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Jewelry Guide - Jewelry Glossary

Knowledge of precious metals will bring you to further questions and make you inquisitive about the various
terminologies associated with metals and its jewelry. To quench this thirst of knowing more, you can visit
our Metal Glossary.
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Term

Abrasion Very small and tiny sketches on facet joints which fabricates white hairy lines instead of sharp
crisp facet edges. Antique and other old or heavily used diamonds can have abrasions.

Acid Etching This process involves engrossing the metal in an acid solution while protecting certain parts with a
substance like wax or rosin, which is known as resist, in order to create a pattern on the metal's
surface.

Acid Test Acid test determines the purity of gold through the use of nitric acid and aqua regia.

Acidizing Acidizing refers to the treatment of diamonds with hot acids to clean them after mining or after
cutting, specially to remove oxides or polishing residues from surface fissures.

Actual Gold Actual gold content describes the amount of gold that exists in a metal object after subtracting all
Content the alloys.

Adamantine This refers to the surface luster and shine of a diamond.

Adamas The word Diamond comes from this ancient Greek word Adamas, which means unconquerable.

Adhesive Ear Post Adhesive ear post is an ear post with a flat surface, which is used with a 2 sided adhesive dot
rather than solder or fusion for attaching an ornament part of the earring.

Ag The chemical symbol for silver.

Agate Agate, a variety of Chalcedony Quartz, is found in various colors and patterns with 7 on Mohs
hardness scale.

Alexandrite Alexandrite is a form of the mineral Chrysoberyl which is a very attractive and rare stone. It is 8.5
on Mohs hardness scale and mainly found in Russia, Sri Lanka, Brazil, Burma, Madagascar and
USA. The most sensational feature about this stone is its surprising ability to change its color
under different forms of light. Green or bluish-green in daylight, red in candle light, green in
fluorescent light and reddish-purple in standard electric (tungsten) light.

Alloy An alloy is a mixture of two or more metals usually mixed to enhance the strength and/or
appearance of a particular metal. Copper, silver, nickel, zinc etc are frequently used as alloy
metals and usually are mixed with all precious metals for some specific purpose.

Alluvial Stones those have been sourced from alluvial deposits in river beds or transported by water and
deposited in seas and lakes. Many gems, including diamonds, are found in alluvial deposits and
Alluvial stones are usually of gem quality.

Alpaca It is a mixture of alloys, which is a substitute of silver, consisting of 55% copper, 20% nickel, 20%
zinc, and 5% tin.

Aluminum It is an inexpensive, lightweight and malleable silver-white ore with a bluish tinge. Aluminum is
remarkably resisted to oxidation and used in many alloys.

Amber The gemstone Amber is the fossilized liquid, resin, or gum from pine trees and available in various
colors like golden yellow, golden orange, brown, green, red and violet. These gemstones may
contain insects, plant material, feathers and other small objects that were trapped millions of years
ago when the resin was sticky. Amber is quite soft but perfect for jewelry as it can be easily cut,
etched, faceted, or carved.

American Cut Marcel Tolkowskys mathematically calculated ideal proportions and facet angles, to produce
maximum brilliancy consistent with a high degree of fire in a round brilliant diamond or gemstone,
are known as American Cut or Ideal Cut.

Amethyst Amethyst is a variety from Quartz family, colored by traces of manganese, titanium and iron.
Deeper-colored amethysts are more highly valued. It is available in colors like purple, pale
lavender to deep reddish purple, bluish violet etc. Rich purple has always been a rare and noble
color. Amethysts name comes from Greek word 'Amethystos' mean 'Not Intoxicated' or Not
Drunken. The Amethyst is said to bring good luck and to radiate love. This brilliantly sparkling
stone is the most valued gemstone from the quartz family. It is 7 on Mohs hardness scale and
mainly found in Sri Lanka, Brazil, Burma, Canada, East Africa, India, North America, Russia,
Uruguay, Madagascar and Australia.

Amulet An amulet, also known as talisman, is a pendant or charm worn as a protection from evil, illness or
to bring good luck.

Anklet An anklet, also known as ankle bracelet, is a jewelry ornament worn around the ankle. Anklets are
more popular in women and used as a fashion ornament.

Annealing It is a process of providing multi-phased heat and stress treatment that alters the microstructure of
a metal adding strength, pliability and hardness.

Anniversary Band Anniversary band is a popular type of ring usually given as a gift by husband to wife on their
wedding anniversary. It contains a continuous row of diamonds or other gems of the same size
and cut.

Anodizing Anodizing is a process used to dye and/or modify the surface of a metal using electrolysis. The
dye enters the pores in the etched oxide surface of the metal. Usually metals like aluminum,
magnesium, titanium and tantalum are often anodized.

Antique Jewelry Antique jewelry refers to jewelry which is made more than 100 years ago.

Appraisal Appraisal is a written statement based on estimated retail replacement value of the diamond or
gemstone or piece of jewelry. Appraisal is mainly used for insurance purposes and should be
updated after every few years.

Aquamarine Aquamarine is a verity of mineral Beryl. This is a fascinatingly beautiful gemstone found in colors
like light blue of the sky to the deep blue of the sea. The more intense the color of an Aquamarine,
the more value is put on it. Its hardness makes it very tough which comes in between 7.5 to 8 on
Mohs hardness scale and it is mainly found in Brazil, Madagascar, Russia, Afghanistan, India,
Pakistan, Nigeria, Zambia, Mozambique and USA. Its name is derived from the Latin 'Aqua'
(water) and 'Mare' (sea). Aquamarine is one of the most popular and best-known gemstones.
Artificial Diamond Artificial diamonds are produced by man in laboratory and mainly used in making artificial jewelry.

Assay An analysis of a metal to determine its purity by scraping a bit of metal from the metal piece.

