Help! Missing GIA number on the girdle of newly certified diamond?

[diamondhoarder]

Hi trade members and pro-sumers

I am in the process of buying a newly certified asscher, and the vendor has just informed me that on inspection, the GIA number is not inscribed on the girdle. Its around 1 3/4 carats and my understanding was that GIA inscribes the number on the girdle of all diamonds over a certain carat weight these days. Have I got this wrong? I just checked over the cert (which is dated 8th Oct 2020) and it does not mention a GIA inscription on the girdle as I would have expected.

I'm now unsure how to proceed. I would prefer an inscription, but I'm now faced with the possibility of additional costs in order to have it done, unless it turns out that GIA made a mistake and would presumably therefore add the inscription at their own cost?

 

[Crazie4Cuts]

I would insist having the diamond etched with the GIA number. Should not be at your cost. I do think it was a good call for your vendor to look and note this. Did you already pay for the Asscher? If so, that would be a migrating factor before taking possession.
-C4C

 

[daisygrl]

I would not be buying a diamond without inscription. Try to call GIA and ask yourself and see what they tell you.

 

[denverappraiser]

No, this is not correct. It depends on the GIA service that was ordered. They automatically include it on 'Dossier' type reports, which generally are done for smaller stones, but not for 'Diamond Grading' reports unless the client pays extra for it. It says in the title of the report what you have. The hitch here is that it needs to be ordered at the same time as the original report or it won't be mentioned in the 'comments' section. To get it at this point you, or someone, will need to resubmit the stone for an inscription, which involves shipping, plus get an update to the report.

Does it say on the report that there is an inscription? It would be at the bottom of the left column on the report itself where you see the comments. It's possible you just can't see it, and it's possible they made an error. If they say it's there, and it's not, they'll fix it for free.

 

[diamondhoarder]

No, this is not correct. It depends on the GIA service that was ordered. They automatically include it on 'Dossier' type reports, which generally are done for smaller stones, but not for 'Diamond Grading' reports unless the client pays extra for it. It says in the title of the report what you have. The hitch here is that it needs to be ordered at the same time as the original report or it won't be mentioned in the 'comments' section. To get it at this point you, or someone, will need to resubmit the stone for an inscription, which involves shipping, plus get an update to the report.

Does it say on the report that there is an inscription? It would be at the bottom of the left column on the report itself where you see the comments. It's possible you just can't see it, and it's possible they made an error. If they say it's there, and it's not, they'll fix it for free.

Thanks for your reply. It was the vendor who told me that the inscription is not there - they just received the diamond from the supplier and inspected it. When I re-checked the GIA cert there is no comment mentioning an inscription. Its a full report not a dossier.

I'm wondering why, on a diamond of this size and cost, an inscription would not have been requested considering it was only just certified. I'm not too happy about it.

It sounds, from your response, as though I could be in the position of having to pick all of these costs up myself if I want the inscription.


Its a H VS2 1.75ct asscher which took me a long time to find, certified on 8th October. Am I right to have reasonably expected an inscription on such a diamond?

How much of an issue could be it in the future (in terms of re-sale/ trade-in etc) if I don't get it inscribed? I've already maxed out my budget and I'm not happy about unexpected additional costs

 

[ForteKitty]

I wouldn't expect an inscription unless the GIA states there is one, no matter the size/specs. When they send in the diamond for grading, they have to select that service and GIA doesn't automatically include it. I would assume a VS2 would have enough inclusions where you can identify and match to the plot, so that an inscription isn't necessary for trade-in.

 

[Rockdiamond]

I'm wondering why, on a diamond of this size and cost, an inscription would not have been requested considering it was only just certified. I'm not too happy about it.

Speaking as a dealer.....
It's common for stones NOT to have GIA inscription. At the dealer level, we're looking at stones loose- identification using the report is relatively easy.
As a consumer, I totally understand your concern....but as I wrote, this is not uncommon.
As an aside- sometimes when you inscribe the girdle of a step cut stone, you can actually see the inscription through the table.....

PS- Neil gave ( as usual) a concise and factually correct answer

 

[diamondhoarder]

Speaking as a dealer.....
It's common for stones NOT to have GIA inscription. At the dealer level, we're looking at stones loose- identification using the report is relatively easy.
As a consumer, I totally understand your concern....but as I wrote, this is not uncommon.
As an aside- sometimes when you inscribe the girdle of a step cut stone, you can actually see the inscription through the table.....

PS- Neil gave ( as usual) a concise and factually correct answer

That's interesting feedback, thank you. It does sound as though the supplier just chose not to have the inscription done. I had not considered that this may have been a purposeful decision to avoid seeing reflections through the table. The diamond has a thick girdle and a 58% table and 66% depth with a steep crown. I wonder if that makes it more or less likely that the inscription would reflect throughout the stone?

I have spoken to GIA and found out that if the stone is re-submitted within 60 days of the original cert date then the cost of adding the inscription is minimal - $46. So it is a small cost for something that I personally would value having. But only if it doesn't mess up the look of the diamond...........

 

[Ibrakeforpossums]

What if you asked for a 1 or 2 character identifier, such as **?

 

[diamondhoarder]

What if you asked for a 1 or 2 character identifier, such as **?

I like your thinking but that wouldnt be "mind clean" for me. Its either the full inscription or nothing.

 

[WinkHPD]

Speaking as a dealer.....
It's common for stones NOT to have GIA inscription. At the dealer level, we're looking at stones loose- identification using the report is relatively easy.
As a consumer, I totally understand your concern....but as I wrote, this is not uncommon.
As an aside- sometimes when you inscribe the girdle of a step cut stone, you can actually see the inscription through the table.....

