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https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/american-cut-the-first-100-years-by-al-gilbertson-g-g.71573/

Thought I would add this link to a thread John Pollard has in the Journal forum regarding Mr. Gilbertson''s area of expertise. After his post I wondered who he was, so I googled him, and realized that we have one of the foremost authorities of the history of American diamond cutting joining us! Since there are so many of us vintage cut lovers here, I thought someone besides myself might be interested to learn a little more about him!

I''m so excited to have your input, Mr. Gilbertson! And I''m eager to read your book. This is one of the amazing outcomes of Pricescope...... plain old folks who just have an interest or attraction for diamonds or gemstones, can find themselves in the midst of the greatest experts in the field. It never ceases to amaze me!!!
 
Date: 1/14/2009 10:10:22 AM
Author: ericad
One more!
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Sigh.... Ever seen anything so beautiful you wanted to cry?? Or just go buy one?
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That will so never happen though
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Date: 1/15/2009 11:24:55 AM
Author: Al Gilbertson

Coati-
Table size would indicate probably after 1903 and the short lower half length indicates prior to 1945. They could have been cut in the US or Europe. There were cutting factories in both locations cutting this style with these proportions.
Al Gilbertson
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Hey, I have a great book - the most complete I''ve seen on cut evolution during that period - which tends to agree.

Nice to see you here Al.
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Date: 1/15/2009 11:41:23 AM
Author: Upgradable

https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/american-cut-the-first-100-years-by-al-gilbertson-g-g.71573/

Thought I would add this link to a thread John Pollard has in the Journal forum regarding Mr. Gilbertson''s area of expertise. After his post I wondered who he was, so I googled him, and realized that we have one of the foremost authorities of the history of American diamond cutting joining us! Since there are so many of us vintage cut lovers here, I thought someone besides myself might be interested to learn a little more about him!

I''m so excited to have your input, Mr. Gilbertson! And I''m eager to read your book. This is one of the amazing outcomes of Pricescope...... plain old folks who just have an interest or attraction for diamonds or gemstones, can find themselves in the midst of the greatest experts in the field. It never ceases to amaze me!!!
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Thanks for linking that UpG. Al''s book is a great read for anyone who is a fan of cutting - old or new approaches.
 
Posting and running without commenting individually on all the gorgeous diamonds and settings added recently, will have to return for that...

but just wanted to remind folks that the "Old Cuts 101" info I posted near the beginning of the thread is from Al Gilbertson. I''ll never discourage folks from reading "long," but sometimes one only has time for the Cliff Notes!
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First of all - WONDERFUL educational thread!!!!

I *think* I have to go with transitional. I adore the chunky flashes of fire from all the old cuts. But.... the open culets drive me bonkers.
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My eyes just zoom in on the culets. Maybe because they are blown up to eight bajillion times their actual size?

Anyway- I''m having a blast reading and enjoying everyone''s antique beauties! Love the disco ball effect!
 
Date: 1/14/2009 3:07:38 PM
Author: oldminer
Here is a chart of parameters to help understand how to screen for better cut older cut style diamonds. Of course, you must look with your own eyes to be certain of how you perceive beauty, but you can spend a lot less time in doubt if you know what to dismiss quickly from the selection process. That big 3.54 is a stunner!!!!

You can ''save'' the image to your ''my photos'' and open it with your own photo program to make it larger and more readable. It is near the limit of what can be uploaded to Pricescope.
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Is this chart availlable on your website? I opened it separately, but still tough to read.... does look very helpful though! Thanks for helping to educate us.
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I''ve recently become a fan of old cuts myself.....have a few photos to add to the mix.

0048 OECalj.jpg
 
Two OECs; both M color in the mid 80-point range

0060 OECs.jpg
 
:-)

0066 OEC.jpg
 
It''s a much different look than RBs - much more striking spectrum colors

0083 OEC.jpg
 
They photograph amazing, too.

0092 OEC.jpg
 
This is a transitional stone; the table is larger than I''d normally expect, but the facet arrangement of this stone is very lively in person

0164 Transitional.jpg
 
This is a nice view of the higher crown and tiiiiiiiiiiny table

5396 OEC.jpg
 
The body color is more evident here, but face up, it doesn''t appear this warm at all.

5401 OEC.jpg
 
....

5587 OEC.jpg
 
Hoping we see many more old cuts on the forum.

I''ve talked to Andrey recently about creating a subsection (similar to the colored stones folder) for vintage stones and jewelry, and he thought it was a great idea. Stay tuned for that to happen shortly.

5625 OEC.jpg
 
Light show

OEC 0022.jpg
 
Please explain how you are taking these exquisite photos. They are just fabulous! What gorgeous stones. Your photos absolutely capture the beauty of the old cuts.
 
