Jewelry Specifications

Jewelry items will be inspected in their entirety, i.e. quality of diamond(s) and / or stone(s), quality of mounting, precious metal content, stamping and tagging. Diamonds shall be graded for clarity, cut and color based upon the Gemological Institute of America's (GIA's) diamond grading system in conjunction with the approved Jewelry Cost Analysis Proposal Worksheet.

Diamonds shall be graded under 10 power (10x) binocular magnification. Color grading shall be accomplished under diffused cool-white fluorescence lighting using a Diamond Colorimeter and a master diamond color grading set certified by the Gemological Institute of America (GIA).

The following jewelry specifications are the minimum acceptable requirements for jewelry to be supplied to The Exchange. All jewelry supplied shall either meet or exceed the following:

Jewelry Requirements

Acceptable Carat Weight Ranges

1/4 = 0.23 to 0.29 3/4 = 0.70 to 0.83 3 = 2.95 to 3.10
1/3 = 0.30 to 0.36 7/8 = 0.84 to 0.94 1 1/2 = 1.45 to 1.58
3/8 = 0.37 to 0.44 1 = 0.95 to 1.15 2 = 1.95 to 2.10
1/2 = 0.45 to 0.58 1 1/4 = 1.23 to 1.28 2 1/2 = 2.45 to 2.62
5/8 = 0.59 to 0.69 1 1/3 = 1.29 to 1.44 3 = 2.95 to 3.10

Quality

  1. No knife-edge girdles or extremely thick girdles on the diamond.
  2. No dark centers in the diamond which are the result of light leakage caused by too deep of a pavilion.
  3. Round diamonds must have a table percentage between 52% and 67%.
  4. Round diamonds must have crown angles no less than 30 degrees or greater than 38 degrees.
  5. Diamonds must be good or better symmetry and polish.
  6. No chips, breaks or large "opens" in the stone. Diamonds must be whole and complete.
  7. No laser drilled diamonds.
  8. No treated (clarity enhanced) diamonds including fracture filled treatment.
  9. No diamonds with strong fluorescence under ultra-violet light.
  10. Culet size on diamond must be None - Medium.
  11. On all items containing more than one diamond, the diamonds shall face up approximately the same size and color.
  12. Diamonds must be properly seated, securely set and not loose.
  13. Round diamonds: Must be well cut and proportioned.
  14. Fancy cut diamonds: Must be well cut and proportioned. Unattractive or unbalanced cuts will not be acceptable.
  15. All single cut diamonds must have 17 facets or more. Full cut diamonds must have 58 facets or more.

Mountings, Stamping and Tagging

The requirements for mountings, stamping and tagging are outlined in the following Appendices:

  1. Appendix I - Specifications for Precious Metal: Mountings
  2. Appendix II - Requirements for Stamping
  3. Appendix III - Specifications for Tagging
  1. Colored stones shall be graded for clarity, cut and color per the Jewelry Cost Analysis Proposal Worksheet.
  2. All colored stones shall be of natural origin unless specified in the contract as being synthetic, simulated or imitation. All treatments must be disclosed on the JCAP worksheet.
  3. Colored stones shall not have any eye-visible damage.
  4. No colored stones which are enhanced by a non-permanent or superficial process shall be accepted unless it has been agreed upon by the buyer, and stated on the JCAP worksheet and hang tag.
  5. Oiling of emeralds is acceptable as it is industry practice. Excessively oiled and secreting emeralds are not permitted.
  6. Color, quality, and size of colored stones shall be equal to or better than that which has been specified on the Jewelry Cost Analysis Proposal Worksheet.
  7. In any jewelry item containing more than one of the same colored stone, all stones shall be matching in color and size unless the design of the piece of jewelry is purposely made for variation.
  8. Colored stones shall be graded under 10 power (10x) binocular magnification or greater to determine authenticity of stones, enhancements and to determine durability problems.
  9. Colored stones shall be inspected under diffused cool-white fluorescence light.

  1. Commonly found jewelry defects are listed in the Appendix IV - Glossary: Explanation of Defects.
  2. All jewelry supplied to The Exchange is subject to random sampling inspections. Any deficiency in diamond and / or colored stone quality and / or mountings shall be considered quality defects and any deficiency in stamping and / or tagging shall be considered non-conformance. A shipment can fail for either quality and/or non-conformance.
  3. Selected samples will be inspected in their entirety, i.e. quality of diamond(s) and/or stone(s), quality of mounting, precious metal content, stamping and tagging, regardless of whether the inspection is pre-purchase or acceptance inspection. All inspections shall be accomplished using a 10x (power) binocular magnification to identify natural gemstones and to assure compliance with the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) Guidelines for the Jewelry Industry and to identify manufacturing defects.

(Updated 22 June 2010)