Asterism Asterism is the star effect that appears on some gemstones. This star effect is a reflection that
appears as two or more intersecting bands of light across the surface of a gem. Usually asterism
is found in Ruby, Sapphire and Garnet.

Au The chemical symbol for gold. Au is derived from Latin word aurum for gold.

Aventurescent Aventurescent gemstones are those which display a colorful play of sparkling reflections due to
small metallic inclusions.

Baguette Baguette is a French word meaning Rod. It is a step cut for small rectangular shaped diamonds
and other gemstones.

Bail A bail is an oval or teardrop or D shaped metal element that is attached at the top of a pendant. It
allows a pendant to hang from a chain in a free form.

Band A band is a type of ring that possesses the same width all the way round and mainly used for
wedding rings.

Bangle Bangle is circular in shape which comes in a solid form and usually worn in pairs in both hands.
These bangles are generally made of metals, glass, wood, plastic etc.

Bar Setting In this style of setting, stones are individually set between these bars leaving the sides of the
stones exposed to light. This method maximizes the amount of light entering the stones which
create superior brilliance and sparkle.

Baroque Diamonds and other gemstones mainly pearls which are irregular in shape or available in
freeform.

Barrel clasp A barrel clasp is a round or oval shaped jewelry fastener that resembles a barrel. The clasp pieces
contain ridges around the barrel for easier grasping and these pieces screw together just by
rotating one piece into the other. Barrel clasps are frequently used in necklaces and bracelets as
they provide greater security.

Barrette A barrette is a pin or clasp that is used to hold hair in place. Usually this is worn by women either
as a hair pin to keep hair in place or just as an ornament.

Base Metal Base metal is a term used to refer any non-precious metal. Generally it is used as a base for gold-
filled or gold plated coverings.

Bead Bead is a small rounded element, made from a variety of materials, with a hole through it. Beads
are commonly made from stone, shell, glass or plastic.

Bead Cap Bead caps are metal findings that are placed on either one or both ends of a stone bead to cover
any roughness or damage around the drilled hole.

Bead Clasp A bead clasp is a type of clasp mechanism that is hidden in a bead or pearl.
Bead Cone Bead cone is a metal cone shape which is used to secure and cover the ends of multiple strands
of beading.

Bead Setting In bead setting, stones are placed in holes that have been drilled out on the surface of a jewelry
item. This method was very common in the 20th century.

Bead Tip Bead tip is a concave metal piece, attached to a metal loop, used to add thread to a clasp. It is
used between the clasp and the beading thread to hide the beading thread knot which is covered
inside the concave piece.

Bearded girdle Small or tiny, numerous, hair like fractures / cracks around the girdle extending into the stone.

Belcher Setting A ring mounting in which the claws for the setting are formed from the shank of the ring. This
setting style is commonly used in men rings.

Belly Ring A type of body jewelry worn in or on the belly button.

Beryl The name beryl comes from ancient Greek word beryllos which means precious blue-green color.
This stone is available in a variety of colors including green, yellow, greenish-yellow, blue to blue-
green, red, colorless and pink.

Betrothal Ring A plain ring, without any stone, that is usually presented by a man to his fiance, which shows his
intention to marry her. This ring was mainly used in ancient Rome and other old cultures.

Bezel A facet on the Crown, or slopping surface just above the girdle of the Diamond.

Bezel Facets On a round brilliant-cut diamond, these eight large, four-sided facets on the crown where the
upper points join the table and the lower points join the girdle.

Bezel Setting In this style of setting, a metal rim gently holds a stone in place by the girdle. The bezel setting
guards the stone from any damages and yet allows light to enter which creates brilliance and
sparkle.

Birthstone A birthstone is nothing but a gemstone only, which is associated with the date of ones birth and
the wearing of such birthstone is considered to bring good luck and health. Certain gemstones are
believed to have Supernatural powers and their relationship with planets. Many cultures originally
assigned a specific gemstone to signify birth during each sign of the zodiac but over the time this
tradition has been shifted from the zodiac to calendar months. Following birthstones are assigned
for every calendar month. January Garnet, February Amethyst, March Aquamarine, April
Diamond, May Emerald, June Pearl / Alexandrite / Moonstone, July Ruby, August Peridot /
Sardonyx, September Sapphire, October Opal / Pink Tourmaline, November Citrine / Yellow
Topaz, December Turquoise / Tanzanite / Zircon / Blue Topaz.

Black Diamond A diamond with very dark color like dark gray, very dark green or truly black is referred in the trade
as black diamond.

Blemish An external mark or surface imperfection on a diamond or gemstone. For example, a nick,
abrasion, knot, scratch, minor crack or fissure (cavity), or a poor polish. A natural or an extra facet
is also considered a blemish.

Blending Blending is a process of smoothing rough areas of a metal piece to provide same plane or
roundness and/or same surface finish.
Bloomed Gold This term is used for gold jewelry that has been engrossed in an acid bath to give slightly matte
texture.

Blue Diamond A diamond with blue color is very rare and valuable although fluorescence diamond that shows a
blue color in daylight is comparatively common.

Blue Topaz The most common form of topaz, available in light brown or colorless when mined, but turns blue
when exposed to light or heat.

Blue White A term that has been used for near white diamonds with strong blue fluorescence.

Body Color A diamond's actual color which can be observed when examined under a diffused light against a
hue less background. The diffused light eliminates glaring reflections and dispersion, which would
otherwise confuse the color determination.

Body Jewelry Jewelry designed to be worn on or in any part of the body, typically refers to belly rings, nose
studs, toe rings, tongue bars etc.

Book Chain A style of chain with rectangular metal links where each link resembles a book.

Bort Industrial grade diamonds generally used as drill points.

Bow Tie Effect An optical effect due to a shadowy area visible in some fancy shapes, caused by light leaking out
from the bottom of the Diamond. This effect can be minimized by careful cutting using best
proportions and angles.