Sigh...so beautiful! I keep hoping I can talk my mother out of her OEC, but sadly for me, she still wears it quite frequently.
 
Gosh there''s some really beautiful pieces/stones in here!
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I''ll throw in my early inheritance gift, my moms highschool graduation present. It''s an OMC with what I believe are single cut melee. I''d love to find an OEC someday, I just love their look.

Linky (pics throughout)

OMC3965.JPG
 
Alj, are those yours??? They are gorgeous!!! So many beautiful stones on this thread!!!

I''d love, love, love to have some old cut stones, but that is a much harder prospect to manage online than it is to buy modern ideal cuts.
 
Date: 1/14/2009 10:10:22 AM
Author: ericad
One more!
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Wow, Erica, that is an extraordinary ring!!!!
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Allison, what extraordinary pictures!! I''m glad you were able to capture what is often easily seen with the eye in these old cuts: those great big flashes of colored fire!!!!
 
Gorgeous stones, Allison! And great idea for a sub forum for old cuts/antiques - I look forward to that!

Allison''s pics are a great testament to how truly unique each antique stone is from another. You can get 5 OEC''s of comparable weight, color, etc. and each would have its own unique appearance, color play, proportions and personality. I could never mix my stone up with another of the same weight because its so unique and instantly recognizable. This is why certain stones speak to each individual. While Grace and I can both look at a group of stones and agree on which ones are beautiful, we would never agree on the same stone to purchase for a personal piece - lucky for us, otherwise we''d be fighting to the death over the same pieces, lol.
 
Date: 1/16/2009 9:18:27 AM
Author: diamondseeker2006
Alj, are those yours??? They are gorgeous!!! So many beautiful stones on this thread!!!

I''d love, love, love to have some old cut stones, but that is a much harder prospect to manage online than it is to buy modern ideal cuts.
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DS, one of the OECs belongs to KtIceRN (the one on the bottom in the photo of both, plus the two photos that follow that one.). The transitional stone and the other OEC belong to me.

You are right that it IS much harder to purchase OECs online than it is RB. Kt and I went on a road trip to NYC uring Thanksgiving week, and we visited a few dealers. There were stones we online that looked like they had promise, but when we saw them in person, they just didn''t speak to us. Of course, we were super picky about the style of facet arrangement we were looking for in OECs.

Mine is a .86, M, VS2 OEC; hers is nearly its twin at .84, M, SI1. Both stones are amazing, but they do have different looks because her stone is a bit deeper and has a smaller table. Still, both stones shoot AMAZING fire.

The transitional was a surprise - I''ve seen more classic transitionals than this one, but for some reason, we both loved the facet arrangement on that stone. It''s an EGL-graded L, but it appears warmer to me than either of our M stones. (The Ms aren''t graded, so I suspect that they are probably true Ms as the dealer follows the stricter GIA parameters. I suspect the EGL-graded L would likely be an O or P by GIA standards.)
 
I have to say my love for older cuts is a newly developed passion for me. I''d say that the seed was planted when I went out to visit Mara last spring.

She and I took a day trip down to Carmel, where there are a good handful of antique jewelers. There was such an amazingly wide array of older stones; not only were there many, but they were BIG.....LOL. 4 cts plus in same cases.
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Being able to see so many of them really made me appreciate the different personality they have, but I didn''t really yearn to have one at that moment.

Over the summer, I ran across a fantastic 1.15 Transitional at a shop in Boston, but the asking price was higher than I felt it should be. I decided to wait and learn a bit more and see what I could come up with.

All that was fine until I saw a recent stone carried by Jewels By Erica Grace.....(so yes, ladies, I''m blaming the recent fetish development on both of you! LOL
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). She recently had a 1.28 J stone, and I watched the video MESMERIZED. I think I watched the clips about 20 times!!!!!!!!, and the seed planted earlier in the year turned into a full-blown TREE of wanting to get an older stone!

As much as I wanted that stone, it was a bit out of the range I was looking for, so I began in earnest to plot a way to get closer to more old stones. I did a little homework here first, and then went on the hunt.

The stones we bought are the result of that hunt. Since having it, I''ve fallen firmly in love with the romantic look of older stones.
 
Those are some of the most breathtaking photos!
 
Alison, those are amazing photos! I want my own little sparkler so badly!
 
Date: 1/15/2009 11:24:55 AM
Author: Al Gilbertson
Coati-

Table size would indicate probably after 1903 and the short lower half length indicates prior to 1945. They could have been cut in the US or Europe. There were cutting factories in both locations cutting this style with these proportions.

Al Gilbertson
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Thank you very much for this information. Very interesting! The ring feels very old, though it is in great condition.
 
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