Jewelry Terminology

Alexandrite
Alexandrite is unique and unusual for its color change when exposed to different forms of light. When viewed under natural daylight equivalent light, alexandrite looks blue-green. When viewed under indoor light, it appears reddish-purple. Mining of natural alexandrite has stopped, therefore the stones that have good color are very valuable. There are many versions of alexandrite imitations in the market to be aware of.

Amethyst
A type of quartz ranging in color from light lavender to a deep, intense purple with small flashes of red. Because amethyst is so widely available in the jewelry market, it is not very valuable or expensive. Unlike other stones, amethyst is always some variety of purple. It is very commonly used in jewelry.

Aquamarine
A gem ranging in color from light to deep blue or bluish-green . The most valuable aquamarines are the ones that exhibit a pure blue color. Aquamarines are generally faceted, but some are not. Some of the highest quality aquamarines originated in Russia. Aquamarines are widely used in jewelry, and are very popular.

Black Onyx
It is a form of quartz. Onyx is not always black, but is most popular in jewelry in black. It also exists in white, tan, and brown. It is usually cut in the shape of a cabochon and sometimes found in the form of beads. Also commonly used for intaglios and cameos.

Citrine
A variety of quartz that can range from light yellow to reddish-orange to brown. Usually found cut in gemstone form, this stone is not as bountiful as the more common gemstones. Most citrines found in today’s marketplace have actually been heat treated.

Emerald
A precious gemstone variety that is deep green colored. High quality emeralds are among the most valued of all gemstones. Flaws or inclusions are very common in emeralds, which makes their value less affected than that of diamonds or other gemstones. Columbian emeralds are among the most highly regarded emeralds. A high quality emerald has a deep green color, with the most valuable having a slight blue tinge to its green color. If an emerald looks high quality and has no inclusions, it is most likely synthetic. Many emeralds that are used in jewelry are low quality and have been artificially enhanced to improve their appearance.

Garnet
Usually found in a dark, crimson toned red, this semi precious stone can also be found in a range including deep red to deep purple to brown, orange, green, or blue. Blue is the most rare of these colors. Garnets are most commonly found in Turkey, Russia, and the U.S. They range in quality from cut and polished gemstone quality that allows light to pass through to opaque stones mainly used as abrasives.

Jade
Made up of two mineral varieties, jadeite and nephrite, jade has been treasured by the Chinese and Indian population for thousands of years. Jade can be green, lavender, red, black, and yellow. Simulated jade is quite common and it is usually made of glass or plastic.

Lapis Lazuli
Made up of many different minerals, lapis lazuli is a vibrant toned green and blue natural stone. The colors that lapis lazuli exhibits range from royal blue to violet to greenish blue to forest green. Has a medium hardness of 5-6 on the Mohs hardness scale, and also has a softened luster.

Opal
Opal is a semi precious stone that has s a speckled and multi-colored iridescent appearance. Viewed in different lighting or at different angles, opals give off a somewhat rainbow effect of a multitude of colors. Opal also has a medium hardness or 5.5 to 6.5 on the Mohs hardness scale.

Peridot
A semiprecious green colored gemstone that ranges in color anywhere from a bright and vibrant green to a yellowish green to an olive green or a deep green.

Ruby
Ruby is a red precious gemstone. Color in rubies can range from a magenta to a deep, blood red. Very fine, high quality rubies can be worth even more than diamonds. Ruby is in the corundum species. Star rubies also exhibit a star-like phenomenon, known as asterism.

Sapphire
Sapphires are most commonly found in blue, but they also exist in a wide range of colors including white, orange, green, and pink. Sapphire is also in the corundum species, and is also a precious gemstone. Star sapphires are also quite common, they exhibit a star-like phenomenon, which is referred to as asterism.

Topaz
Topaz comes in a multitude of vivid colors, including yellow, orange, red-brown, pink-red, etc. It is a precious gemstone that is an 8 on the Mohs hardness scale.

Tourmaline
Tourmaline has an extremely wide color range . It ranks a 7.5 on the Mohs hardness scale. Two or more colors can be exhibited in the same crystal in a tourmaline.

Diamond Shapes

Asscher Cut
The Asscher cut has become popular very recently. The Asscher brothers invented this special cut in the early 20th century. The Asscher cut is today’s more updated version of the older cushion cut. This stone is in the square to rectangular shape with a flat table. Similarly to the cushion, the Asscher cut has an open culet, which is the facet on the bottom of the diamond. There are small step cuts on the top part of the diamond and larger facets under the stone.

