Multi-Faceted Color
June 2008
Diamonds are colorless, right? That’s what most people think, until they see the Hope Diamond at the Smithsonian Institution. According to Jeffrey Post, curator of the National Gem and Mineral Collection at the museum, "It is the first colored diamond most people have seen." Until about 20 years ago, only cognoscenti knew that diamonds came in all colors of the rainbow. But they are rare: for every 10,000 colorless diamonds that are unearthed, only one colored diamond is found. This includes small gems, known as melee, as well as large, important stones. To find a fine example, one with an even saturation of color, is even more difficult. According to Benjamin Zucker in Gems and Jewels: A Connoisseur’s Guide (Overlook, 2003), "Perhaps one in a hundred thousand diamonds has a deep enough natural color to qualify as a ‘fine, fancy colored diamond.’"Even though natural colored diamonds are rare, in the last few years they have become known beyond the circle of the privileged few, due in large part to publicity surrounding events such as the Academy Awards, where celebrities have been bedecking themselves with these glittering gems. In 2004 Halle Berry wore the Harry Winston 5.54-carat pumpkin-colored diamond ring when she received her Oscar. At the same event, Maria Menounos, host of "Entertainment Tonight," wore a diamond-studded dress created by designer Randi Rahm, embroidered with 2,000 brown diamonds totaling 3,000 carats that was valued at $2.5 million. And then there was the Harry Winston 6.1-carat pink diamond engagement ring that Ben Affleck gave Jennifer Lopez in 2002.
For most of history, colored diamonds were associated with royalty, particularly in Europe and India, where they constituted the cream of the collections of kings and maharajahs. In the 19th century, collectors such as Henry Philip Hope and the Duke of Brunswick amassed collections of colored diamonds, which were eventually dispersed, the Hope Diamond finding its way to the Smithsonian. In 1874, Tiffany & Co. bought a 30-carat lemon-yellow diamond from the Duke of Brunswick estate, known as the Brunswick Diamond, set into a peacock-feather ornament and proudly displayed it in their exhibit at the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition in 1876 (the present whereabouts of this stone are unknown). The following year, a rough yellow diamond weighing 287.42 carats was discovered in the Kimberley Mines in South Africa. Tiffany bought the stone and had it cut into a cushion shape of 128.54 carats with 90 facets to maximize its brilliance, naming it the Tiffany Diamond. It is still in the Tiffany collection, exhibited in a special case on the first floor of the firm’s New York store.
A diamond gets its color from minute amounts of trace elements that interact with the carbon atoms that make up the stone. Each element has its own hues. Nitrogen will result in a yellow or orange stone, which, with additional amounts, becomes deeper in color. Submicroscopic inclusions, such as graphite, block all transmissions of light, resulting in a black diamond. Boron creates blue and uranium yields green, while hydrogen produces pink, purple and red. According to François Curiel, chairman of Christie’s Europe and a veteran jewelry expert, "Rarely do imperfections add value. In the case of colored diamonds, it is ironic that the beauty and rarity of these gems comes from an impurity. While a perfect colorless diamond now trades at $100,000 per carat, the benchmark for the best colored diamonds has surpassed $1 million a carat and continues to rise."
What is so fascinating about colored diamonds? In market terms, the pivotal event that made everyone take notice was the sale of a 0.95-carat red diamond at Christie’s in April 1987 for $880,000; at $926,000 per carat, it was the highest price per carat for any gem. Until that day, the record for a diamond had been $127,000 per carat. The red diamond was purchased by a dealer, but the publicity it generated brought an awareness of colored diamonds not only to the trade but to collectors. It would take 20 years for this record to be broken—when last November, a 2.26-carat purplish-red diamond sold at Christie’s in Geneva for $2,664,900—or $1,179,160 a carat.
What does one look for in colored diamonds? All colored diamonds are graded for hue, tone and saturation. Hue indicates the purity of the color, the finest stones having no traces of secondary colors. Tone is a measure of the lightness or darkness of a stone, while saturation describes strength of color in terms of degrees of intensity; the terms are Fancy, Fancy Deep and Fancy Vivid, in ascending order of desirability. Fancy Deep describes stones of medium to dark tone and moderate to strong saturation while Fancy Vivid is a deep color with no traces of other colors. According to Thomas Burstein, Vice President, Estate Jewelry and Client Services, New York Salon, Harry Winston Inc., "The main concern for collectors is that the diamond shows its color; it has to be evenly dispersed." Alan Bronstein of Aurora Gems Inc. in New York states, "The colors of a diamond are not the colors that one would expect to see in other gemstones. A red diamond is not a ruby, traffic light or fire engine. It is more like wine."
