Colored Diamonds

When most people think about diamonds, they have an image of a bright, sparkling clear, almost white stone. In addition, while the perfect diamonds are clear and white in color, there are many colored diamonds of equal or even greater value. As one of the four C’s considered when pricing diamonds, different colors are determined by different facets of the gemstone.

A diamond that is free of chemicals and structural flaws will be perfectly translucent with absolutely no color hue. In reality, this is rare as most diamonds will have structural imperfections in it crystal make-up and depending on the color and the intensity of the color, the value of the diamond can go up or down. Many yellow colored diamonds are less expensive than white diamonds, but those such as the Hope Diamond, are considered more valuable. Intense blue coloring in the diamond make is extremely rare, however the most sought-after colored diamonds are those with an intense red color.

Most colored diamonds mined fall into the range of pale yellow to light brown with a slight impurity of nitrogen infused during the crystal growth giving the stone its color. The vast majority of diamonds mined from South Africa are considered clear, even if they contain a slight yellow color. There are a few that appear as brilliant yellow or dark brown, due to the content of the nitrogen and are commonly referred to as Canary Diamonds.

Grading Colored Diamonds Now Standardized

When the industry first began grading diamonds by color, there was no established rules concerning the colored diamonds and was typically used when sorting rough diamonds for sale. When the gems reached the next level in the supply chain there were again sorted by size and color, this time with more attention paid to the intensity of the color. Today, computerized tools are used to grade colored diamonds, allowing a standard procedure to make the process for exact.

When colored diamonds fall outside the normal color scale, they are considered fancy diamonds and those, such as the intense blue Hope Diamond, are much in demand and, as such, considered highly valuable. Of course, its size 45.52 carats has a lot to do with its value and it is currently housed in the Smithsonian Institute.