PS- Neil gave ( as usual) a concise and factually correct answer

Rockdiamond, like me, is old enough that he remembers getting a GIA report was not the norm. That only became the norm during the diamond investment craze which drove prices up hard and fast. (And let them come back down even faster.)

There were dozens of "certificate houses" that popped up and sorely abused those unwise enough to trust their reports. I still see occasional packages of "investment" stones coming out of estates. Sadly, even after more than 40 years, most of the packages are still unable to recover what the "investors" purchased from the boiler room sales teams.

Wink

 

[Rockdiamond]

What if you asked for a 1 or 2 character identifier, such as **?

Personally.....I would never add anything subsequent to GIA inscription...
And- GIA WILL indeed engrave your name.logo, etc on a stone...but I'd only do that if there's also the GIA inscription....

 

[denverappraiser]

If it bugs you, do it now. It has to be done loose, which I presume it currently is, so doing it later will involve pulling and resetting, possible prong repairs, etc. If it's shipping from a US address, the Post Office is back up and running after the election nonsense and registered mail isn't all that expensive.

In a more direct answer to your question, it doesn't matter all that much. If you sell it years down the road, your buyer will be happier with a 'fresh' report anyway. It'll raise the price a little bit after your 60-day window expires but it's still not really a financial problem. In any case, if you are committed to buying the stone, do it now, simply because it bugs. The vendor can probably help you out with the logistics.

 

[diamondhoarder]

If it bugs you, do it now. It has to be done loose, which I presume it currently is, so doing it later will involve pulling and resetting, possible prong repairs, etc. If it's shipping from a US address, the Post Office is back up and running after the election nonsense and registered mail isn't all that expensive.

In a more direct answer to your question, it doesn't matter all that much. If you sell it years down the road, your buyer will be happier with a 'fresh' report anyway. It'll raise the price a little bit after your 60-day window expires but it's still not really a financial problem. In any case, if you are committed to buying the stone, do it now, simply because it bugs. The vendor can probably help you out with the logistics.

Thanks, that's good advice. I will most likely do that. I'm just waiting for some final images (including ASET) to make sure I'm 100% happy with the stone.

 

[Garry H (Cut Nut)]

A bit of history.
GIA grade so many diamonds under 1ct that they feel the need to have the number to make it harder for companies to resubmit the same diamond and pray for a better grade.
Almost all stones over 1ct (there are far less of them) have enough identifying features that GIA's Horizon program can ID each and every diamond they have seen before.

 

[Texas Leaguer]

That's interesting feedback, thank you. It does sound as though the supplier just chose not to have the inscription done. I had not considered that this may have been a purposeful decision to avoid seeing reflections through the table. The diamond has a thick girdle and a 58% table and 66% depth with a steep crown. I wonder if that makes it more or less likely that the inscription would reflect throughout the stone?

I have spoken to GIA and found out that if the stone is re-submitted within 60 days of the original cert date then the cost of adding the inscription is minimal - $46. So it is a small cost for something that I personally would value having. But only if it doesn't mess up the look of the diamond...........

I suspect that your comment is right on the money. Certain cuts do reflect inscriptions in unwanted ways. A step cut being one of the more revealing styles, this is very likely the reason the manufacturer did not order inscription.
An inscription is a nice convenient way to always be able to quickly identify your stone. But this stone will be readily identifiable to you once you familiarize yourself with it thoroughly. Lack of inscription is NOT a cause to reject the stone. And I would be cautious about having it inscribed after the fact. You may get the unwanted surprise that the manufacturer anticipated!

 

[diamondseeker2006]

I have an antique asscher with a GIA report and I am pretty sure it doesn't have an inscription. It hasn't ever crossed my mind, to be honest. I personally wouldn't go to the expense of sending it to be inscribed. There are many stones that don't have an inscription. Not to mention, it's a scary thought that an inscription might reflect in a step cut!!!

 

[diamondhoarder]

A bit of history.
GIA grade so many diamonds under 1ct that they feel the need to have the number to make it harder for companies to resubmit the same diamond and pray for a better grade.
Almost all stones over 1ct (there are far less of them) have enough identifying features that GIA's Horizon program can ID each and every diamond they have seen before.

Interesting! Thanks for the insight Gary. I'm learning new stuff all time about how all this works.

 

[diamondhoarder]

I suspect that your comment is right on the money. Certain cuts do reflect inscriptions in unwanted ways. A step cut being one of the more revealing styles, this is very likely the reason the manufacturer did not order inscription.
An inscription is a nice convenient way to always be able to quickly identify your stone. But this stone will be readily identifiable to you once you familiarize yourself with it thoroughly. Lack of inscription is NOT a cause to reject the stone. And I would be cautious about having it inscribed after the fact. You may get the unwanted surprise that the manufacturer anticipated!

Thanks Texas Leaguer. I always enjoy hearing your comments on these types of issues. Having thought about it some more, and taking into account your's and David's comments about possible reflections in the steps, I'm not going to have the inscription done. Why risk the possibility of an unwanted visual effect? Also hearing that it is generally not considered a big deal for a stone with a full grading report not to have an inscription has put my mind at rest.

 

[diamondhoarder]

I have an antique asscher with a GIA report and I am pretty sure it doesn't have an inscription. It hasn't ever crossed my mind, to be honest. I personally wouldn't go to the expense of sending it to be inscribed. There are many stones that don't have an inscription. Not to mention, it's a scary thought that an inscription might reflect in a step cut!!!

I have really enjoyed your posts and images about your antique asscher, it really is a lovely stone in a great setting. I think you are right about not risking a possible inscription reflection.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

I have really enjoyed your posts and images about your antique asscher, it really is a lovely stone in a great setting. I think you are right about not risking a possible inscription reflection.

Oh, thank you so much! I look forward to seeing yours set!