Box Chain A type of chain, which has wide and square links where each link resembles a box.

Box Clasp A box clasp is a type of fastener that contains a box with an opening, which is notched on the top
of the box on the one end and a flat piece of metal, which is folded over to form a spring with a
knob at the other end. The folded metal spring slips into the hole in the box with the knob sticking
out through the notch in the top. The compressed spring holds the two ends in place and it is
released by pressing the knob.

Bracelet A bracelet is a type of jewelry, worn around the wrist. Bracelets contain gemstones, rocks, wood
and other precious material and these are usually made of a variety of material, including metal,
leather, cloth etc.

Bracelet Link Bracelet link, a type of decorative jewelry finding, contains rings or loops on each end for linking
with jump rings or connectors.

Brass An alloy, made up of roughly half copper and half zinc, which has a nice yellow color.

Bridal Jewelry Bridal jewelry is a general term for jewelry used in the wedding ceremony. It includes wedding
rings, engagement rings, gifts for the bride or groom and gifts for the best man, maid of honor,
ushers, bridesmaids and others taking part in the wedding ceremony.

Bridal set Bridal set is a combination of an engagement ring and wedding ring that often match or
compliment each other.
Briefjes A special kind of paper, which is used to contain diamonds. This paper has several inner leaves of
wrinkled bluish paper, which gives whiter look to the diamonds.

Brilliance Brilliance describes the reflections of white light returned to the eye from a diamond or
gemstone. Brilliance is produced primarily when light enters through the table, reaches the pavilion
facets, and is then reflected back out through the table. The major factors that affect the amount of
brilliancy in a gem are refractive index, proportions, polish and transparency.

Brilliant Cut Brilliant Cut is the most common style of diamond or gemstone cutting and it is called a brilliant cut
because it is designed to maximize brilliance. The standard round brilliant cut consists of a total of
58 facets which covers 1 table, 8 bezel facets, 8 star facets and 16 upper-girdle facets on the
crown; and 8 pavilion facets, 16 lower-girdle facets, and usually a culet on the pavilion, or base.
Brilliant cut stones normally come in round shape, but there are modified variants in other shapes
also.

Briolette This term is used for a long teardrop shaped diamond or gemstone with rose cut facets, which
sometimes is also drilled to be used as a pendant.

Broker A person who is a specialist in introducing diamond buyers and sellers, and earns his commission
on the value of deals done between diamond buyers and sellers.

Bronze Bronze is a very heavy and dense alloy consisting of 60% copper and 40% tin. It has a dull brown
color and usually not preferred in jewelry due to its heaviness.

Brooch A brooch is an ornamental pin with a clasp to attach it to a garment or clothing. It is made often
with precious metal along with gemstones.

Brown Diamond A diamond with attractive or vivid brown color is rare and considered as fancy colored stone.

Bruise An inclusion which consists surface crumbling and normally accompanied by tiny, root like
feathers. This inclusion is usually caused by external trauma such as a knock or a blow.

Brushed Finish A brushed finish, also known as matte finish, is a texture applied to metal surface, which gives a
dull and non-reflective finish. In this finish, a firm wire brush is used to give scratches or tiny
grooves on the surface of the metal piece.

Bruting Bruting is the process of rounding a diamond to form its girdle. This is usually done by grinding
one diamond against another on a rotating wheel. It is also known as girdling or rounding.

Bubble Any transparent inclusion which consists a tiny crystal or a grain of a different mineral.

Buffing Buffing is the process refers to the use of grease compound in combination with wheels to
produce very smooth polished surface. It is the final step in professional finishing process.

Bullion Bullion is a precious metal usually gold in form of bars containing at least 99.5% purity.

Bullion coin Bullion coin is a precious metal in the form of coin which trades at a price close to spot. In other
words, it has little or no numismatic value.

Burn Burn refers to changes in metallurgical properties and other physical characteristics such as
discoloration of the metal piece due to excessive temperature during grinding.
Burnishing Burnishing is a finishing with shiny surface usually resulting from using a dull or loaded grinding
wheel or coated abrasive.

Burnt A facet may appear burnt or foggy, as a result of the cutter polishing the facet against the grain, or
otherwise allowing the diamond to overheat causing the surface to oxydise.

Burr Burr refers to a sharp edge of metal which remains on the surface of metal after cutting and
reforming.

Buttercup Setting It is a deep six-prong setting, with tall prongs, that resembles a buttercup flower. This setting is
typically used for pendants and earrings.

Butterfly Chain A chain composed of very tiny butterfly-shaped links with oval-shaped wings.

Butterfly Clutch Butterfly clutch, also known as grip fastener, grips a grooved post. It has two wings that are
squeezed to release it from the post.

Byzantine Chain A type of chain, which has close-fitting links that create an intricate design.

Cable Chain A chain composed of round linked rings of uniform size.

Cabochon Cut A cabochon shaped gemstone resembles a dome as it comes in round shape with no facets.
Generally onyx stone is cut in a cabochon shape.

Cachette A sealed packet with approved status containing diamonds bought in a trade deal, along with
agreed payment terms. This word comes from French word Cacher which means to seal.

Cairo Star It is a variation on the modern round brilliant cut with 74 facets.

Cameo Cameo is a style of carving in which the design pattern is left and the surrounding surface is cut
away leaving the design in relief. This is done to use the natural colors of the stone or shell to
produce the different shadings of the carving.

Canary A term used for diamonds with an intense yellow hue. The yellow color may appear with very slight
greenish or slight orangey shade. Such diamonds are considered as Fancy and also called Fancy
Yellow.

Carat The term Carat is used as a standard unit of measurement of the weight of diamonds and most
other gemstones. The word comes from the carob beans which are known for its consistent weight
and was used in ancient times to measure diamonds and other gemstones. One carat (ct.) equals
200 milligrams, or 0.2 grams (1/5 of a gram), or 1/142 of an ounce. There are 100 points in a
carat. If all other factors are equal, the more a diamond weighs, the more valuable it will be. It is
sometimes incorrectly spelled Karat, but Karat refers only to the fineness of pure gold and gold
alloys.

