. While not an exaggerated optimism, or ungrounded feeling that everything is going to be all right, it was an understanding that demand is there, prices are right, and people want as well as need to do business.

Do you like diamonds? Does the sparkle of a well-polished round diamond tantalize you? One man deserves a lot of credit for the fire and brilliance of diamonds and that is Marcel Tolkowsky. Although diamonds have a natural beauty, Marcel is the man who figured out how to get the most light to shine out of a diamond, calculating how to maximize light return.

Prices of most round-shaped polished diamonds increased in May, according to the Mercury Diamond Global Tracker™ (MDGT™). The few exceptions were the larger goods, 5-carats and above, and the thirds (0.30-0.39 carats). The rising prices continue the trend of firming up of the polished market. With the exception of a small decline in March, polished diamond prices have improved almost across the board in every month in the past six months. This is clearly a trend.

Much has been told of the discovery of diamonds in Southern Africa, especially those findings in Kimberley, South Africa, which established the African diamond industry that continues to flourish over 130 years later. The size of this discovery is such that it is still an important source of income for countries in Southern African countries, primarily Botswana. The finding was so significant that almost anyone you ask will tell you that diamonds come from Africa (although they come for Russia and Australia as well). But what do we know about diamond finds in North America?