David S. Diamonds

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Cut

Tolkowsky’s Ideal Cut

In recent years, the term Ideal Cut has been used loosely to describe diamonds of fairly well-cut proportions. Marcel Tolkowsky first introduced the concept of ideal cut proportions for round diamonds in 1919. His Master's thesis entitled " Diamond Design-A study of the Reflections and Refractions of light in a Diamond", scientifically analyzed the optics of a baroque brilliant cut diamond. His conclusion was that there is a set of proportions a diamond can have that would allow maximum brilliance and fire to be achieved. His work was the first formal effort using mathematics and physics to arrive at a scientific conclusion for the requirements necessary to optimize light return for a diamond with a known critical angle of refraction.

Tolkowsky’s Measurements Still Used Today

Mr. Tolkowsky provided specific mathematical tolerances for the crown angle, pavilion depth and table size of his ideal cut diamond. Even though Mr. Tolkowsky's analysis of the baroque brilliant diamond was empirical in nature and based on a two dimensional model with no emphasis on girdle thickness, amazingly, Mr. Tolkowsky's measurements are still today regarded by many in the diamond world as the standard for ideal proportions for a round brilliant cut.


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	Monday to Friday 10:30am to 6:00pm Saturday 11:30am to 5:30pm.
	David S. Diamonds 550 Fifth Ave, Suite 700, New York, NY 10036

Phone: 1-888-DAVID81 or (212) 921-8029
Fax: (212) 827-0036
Email: davidsdia@aol.com