Carbon Diamonds are composed of carbon entirely, or almost entirely.

Carbon Spot An inclusion or imperfection in a diamond that appears black, which is caused by the addition of
the small particles of graphite or another mineral. In most cases, these black inclusions are not
visible to the naked eye, and do not affect the brilliance of the diamond.
Carving Carving refers to the cutting of decorative objects from a larger stone.

Casting Casting is a widely used jewelry manufacturing process, in which a molten material such as metal,
plastic or any other material is poured or forced into a hollow mold and allowed to solidify within
the mold and then ejected or broken out to get a fabricated jewelry part.

Catch Catch is a fastening device used to attach one end of a piece of jewelry to another by accepting
and locking a top wire or a pin-stem.

Cavity A type of inclusion consisting of a large or deep opening in the diamond. It may be either internal
or extending to the surface cause by cleavage or by a blow. Internal cavities may naturally contain
gas, liquid, solid, a combination of two or three of these.

Centenary A large and famous diamond, unveiled recently in 1988. It was 599 carats in the rough, and cut to
a gem weighing over 273 carats. It is second only to the Cullinan for its combination of size and
quality.

Center Stone The center stone is a main stone placed in central position in a piece of jewelry item with multiple
stones. In a ring with one stone only, the center stone is also called the solitaire.

Centrifugal Casting Centrifugal casting is the process of casting in which molds are attached to the outside edge of a
hollow tube. Metal in liquid form is poured into the tube and it is spun at high-speed centrifugal
force that pulls the molten metal into the molds.

Certificate A statement or document issued and certified by a gemological laboratory which consists the
genuineness of a diamond or other gemstone along with the quality and other characteristics.

Chain A chain is a flexible series of links, beads or rings, generally made of metal, connected or attached
into one another. Chain is a widely used jewelry item and many necklaces and bracelets are made
out of small chains. Some popular types of chain include: Book chain, Box chain, Butterfly chain,
Byzantine chain, Cable chain, Curb chain, Figaro chain, Marina chain, Omega chain, Rope chain
and Snake chain.

Chandelier Finding It is a type of decorative finding, often used on an earring, with a drop or drops that hangs down
from the earlobe and dangles like a chandelier.

Change of Color Sometimes diamond changes color or appears with a different color in different types of light. This
is caused by selective absorption and/or transmission of the specific type of light to which the
stone is exposed.

Channel Setting A setting style or method in channel form where no metal is displayed between stones and these
stones are held in only by a slight rim which runs along the edges of the channel.

Charm A charm is a decorative jewelry item, similar to pendant or trinket, usually worn on a bracelet,
necklace or earring.

Charm Bracelet A jewelry item which contains personal charms like pendants or lockets and worn around the wrist.

Charm Hanger A charm hanger, also known as charm holder, is a jewelry finding which can be attached to a
necklace or cord with a jump ring or bail. The bottom part of the holder can be opened to add
single or multiple charms.
Charm Ring It is a ring in which charm is also attached to its ring band.

Chasing A method of decorating or designing surface of the metal by etching or hammering using shaped
punches and a chasing hammer.

Chatoyant The term chatoyant is used for those stones that have ability to display or reflect a cat's eye effect.
This effect is caused by the precise occurrence of slight inclusions. A chatoyant gem exhibits a
changeable silky luster as light is reflected within the thin, parallel, fibrous bands.

Chip A curved break or absence of a tiny piece of a gemstone, caused by normal wear and tear, or by
cutting.

Choker A choker is a type of necklace usually made of pearls that fits tightly around the neck. It comes in
14 to 16 inches in length.

Chrome Plating Chrome plating is a method of depositing a thin layer of chromium on other metal surface mainly
for giving a bright and lustrous metallic surface, which is highly resistant to tarnish.

Chromium Chromium is a lustrous, hard brittle, steel-blue metallic element which is highly resistant to
corrosion and tarnishing. It is generally used in the hardening of steel alloys and the production of
stainless steels.

Cigar band It is a very wide band-style ring.

Citrine Citrine is a verity of mineral Quartz and available in colors like light yellow, lemon yellow, amber-
brown and brilliant orange. This radiant gemstone gets its name from the French word Citrin,
meaning Yellow. Citrine is known as a tough gemstone with 7 points on Mohs hardness scale and
with good durability. This gemstone is mainly found in South America, Brazil, Madagascar,
Argentina, Russia, Scotland and Spain.

Claddagh Ring Claddagh ring is firstly crafted by Master Goldsmith Richard Joyce in 1689, and it is named after
the fishing village Claddagh, where he lived at the time of his craftsmanship. This ring has two
hands clasping a heart, symbolizing love and surmounted by a crown, symbolizing loyalty. This
ring is traditionally used to indicate the heart of the wearer is yet unoccupied.

Clamp Clamp, also known as cramp, is a metal prong or claw used for gemstone settings.

Clarity Clarity is one of the four value factors of a diamond or other gemstones which describes the
absence or presence of flaws inside or on the surface of a stone. Diamonds and other gemstones
are graded on a scale from Flawless (no inclusions or blemishes visible under 10x magnification)
to Included (eye visible inclusions or blemishes). If other factors are equal, flawless stones are
most valuable.

Clarity A process which is used to improve the apparent clarity of a diamond usually by filling fissures or
Enhancement fractures with a transparent substance like glass. Also known as Fracture Filled.