Round Brilliant Cut
This is the most classic and timeless of all shapes. More than 75% of diamonds sold for engagement rings or in jewelry are round brilliants. The round brilliant diamond is the most brilliant diamond shape in existence. A modern round brilliant always has 58 facets, whereas an antique round brilliant only has 57, because they are not faceted with culets. There are 33 facets on the crown, which is the top portion of the diamond. There are 25 facets on the lower portion of the diamond, called the pavilion. In the year 1919, the ideal cut was formulated using a series of precise mathematical formulas. The ideal cut allows the diamond to show the maximum amount of brilliance and fire. Ideal cuts are most valuable and highly regarded, partly because they are rare. More weight is lost in obtaining ideal cut proportions compared to diamonds that exhibit less ideal proportions. The most valuable round brilliants have depths between 60 and 63%, with tables between 53 and 59%.

Emerald Cut
Emerald Cuts are rectangular shaped diamonds that have trimmed corners. Flaws are more easily noticed in this cut than others, because emerald cuts have fewer facets and reflect less light. Emerald cuts have anywhere from 50 to 58 facets. Emerald cuts set in engagement rings are typically found set with a smaller emerald cut on each side to balance out the design.

Marquise Cut
Marquise Cuts also have 58 facets, and other transparent stones can also be found in the marquise shape. When evaluating or shopping for a marquise, pay attention to sharp sides and points, as these can make it easy for the diamond to chip or damage. Narrow and long stones are more likely to break. The ideal ratio for length to width in marquise cuts is 1.5.

Heart Shape
The heart shape diamond is also a brilliant cut diamond with 57 facets. It is pretty similar to the pear shape. The only different is that it has a cleft on the top of it. The cleft is the part between each half of the heart. The ideal shape for a heart is perfectly symmetrical. A well defined heart shape diamond commands a much higher price than one that is not as symmetrical. Color may be more easily seen at the corners of the heart shape. The ideal depth for heart shapes is between 58 and 65.4% and the ideal table size is between 52 and 64%. The ideal length to width ratio for heart shapes is between .98 and 1.02.

Cushion Cut
The cushion cut originated in the end of the 19th century. Also commonly referred to as the pillow cut, this was one of the most popular diamond shapes ever created. This shape ranges from rectangular to square, and has larger facets with rounded corners. There is always an open culet on the bottom of the antique ones , which gives the diamond more depth. The fact that the facets are so large makes the clarity grade more obvious. This means a cushion cut diamond should have a better clarity grade to be the most attractive. Cushion cuts are not quite as brilliant as modern round brilliants. Cushion cuts that are manufactured today are more valuable, because they use cutting edge technology to enhance symmetry, proportions, and polish.

Princess Cut
Princess Cuts are square shaped diamonds designed to give off the same amount of sparkle as a round brilliant. This shape was developed somewhat recently and has a rectangular or square table, which is the large flat facet at the top of the diamond. The typical length to width ratio that a princess cut diamond should have is 1 to 1.00-1.15. This is a popular style when set in a solitaire engagement ring setting. A princess cut diamond will have anywhere from 45 to 58 facets. The four corners of a princess cut diamond must always be covered with prongs for protection against chipping. Girdles that are too thin also pose a problem, because they are prone to chipping. Another thing to be aware of is that princess cuts usually appear somewhat smaller than diamonds of the same weight in other shapes. Most of the weight is hidden in the bottom part of the diamond, called the pavilion. Well cut princess cuts typically have tables between 60 and 75% and total depths between 65 and 80%. Because princess cuts retain most of the weight out of the rough, unpolished stone, princess cuts are the least costly to manufacture.

