It began in Europe in the Middle Ages, when diamonds first became fashionable on a common basis. Following is a look at how the different cuts came in.
- 1300’s: Early pointcuts were the result of an adherence to the diamond’s natural shape.
- 1400’s: Point and table cuts, with the latter being the very first big faceting technique ever used. It would birth what was to become the emerald cut.
- 1500’s: Early rose cuts were devised as a result of the availability of special tools.
- 1700’s and 1800’s: Old mine cushion cuts (simply “cushion cuts” back then) started coming in, and would later serve as the source of the modern brilliant. By the 1800’s, the 58-faceted stone was being fashioned with the help of the newly invented bruting machine.
- 1900’s: Classic Asscher cut diamonds emerged, although they would not be popular for another two decades.
- 1920’s: The Art Deco era made the round old European cut a favorite.
- 1930’s: The Horizontal Emerald Cut Diamond Ring was born in this time.
- 1940’s: The modern brilliant cut was perfected, and gradually took over.
