Rose Cut Diamonds: Bringing Old Cuts Back

The rose cut is one of the oldest types of diamond cut. Started in the 15th century, and perfected during the early 16th, by today’s modern standards its six to twenty-four triangular facets do very little to cull the deep, scintillating fire, that a modern brilliant-cut stone can provide. And while it was cutting edge technology circa 1590, as technology advanced and we started to understand more about light refraction, diamond cuts focused on getting more brilliance and fire out of each stone, sending the rose cut by the wayside.

Today, the rose cut has fallen out of favor in most of the modern world. India still produces many rose cut diamonds for use in traditional jewelry, but for the most part, these stones are hard to come by. Maybe it’s because the backs of these stones are typically flat. Maybe it’s because you lose so much of the stone in cutting. Whatever the practical reason, though, I can’t understand it, because I’m obsessed with rose cut diamonds.