ROLEX OYSTER PRODUCTION

DATES BY SERIAL NUMBER

Serial----------------------------Year

28000-----------------------------1926
30430-----------------------------1927
32960-----------------------------1928
35390-----------------------------1929
37820-----------------------------1930
40250-----------------------------1931
42680-----------------------------1932
45000-----------------------------1934
63000-----------------------------1935
81000-----------------------------1936
99000-----------------------------1937
117000---------------------------1938
135000---------------------------1939
164600---------------------------1940
194200---------------------------1941
223800---------------------------1942
253400---------------------------1943
283000---------------------------1944
348100---------------------------1945
413200---------------------------1946
478300---------------------------1947
543400---------------------------1948
608500---------------------------1949
673600---------------------------1950
738700---------------------------1951
803800---------------------------1952
950000---------------------------1953
999999---------------------------1954*
200000---------------------------1955
400000---------------------------1956
600000---------------------------1957
800000---------------------------1958
1100000-------------------------1959
1402000-------------------------1960
1480000-------------------------1961
1558000-------------------------1962
1636000-------------------------1963
1714000-------------------------1964
1792000-------------------------1965
1871000-------------------------1966
2163000-------------------------1967
2426000-------------------------1968
2689700-------------------------1969
2952600-------------------------1970
3215000-------------------------1971
3478400-------------------------1972
3741300-------------------------1973
4004200-------------------------1974
4267100-------------------------1975
4539000-------------------------1976
5006000-------------------------1977
5482000-------------------------1978
5958000-------------------------1979
6434000-------------------------1980
6910000-------------------------1981
7386000-------------------------1982
7862000-------------------------1983
8338000-------------------------1984
8814000-------------------------1985
9290000-------------------------1986
9766000-------------------------1987
9999999-------------------------1987.5
R000000------------------------1987.5
L000001-------------------------1989
E000001------------------------1990.5
X000001-------------------------1991.75
N000001------------------------1991.75
C000001------------------------1992.25
S000001------------------------1993.75
W000001-----------------------1995
T000001------------------------1995.5
U000001------------------------1997.5
A000001------------------------1999
P000001------------------------2000
K000001------------------------2000.5
Y000001------------------------2002.75
F000001------------------------2003.75
D000001------------------------2005.5
Z000001-------------------------2006.5

*Please note: in mid 1954 Rolex went back to 100,000, not to 1,100,000 on case numbers for the Oyster watch.

Diamond Information:

Diamonds are always evaluated with the “Four C’s of Diamonds”: Carat, Color, Clarity, and Cut.

CARAT

Most diamonds and gemstones are weighed in carats. One carat is approximately 0.2 grams.

A good way to look at carats is thinking about dollars. Just as one dollar is divided into one hundred pennies, 1 carat is divided into 100 points. For example, if you have a .75 carat diamond you would say that the diamond weighs seventy five points. What makes diamonds so interesting is that diamonds with the exact same weight can be valued very differently. It depends highly on the other three C’s.

When diamonds are weighed, precision is of utmost importance. Most good diamond scales weigh the diamond to the thousandth and are rounded to the nearest hundredth. Diamonds that weigh over one carat are not expressed with the point system. Instead, if you have a 1.35 carat stone you say one point three five or one thirty five.

COLOR

Diamonds are not valued on what you can see; they are valued on what you cannot see. The closer a diamond is to being colorless, the more valuable it is (unless it is a fancy color diamond).

Most of the diamonds that you will find in a retail jewelry store are close to colorless with hints of brown or yellow.

The industry standard for grading the color of a diamond is as follows: D is colorless and Z has the most color, with everything else falling in between. Diamonds are colored by comparing them to other diamonds with known colors.

While most people looking at or buying a diamond would not notice a drastic difference between two letters of color, a trained professional does. This affects the value and price of a diamond significantly.

CLARITY

Diamonds are formed miles beneath the surface of the Earth. Because they are often exposed to extreme conditions they develop marks and blemishes either on the inside or outside.

It is rare to find a diamond with no blemishes and therefore it makes that kind of diamond more rare. The more rare a diamond, the more the diamond is worth. Therefore a diamond with little or no blemishes is worth more than one with marks. Just like grading the color, there is a specific scale that grades the clarity. The best is IF (for Internally Flawless) to I3 (obvious inclusions).

Every single diamond is different. No two are the same. And just like none are the same, none are completely flawless under a microscope. However, the ones that come close are labeled FL (flawless). Most jewelers haven’t even seen one.

On the clarity scale there are 11 different rankings. Most everyday diamonds fall under the VS (very slightly included) or SI (slightly included). The grade is as follows:

FL – Flawless

IF – Internally Flawless

VVS1 and VVS2 – Very, very slightly included: inclusions are very hard to see under a 10x microscope

VS1 and VS2 – Inclusions are visible under 10x but are deemed minor

SI1 and SI2 – Inclusions are visible under 10x

I1, I2, and I3 – Inclusions are visible under 10x and may effect the brilliance

CUT

The cut of a diamond represents its fire, brilliance, and sparkle.

Brilliance – total light reflected from the diamond

Fire – dispersion of light into the colors of the spectrum

Brilliance – flashes of light or sparkle when a diamond moves

The cut also includes the proportions, symmetry, and polish. These three factors also go into valuating a stone. The relationships between these three things make for a higher or lower valued stone.

The cut scale goes as follows

Excellent, Very Good, Good, Fair, and Poor