customer
by the carat. But it must be remembered that a poorly cut stone will
not look as large as a stone of slightly less weight, if the latter is
well cut.
Fine diamonds, especially those of considerable size, are cut into drop shapes, navettes or marquise shape, square cut or emerald cut, square cut with steps, and oval, the
last being cut like a round brilliant, but of oval shape. Small pieces
from the processes of cleaving and sawing diamonds are generally rose cut, with flat back. It is due probably to this fact that the rose-cut stones come from the fragments that they are commonly termed chips. In the old days of cutting many of the famous stones were rose cut, having when properly cut twenty-four facets. A correctly proportioned rose should be one half its diameter in thickness. Smaller and poorer roses have twelve facets.
Before
being cut the rough diamonds are first examined by an expert, who
decides how each stone shall be treated, and who then marks on the
stone with ink what part of the stone shall be removed by cleaving or
sawing, in order to get it in proper shape for further work.
In
the process of cutting, rough diamonds are generally cleaved or sawed
to render them suitable in size for cutting. If it be cleaved,
