Did you realize that an uncut diamond may have very little luster? It takes artistry to bring out the beauty of a gemstone.

A lapidary has great skill. He or she has much knowledge on gem cutting, gained through experience and practice. He can look at an uncut gem and tell exactly how the stone should be cut to bring out the greatest beauty in the piece. Much of this is based on the action of the light as it passes through the gemstone and reflects from its surface.

There are many different cuts possible. Transparent stones such as diamonds and emeralds have a few principal cuts used, most of them involving facets. The more facets, the more light is reflected which is what causes the stone to shine with such brilliance.

Tags: gemstones

This entry was posted on Tuesday, June 24th, 2008 at 12:19 am and is filed under Types of Jewelry. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.