Clasp A clasp is a fastener, such as a hook or buckle, which is used to hold two or more jewelry objects
or parts together. It usually contains a hook or buckle on one piece and a slot to hold that hook
or buckle on the other piece. Clasps are mainly used in bracelets, necklaces, watchstrap etc.
Some of the popular clasps include: Barrel clasp, Bead clasp, Box clasp, Hidden Screw clasp,
Lobster Claw clasp, Safety clasp, Screw clasp, Spring Ring clasp and Toggle clasp.
Class Ring A class ring, also known as graduate ring, is a ring worn by students and alumni in
commemoration of their graduation. This ring generally contains a gemstone featuring one of the
schools colors along with engraved name of school and the year of graduation.

Claw Claw is a style of setting used to hold gemstones in place. It is also known as collet and consists
of a Bezel and Prong.

Clean A word used by some jewelers unofficially or informally which means flawless, or at least internal
flawless.

Cleaning (Stones) Cleaning of a diamond or a gemstone is essential to bring or maintain its shine and brilliance. At
the mines, various methods are used to clean rough stones like boiling in acid etc. For domestic
cleaning of diamonds and other gemstones, warm soapy water works well.

Cleaning (Casting) Cleaning of metal casting refers to all activities that are performed to remove sand, scale and / or
excess metal from the casting.

Cleavage The tendency of crystalline minerals to break in one or more definite directions, producing more or
less smooth surfaces. A cleavage may be caused by inherent internal strain or by a sharp blow.
Cleavage is one of the two methods used by stone cutters to split gemstones in preparation for the
cutting process. The other method is sawing.

Clip Clip is a fastening device used to hold a piece of jewelry on its place. Generally clip is used in non-
pierced earrings where its two pieces are closed around the earlobe, using mechanical pressure to
hold the earring in place.

Closed Culet A culet on a diamond which consist a point rather than a facet. That point is too small to be
resolved with the unaided eye and can be seen only under 10X magnification.

Closed Setting Closed setting is a style of setting in which back of the diamond or gemstone is not exposed and
usually stones back is covered by metal.

Cloud A group of a number of extremely tiny white inclusions which gives a cloudy or milky appearance
under 10X magnification. These clouds cannot be seen with the naked eye and generally does not
significantly impact a gemstone's clarity grade.

Cluster This term is used for diamond ring or any other jewelry containing a number of diamonds. Cluster
is also used for a number of kimberlite pipes occurring in close proximity.

Cluster Ring A cluster ring is a ring that contains a central gemstone, which is surrounded by a number of
smaller stones.

Cluster Setting In this setting, many small stones are mounted together in a group around a larger sized central
stone. Generally cluster setting exhibits flower shaped designs in a multi layered circular form,
which is preferred by women in their rings.

Coated Diamond A diamond colored by a surface coating which masks the diamonds true body color. Coating may
be used extensively to entire pavilion or limited to one or two pavilion facets or a spot on the girdle.

Coin Silver A mixture of 90% pure silver and 10% metal alloy is known as Coin Silver. A process of melting
down coins done in the 19th century, and mostly discarded today.
Collar Collar necklace worn tightly around the neck and usually consist of multiple strands with an
average length of 12 to 13 inches.

Collet Collet is a style of setting used to hold gemstones in place. It is also known as claw and consists
of a Bezel and Prong.

Color Color is one of the four value factors of a diamond. Diamonds are ranked on a color scale from D
(colorless) to Z (noticeable tint of color, typically yellow or brown). Diamonds with saturation
greater than Z color are considered Fancy Colored Diamonds such as blue, pink, purple, red etc.
and are graded on a separate scale. Color is measured by tone and hue in a gemstone.

Color Change Few gemstones distinctly change their color when viewed under two different light sources. This
feature is commonly found in Alexandrite, Sapphire and Color Change Garnet.

Color Color enhancement is the improvement process of a diamond's or a gemstone's color mainly by
Enhancement irradiation and HPHT (High Pressure, High Temperature). Sometimes color coating is also used to
enhance the stones color which is not considered as best enhancement way.

Color Grading A system of grading diamond colors based on their colorlessness (for other than fancy diamonds)
or their spectral hue, depth of color or purity of color (for fancy color diamonds) or their hue or tone
(for other gemstones).

Colored Gold Colored gold term is used when gold is mixed or alloyed with other metals, such as silver, copper,
zinc, nickel, platinum, palladium etc to create various color hues like white, pink/ rose, green and
the seldom found blue, purple and black.

Colorless Colorless diamonds are white or transparent diamonds and promoted as the best, but only
because other attractive colors are extremely rare.

Comex Comex is one of the world's major commodities futures exchanges where gold and silver are
traded. It is a division of the New York Mercantile Exchange based at New York.

Comfort Disc Comfort disc is a plastic disc that fits over the post of a pierced earring to provide greater comfort
to the wearer.

Comfort Fit Ring A ring that provides comfort to its wearer as it is curved from the inside of the shank.

Commercial This term is used for medium to low quality diamonds and opposite to fine gem quality.

Commercial White Commercial White is a dealers term for off-white diamonds.

Comparison Sometimes gems laboratories perform their grading by comparing one stone with another stone of
known quality. This comparison is useful to consumers who are not well aware of diamond quality
factors.

Compass Ring A compass ring is a ring that rotates and can be used to determine compass direction based on
the position of the sun and the time of day.

Composite
It refers to a gemstone which is assembled from several pieces, often used to imitate a gem.
Gemstone
Conductivity Conductivity is the ability of a mineral to transmit heat, electricity or sound.

Coolant Coolant is a metalworking fluid used in grinding process to prevent a metal piece from burning as
well as to lubricate for the process.

Copper Copper is a reddish-brown non-ferrous metal, which is usually considered as a base metal or
alloyed with other precious metals. It is fairly soft metal with excellent conductivity of heat and
electricity as well as it is very malleable and ductile. Other than jewelry, it is widely used for
electrical wiring and water piping. The chemical symbol for copper is Cu.

Corundum Corundum is a hard mineral that exists in the form of colored crystals, such as Rubies and
Sapphires.

