Rose cut, single cut and old mine cut: what are old diamonds worth?
Old diamonds were cut by hand, with fewer facets and a different shape from the modern brilliant. That makes them no less real, but they are assessed differently. You will most often come across three cuts in antique and older jewellery.
Rose cut: flat underneath, domed on top
A rose cut diamond has a flat base and a dome of triangular facets on top, without a table, the flat surface a modern brilliant has. Seen from the side it resembles a rosebud, hence the name.
Rose cuts were made for centuries and appear often in brooches, rings and earrings from the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, frequently set in silver on gold or with a closed back. They are usually thin and light, and they sparkle more softly than a brilliant.
Single cut: the small stones in older jewellery
A single cut (also 8/8 cut) is a simple round cut with a table, eight facets on top and eight underneath. A modern brilliant has 57 or 58.
Single cuts are almost always small. You find them as a border around a larger stone, in eternity and half-eternity rings and in watch cases. Because cutting such a tiny stone as a full brilliant is a lot of work, the single cut was used for a long time, and it is still made for very small stones.
Old mine cut and old European cut
The old mine cut is the forerunner of the brilliant: a cushion-shaped, somewhat square stone with a high crown, a small table and a large culet, the facet at the point underneath. Looking down through the table, you often see that culet as a small circle in the middle.
The old European cut is round rather than cushion-shaped, but has the same high crown and large culet. It gradually disappeared when the modern brilliant became the standard in the twentieth century; in jewellery made after about 1940 you rarely see it.
How are old diamonds assessed?
An old diamond is also measured for carat, colour and clarity, on the same scales as a modern stone. Only the cut grade works differently: the modern scale from Excellent to Poor was made for the round brilliant and says little about a rose cut or old mine cut. With such a stone, our gemmologists look mainly at symmetry, the condition of the facets and how lively it is.
Three things decide what an old stone brings in:
- The size. Rose cuts and single cuts are usually so small and thin that each one brings in little; the gold or silver of the piece then carries more weight.
- Recutting. A larger old mine cut or old European cut can be recut into a modern brilliant. That costs weight, and a buyer takes it into account.
- The piece as a whole. An antique piece in good, original condition can be worth more as an antique than its gold and stones together. In that case we tell you honestly and point you towards an auction or a specialist antique dealer.
Do not remove the stones yourself. Old settings are often fragile, and a rose cut breaks easily. We assess the stones in the piece and weigh the precious metal separately.
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Questions about rose cut, single cut and old mine cut: what are old diamonds worth
Are rose cut diamonds real diamonds?
Yes. A rose cut diamond is a real diamond with an old cut: flat underneath with a dome of triangular facets. Rose cuts in glass or other stones also exist, though, so an assessment is still needed.
What is the difference between a single cut and a brilliant?
A single cut has seventeen facets, a modern brilliant 57 or 58. As a result a single cut sparkles less. Single cuts are almost always small stones, set as a border or in a row.
Is an old mine cut worth more or less than a modern brilliant?
That depends on the stone. An old mine cut is assessed for carat, colour and clarity like any diamond, but the modern cut grade does not apply to it. A buyer sometimes allows for recutting, which costs weight. A gemmologist can tell you stone by stone.
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Sources
Where you can verify what you have just read.
- LBMAThe London gold and silver price our daily rate is built on
- WaarborgHollandThe Dutch assay office that verifies fineness and strikes hallmarks
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