There are those who are passionate about colored diamonds. Bronstein has assembled two unique collections. One, the Aurora Butterfly of Peace Collection, consists of 240 colored diamonds, arranged in the shape of a butterfly, that were assembled over a 12-year period. The stones, ranging from 0.09 to 2.11 carats for a total weight of 166.94 carats, show nearly the full spectrum of color and cut styles available for natural colored diamonds.Then there are collectors who look for rare gems of unparalleled color and size, such as the 407.48-carat fancy brownish-yellow kite-shaped Incomparable Diamond. It was the largest of the 15 stones cut from an 890-carat rough found in the early 1980s by a young girl in the Mbuji-Mayi district of the Democratic Republic of Congo. It is the largest flawless diamond ever cut.
The demand for colored diamonds has increased over the past several years. "The production of natural colored diamonds coming out of the earth has not changed dramatically in the last 15 to 20 years, but the amount of wealth has changed, spurring a demand, which has driven prices up," says Robert May, executive director of the Natural Color Diamond Association. Curiel is more specific: "Middle Eastern clients are great collectors of colored diamonds in large sizes, while Asia is the prime market for these gems, but in small sizes." "There is a major increase in price mostly for reds, blues and pinks," says Lior Levin, marketing director for the Geneva-based Steinmetz Diamond Group.
Pink diamonds come primarily from the Argyle mine in Australia, in operation since 1985. "The Argyle has acquired the honor of being the only mine in the world that produces a consistent quality of rare pink diamonds," says Jean-Marc Lieberherr, general manager of Rio Tinto Diamonds, which owns the Argyle mine. "The collectability of pink diamonds is unprecedented, and the desire to own the rarest has sent prices skyrocketing. With the Argyle mine forecast to close in 2018, the exclusivity and image of pink diamonds as a key investment option has been enhanced." Each year, the mine releases 60 to 65 of the rarest pink diamonds from the mine at the Argyle Pink Diamond Tender, which are restricted to about 100 clients who leave bids. "Known as the Argyle Signature Stones, these rare gems have an unparalleled depth of color and quality."
Every colored diamond must have a certificate attesting that it is a natural stone, not one treated to enhance its color. The laboratories offering certificates are the GIA (Gemological Institute of America), the AGS (American Gem Society), the IGI (International Gemological Institute) and the EGL (European Gemological Lab). A certified lab will be able to tell whether a diamond has been treated to modify its color or has been made synthetically. A lesser-value diamond can be irradiated or a coating can be applied onto the pavilion of the stone to enhance its color. Synthetic diamonds are made in either of two methods. The first is High Pressure High Temperature (HPHT), which mimics the natural formation of colored diamonds in the earth. Gemesis in Sarasota, Florida, grows such diamonds. The second, Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD), is a process by Apollo Diamond in Boston, Massachusetts. According to Matthew Hall, Manager of Identification at the GIA in New York, "The GIA can detect the vast majority of diamonds that are treated." Their mission is to stay on top of trends and treatments.
In the last five years, numerous designers and retailers have been utilizing colored diamonds in their designs. For some, the diamond is the focal point of the design. When Christian Tse, a jewelry designer from California, first saw a 23-carat fancy pink diamond, he knew within five minutes that he had to buy it. "I have seen many other pink diamonds, but this one was saturated and had all the right proportions," he says. "This stone spoke to me." He set it into the pendant of a necklace within a colorless diamond ribbon-like mounting. James de Givenchy of the New York–based jewelry design studio Taffin chose a 2.75-carat fancy dark grey/green/yellow diamond to set into a ring mounting made of steel. This is not just any colored diamond, but a chameleon that changes color depending on the light.