Created A description of synthetic diamonds opposite to natural ones.

Critical Angle Critical angle is the largest angle measured from the normal angle from which light can escape, is
an optically dense substance, and the smallest angle to the normal angle at which light is totally
reflected within the dense substance.

Crown The upper portion of a cut diamond or gemstone above the girdle which consists of a large flat
area on top known as table, and several facets below it.

Crown Angle The angle between the girdle and stone's bezel / concentric facets is known as crown angle. This
gentle slope of the facets that surround the table helps to create the dispersion or fire in a stone.
White light enters from the crown angles and brakes up into its spectral hues which ultimately
enhance the brilliance of a stone.

Crown Height The height or depth of the crown of a stone, above the girdle.

Cryptocrystalline This term is used for a mineral structure in which crystals are very small and due to that they are
not even distinguishable through a microscope.

Crystal A crystal is solid material that has a definite internal atomic structure. Its atomic stricture produces
a characteristic external shape as well as physical and optical properties.

Crystal Structure Crystals are divided in to seven groups on the basis of specific set of angular, geometrical and
symmetrical specifications. All crystalline gems can be classified in one of seven groups based on
the above specifications. These groups are cubic, tetragonal, hexagonal, trigonal, orthorhombic,
monoclinic and triclinic.

Cu The chemical symbol for copper.

Cube A cube is a rough diamond with approximately cubic shape. Gem-quality cube-shaped diamond
crystals are very rare in nature and considered as collectors items.

Cuff Bracelet Cuff is a wide or narrow C shaped band that comes in a solid form and fits over the wrist.

Cuff link A cufflink is an attractive fastener or clasp, to fasten the two sides of the cuff on a shirt, worn by
men and women both. Cufflinks are used to link cuffs that have buttonholes on both the sides.
Culet The smallest facet, at the bottom of most round or brilliant cut stones, is known as culet. Its
purpose is to protect the tip of the pavilion from being chipped or damaged. Most modern shapes
have either no culet at all, or a small or very small culet.

Cullinan, Cullinan I, The Cullinan was the largest Diamond Crystal ever found with weight of 3,106 carats in the rough
Cullinan II and was cut into 9 major stones and 96 smaller stones. Out of these 9 major stones, Cullinan I is
the largest stone with 530.20 carats and Cullinan II is the second largest stone with 317.40 carats.
Both of these stones are now part of British Crown Jewels.

Cultured Pearl A pearl cultivated by an artificial process that imitates the organic process by which a natural pearl
is created. An irritant such as a bead, grain of sand, or piece of mantle tissue is inserted manually
into the body of a mollusk, and becomes the nucleus of a pearl once that mollusk secretes nacre
to cover the irritation.

Cushion A shape of gemstone, which ranges from square to rectangular and it has rounded corners and
larger facets to increase its brilliance. Cushion Cut stones are also known as "pillow cut" stones.

Cut Cut refers to the geometric proportions and finish of a stone. It is one of the most important factors
in determining diamond's or gemstones sparkle and brilliance. The stone should be symmetrical in
all dimensions so that it will appear balanced, and so that its facets will reflect light evenly, which
will provide good brilliance to stone. It is the only man-made contribution to a stone's beauty and
value.

Cutter The person who cuts and polishes rough diamonds & gemstones and convert them into finished
stones.

Cutting The process of cutting, grinding or polishing rough diamonds & gemstones and convert them into
finished stones.

CZ CZ denotes cubic zirconium, a widely used simulant, an imitation for a natural gemstone including
diamond. But CZ is easily detectable by its 80% higher weight than a normal stone of the same
proportions or by thermal conductivity testing.

Dangle Earring A dangle earring, which is available in various lengths from a centimeter or two to up to shoulders,
is designed to flow from the bottom of the earlobes. It is generally attached to the ear by the use of
thin wire, which goes through the earlobe and connects to it in a small hook at the back.

Deburring It is a method of removing burrs from the metal piece by using various hand and automated
processes. Coated abrasives, non-woven products and stones are typically used for deburring.

Decorative Jewelry Decorative jewelry findings are used in a piece of jewelry that provides beauty and good looks to
Findings that piece of jewelry. These are primarily included in a piece of jewelry to enhance the beauty and
do not serve any mechanical function. Decorative jewelry findings include charms, pendants,
Festoons, Filigrees etc.

Deep This usually means a diamond or a gemstone which has been cut too deep. This deep cut
maximizes weight but sacrifices brilliance.

Demi Parure A jewelry set of matching pieces, usually containing a necklace, pin, bracelet or earring.

Density The density of a substance depends on both its mass and its volume. For example, lead is denser
than feathers, so 1 tonne of lead will have a lesser volume than 1 tonne of feathers.
Depth The height of a diamond or gemstone from the table to the culet which is measured in millimeters.

Depth Percentage The depth percentage, which expresses how deep the stone is in comparison to how wide it is. In
other words, the depth of the stone is divided by the average width. This depth percentage of a
stone is important to its brilliance and value. The pavilion should be deep enough to allow light to
bounce around inside the stone and be reflecting out to the eye at the proper angle.

Detection Detection is the ability to identify diamond imitations, synthetics and treatments.

Diameter The width of the diamond or gemstone, as measured across the widest part of the girdle.

Diamond The word "diamond" comes from the Greek word Adamas, meaning "Unconquerable". Diamond
is composed of carbon that crystallizes in the cubic, or isometric, crystal system. It is the
hardest known substance in the world (10 on Mohs scale). The Diamond is uniquely resistant to
damage by heat or scratching, and can be cut or polished only by another diamond.It occurs in
colors ranging from colorless to yellow, brown, orange, green, blue, and violet.

Diamond Cutter The person who cuts and polishes rough diamonds and convert them into finished diamonds.

Diamond Cutting The process of cutting, grinding or polishing rough diamonds and convert them into finished
diamonds.

