Large families have always populated the diamond industry, and for centuries, Hasidic families most of all. They formed the backbone of Amsterdam’s diamond industry, and then Antwerp’s. Early in the 20th century, some of Europe’s Jewish diamond traders and polishers emigrated to form budding diamond industries in new destinations.
The diamond industry pipeline may look like a short and efficient journey, but the reality is far from it. The process starts with mining, then rough trading, manufacturing, jewelry setting and finally retailing. In this new article series, the entire diamond pipeline will be presented from one end to the next, with facts and statistics on the issues it faces.
The diamond industry pipeline starts with mining, then rough trading, manufacturing, jewelry setting and finally retailing. It may look like a short and efficient journey, however it is anything but that. In this new article series, the entire diamond pipeline will be presented from one end to the next, with facts and statistics on the issues it faces.
Over the past few months, I have carefully detailed the value components of polished diamonds. These components – Color, Clarity, weight, shape and quality of workmanship – were presented and explained. I broke down the bearing of yield, and described how these different aspects interact in terms of impact on value.
After covering the main polished diamond shapes, it is worth taking a moment to discuss some less common and even esotericdiamond shapes. Some of these shapes, such as Baguettes, are fairly common and serve specific jewelry and setting needs. Others, like the Shield, are created to take advantage of an oddly-shaped rough diamond and turn it into something unique.