Artist Daniel Brush from New York City is fascinated by jewelry and creates designs that are decidedly not mainstream. Instead of using traditional metals such as gold and platinum, he prefers nonprecious materials such as Bakelite. His line of jewelry, the Menagerie Magnetique, depicts animals studded with colored diamonds; one example is a poodle with orange and yellow diamonds. "Colored diamonds are extremely allusive, charming and dreamy," says Brush. "Perhaps because of the way the saturation is dispersed, it becomes a description beyond color or mood."
Michelle Ong, who designs for Carnet in Hong Kong, created a pair of ear pendants in the form of grape bunches. The grapes are made of briolette-cut diamonds, one bunch white, the other black, with the leaves in opposing colors. Neil Lane, a celebrity jeweler from Los Angeles, was inspired by pebbles that he collected at the beach as a child when designing a bangle bracelet with faceted rough-cut colored diamonds in many different shapes.
"The house of Cartier has a long history of using the finest colored diamonds to create some of the most exquisite jewelry the world has seen—from the legendary 45.5-carat Hope diamond to the most astounding necklace ever created by Cartier for the Maharajah of Patiala featuring the famed 234.69-carat yellow diamond," says Frédéric de Narp, president and CEO of Cartier North America. Today, colored diamonds continue to grace Cartier’s collections, including the Inde Mystérieuse Bengal Tiger ring with yellow diamonds, the design rooted in India and based on the historic relationship between Cartier and the maharajahs.At Van Cleef & Arpels, colored diamonds grace the latest designs, such as the Pastel Hiver (Century Collection) with a clip brooch in blue and pink diamonds. "The colored diamonds in Van Cleef & Arpels jewelry are used as an artist would select a certain shade of color for his painting, chosen for their appropriateness within the design of a piece of jewelry," says Nicolas Luchsinger, store manager of Van Cleef & Arpels, New York.
One spectacular piece of jewelry is a Graff multi-colored diamond necklace with 142 natural-colored diamonds, weighing a total of 267 carats with a 37-carat fancy intense yellow pear-shaped drop. "Graff is the only company that could have created this necklace," says Henri Barguirdjian, president and CEO of Graff USA. "Graff is famous for its unparalleled selection of colored diamonds and has access to an astounding inventory. We could have made several different pieces with these rare gems but decided to create one unique necklace. The range of colors, the intensity of the color saturation in each stone—it is truly a remarkable layout. It is the epitome of the Graff aesthetic—the minimum amount of metal is used to highlight the vibrancy of these rare stones." In 2006, it sold for $30 million dollars to an Asian client.
Each colored diamond is unique, never to be replicated…like a work of art. For this reason, connoisseurs, collectors and those who want to wear beautiful jewelry are seeking the best not only for their striking hues but also as sound investments.
Janet Zapata is an independent scholar and decorative arts consultant, specializing in jewelry and silver. She is the author of several books including The Jewelry and Enamels of Louis Comfort Tiffany and The Art of Zadora.
Aurora Gems Inc., New York
212.3551480 auroragems.com
Cartier, New York
800.227.8437 cartier.com
Christian Tse, Pasadena, CA
626.577.9288 info@christiantse.com
De Beers
debeers.com
Gemological Institute of America
Carlesbad, CA, 800.421.7250
New York, 212.944.5900 gia.edu
Graff
London 011.44.20.7584.8571
New York 212.355.9292 graffdiamonds.com
Harry Winston, New York
212.245.2000 harrywinston.com
Martin Katz
Los Angeles, 310.276.7200
New York, 212.957.8295 martinkatz.com
Molina Fine Jewelers, Phoenix
800.257.2695 finejeweler.com
Mouawad, Los Angeles
310.226.7870 mouawad.com
Moussaieff, London
011.44.20.7408.0487 info@moussaieff.co.uk
M.S. Rau Antiques
800.544.9440 rauantiques.com
National Color Diamond Association, New York
212.644.9747 ncdia.com
Neil Lane Jewelry, Los Angeles
310.275.5015
Premier Gem, New York
212.319.5151 premiergem.com
Rio Tinto Diamonds, Antwerp, Belgium
011.32.3.303.6800 riotintodiamonds.com
Siegelson Inc., New York
212.832.2666 siegelson.com
Steinmetz Diamond Group, Geneva
steinmetz-group.com
Taffin, New York
212.421.6222
Tiffany & Co., New York
800.843.3269 tiffany.com
Van Cleef & Arpels Inc., New York
877.826.2533 vancleef-arpels.com