Diamond Gauge An instrument that is used to measure a diamond's length, width and depth in millimeters.

Diamond Saw A saw used for dividing or separating diamonds.

Dichoric This term refers to a gemstone that displays a different color or shade, which is other than the
original gemstones color, when viewed from different directions or angles.

Die An engraved metal object, usually of a hard metal such as steel, bronze or brass, used to strike or
stamp the design on another metal object.

Die Struck Die struck is a process of reproducing an object by pressing or striking a piece of metal between a
pair of dies. This pair consists male and female patterns to form highly detailed impressions on
that metal piece.

Dinner ring Dinner ring is a large oversized ring, set with precious or semiprecious stones. This ring is also
known as cocktail ring.

Direction Hardness is directional in diamonds and it is important for cutting. The optimal direction of cutting
and polishing depends on the optical axes of diamonds.

Dispersion Dispersion is the ability of a diamond or other gemstone, to separate white light into the colors of
the spectrum. Diamond has the highest dispersion (.044) of any natural, colorless gem.

Double Refraction This term is used when each ray of light is split in two as it enters in a non-cubic mineral.

Doublet Doublet is a composite stone which is made of two components, usually cemented or glued
together with a clear adhesive.
Draw, Draw Color A diamond which is not pure white (colorless) is often said to draw color.

Drill Bit Due to diamonds hardness, it is often used in high quality or high performance drill bits.

Drill, Drilling Now laser is used to drill a diamond neatly for removing inclusions as well as drilling could also be
done to create a diamond bead.

Drop Cut A drop cut or briolette is a pear-shaped cut gemstone with triangular facets on top. This type of
stone makes a nice pendant.

Drop Earring A type of earring which hangs below the earlobe. It is also known as Dangle Earring or Chandalier
Earring.

Durability Durability describes a stones resistance power against scratches and cracks due to wear. The
durability of a diamond or gemstone depends on its hardness, toughness and stability.

Dust Very tiny rough diamonds and generally used as abrasives. It is also known as diamond powder.

Dwt Dwt is used as a symbol for pennyweight that is 1/20th of a troy ounce or approx 1.555 grams.

Ear Cuff Ear cuff is a wide decorative ring with a gap designed to be pinched onto the ear without need for
piercing. It can be pinched onto any part of the ear, not just the earlobe.

Ear Nut An ear nut is a type of clutch contains a hole through which an earring post is attached to secure
the earring to the earlobe. The friction version has two curved wings that grasp a grooved post.

Ear Threads Ear thread is a small earring element that contains a thin pin and a small chain, which is threaded
through holes in the ears. They usually have a small cup or ball or loop on the opposite end of the
pin. Beads can be included to the chains before threading or can be fastened to the cup or loop on
the end.

Earring A jewelry item that is worn on the ear, often in both the ears, is known as earring. It can be
attached in a variety of ways, including with clips or screw backs that grip the ear lobe or with
wires that pass through it. Earrings are mainly worn by women but sometimes men also prefer it to
wear especially on one ear. There are countless styles and types of earrings available for pierced
as well as non-pierced ears.

Earring back Earring back is a bead or disk that fits over an earring post and holds the earring securely in place,
like a catch.

Earring Jacket A separate fashionable piece of jewelry that can be added to an earring by the wearer to create
exceptional looks.

Electroplated This term is generally used for jewelry items that have been coated with gold through the process
of electroplating.

Electroplating Electroplating is the process where inexpensive metals are frequently electroplated or coated with
a thin layer of more expensive metals like gold (gold plating), silver (silver plating), rhodium
(rhodium plating), copper (electro coppering) etc. In this process, an electric current is flown to
coat an electrically conductive metal object with a relatively thin layer of precious metal.
Emerald Emerald, a verity of mineral Beryl, is one of the most fascinating and beautiful gemstones
available in various shades of green color. The name of this remarkable gemstone comes from
Greek Smaragdos, meaning Green Stone. Deep green is the most desired color in emeralds. Its
hardness makes it very tough and durable which comes in between 7.5 to 8 on Mohs hardness
scale and it is mainly found in Columbia, Brazil, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Afghanistan and USA.
Flawless emeralds are very uncommon, and are noted for their great value, sometimes even more
than diamonds.

Emerald Cut Emerald Cut diamond or gemstone is a square or rectangular shape stone with cut corners. This is
also known as Step Cut because it has rows of facets, usually 48 to 50, that resemble a staircase.
Due to its larger, more open table, this shape highlights the clarity of a stone but with fewer facets,
this shape brings less brilliance than the other shapes.

Enamel Enamel is a powdered colored glass fused onto the surface of the piece of jewelry. It is a soft
material and can be easily cracked or damaged. This should not be used on jewelry pieces, which
are exposed to daily wear.

Engagement Ring An engagement ring is a ring worn by a woman, which indicates her engagement to be married. A
man presents this ring to a woman who accepts his marriage proposal.

Engraving Engraving is a method of surface decoration in which a design is etched or engraved with a sharp
tool.

Enhance,
Enhance or enhancement is the process to improve a diamond's or a gemstone's color or clarity
Enhanced,
by using various methods.
Enhancement

Etched It is very faintly carved decoration scratched onto the surface of a metal piece.

Eternity Ring A ring generally contains a continuous line of gemstone, symbolizing eternity with a partner.

European Cut A European version of ideal cut which was used and preferred in Europe although it was never
adopted as a common form of cutting. In this cut, stones proportions were worked out
mathematically for light falling perpendicularly on the crown.

European Wire A long curved wire which passes through a pierced earlobe and clasps shut.

Extender Chain A chain which may be attached to another chain in order to extend the length.

Extra Facet An additional facet placed onto a diamond or onto a gemstone, usually to remove a natural or
small surface blemish. This extra facet is not required by the cutting style and symmetry.

Eye Eye is a loop or ring, made of wire or any other material, used as a connector for necklaces,
pendants, etc.

Eye Clean A term used in the jewelry industry to describe a diamond or a gemstone with no blemishes or
inclusions that are visible to the unaided eye.

Face A term used for flat or plane surface that make up the exterior form of a crystal.

Facet A plane, polished surface on a diamond or on a gemstone which allows light to enter in a stone
and reflect off through different angles.

Faceted Girdle A girdle of a stone that is lapped and polished for maximum surface reflection and has many flat
planes around the circumference of the stone.

Faceting Faceting is the process of placing facets on a stone. The shape and number of the facets give the
stone its style of cut.

Faith Ring A faith ring, also known as fede ring, has only two clasped hands, symbolizing faith and trust.

Fancy Cut, Any shape of a diamond or a gemstone other than the round brilliant shape is known as fancy cut
Fancy Shape or fancy shape. It includes marquise, emerald cut, heart shape, pear shape, etc.

Fancy Diamond Fancy Diamond is a Diamond with strong natural body color other than light yellow or light brown.
Colored or fancy diamonds are very rare and valuable and available in various colors like blue,
pink, purple, red etc.

Feather Feathers are small fractures in a stone caused by the tremendous stress that the stone suffered
while it was growing underground. Under magnification, these small fractures appear very much
like a feather.

Fede rings A fede ring, also known as faith ring, has only two clasped hands, symbolizing faith and trust.

Ferrule Ferrule is a metal band or cap that is fitted to the end of wire, thread, cord or any other material to
prevent fraying or to add decoration.

Festoon Festoon is a type of pendant that contains rings on both sides through which a chain or string can
be attached. It generally functions as the centerpiece of a necklace.

Fibula A fibula, also known as brooch, is an ornamental pin with a clasp to attach it to a garment or
clothing. It is made often with precious metal but sometimes with bronze or other material too
along with gemstones.

Figaro Chain Instead of uniform links, figaro chain features a distinct pattern of three (or five) equally sized links
separated by one longer link.

Figure 8 safety A type of safety catch in which a figure eight shaped hinged wire snaps over a pin. The wide end
catch of the eight connects at the bottom to the hinge whereas the smaller end slips over the pin to hold
the clasp closed.

Filigree Filigree, a type of decorative jewelry finding, is formed of bent wire that is soldered or stamped into
delicate and complex designs similar to lace patterns.

Fill, Filled, Filling This refers to the practice of filling open fissures in diamonds, usually with glass.

Findings Jewelry findings are basically components, materials and elements such as clasps, pins, hooks,
tabs etc that can be used in making or assembling a piece of jewelry.

Fineness Fineness refers to the purity of a precious metal. The purity of a precious metal measured in 1,000
parts of an alloy. For example, a gold bar, containing 995 parts gold and 5 parts of another metal
alloy, is considered with .995 fineness.

Finish The way surface of a piece is cleaned or polished or textured. Finish refers quality of polish and
symmetry on a stone as well as polish or texture applied to the metal on an item of jewelry.
Common metal finishes include florentine, high polish and matte or brushed.

Fire Fire refers flashes of spectrum colors seen in a diamond or in a gemstone as the result of
dispersion.

Fisheye A stone with exceedingly shallow pavilion, which produces a glassy appearance and a noticeable
dearth of brilliancy.

Fishhook It is a fishhook shaped finding often used to make pierced earrings. The hook end passes through
the pierced ear, while an ornament hangs from the other end. It is also known as French ear wire.

Fissure A crack or fracture or feather, which possibly reached to the surface of a stone.

Flat A stone with a very thin crown and pavilion which gives a flat effect.

Flaw Flaw refers to any internal or external imperfection on a diamond or on a gemstone and usually
includes feather, fissure, carbon spot, knot, etc.

Flawless Flawless is a term used for diamonds or other gemstones that are without any internal or external
flaws when viewed by a trained eye under 10X magnification.

Florentine Finish A Florentine finish is a crosshatched decorative technique engraved into the surface of a precious
metal. It is usually applied by a hand tool and consists a series of parallel lines engraved in two
directions perpendicular to each other. This finish reduces the reflectivity of metal and the lines are
often coarser and more deeply incised than the brushed or matte finish methods.

Fluorescence An effect in many gemstones mainly in diamonds that makes them glows in ultraviolet rays or light.
Stones can fluoresce in a number of colors mainly in blue and fluorescence ratings include none,
faint, slight, medium, strong and very strong. Faint to medium fluorescence is rarely detected
under most lighting conditions which include sunlight also whereas strong or very strong
fluorescence may make a stone appear milky or oily in such lighting conditions. Fluorescence is
not dangerous to the stone or to its wearer. It is a unique and fascinating quality that occurs
naturally in a number of gems and minerals.

Fob A small chain or ribbon attached to a pocket watch, often with an ornament or decorative seal
attached to the end.

Foil Foil is a paper like thin sheet of metal which is used to place behind a gemstone to intensify its
brilliance.

Foiling A method of coating or placing silver, gold, or colored foil behind a gem in a closed setting to
enhance its appearance as light is reflected by this. This is often done with rhinestones.

Foldover Clasp A clasp with a box on one end and a V-shaped tongue on the other end, mainly used on a
necklace or bracelet. The lid of the box opens to reveal a small hook and tongue slips over in it.
Then the lid of the box is snapped closed to secure the tongue in place.
Forging Heating a metal to a temperature where the metal becomes malleable (red hot) or deforming its
shape by compression or exertion of force (by hammering or cold forging).

Four Cs A phrase used to describe a diamond's value characteristics which cover the four well-known
factors affecting the price of a diamond. All these factors start with the letter C: cut, color, clarity,
and carat weight.

Foxtail Chain It resembles the fullness of a foxtail which is made up of three rows of links. Foxtail chain is
expertly designed by interweaving bent circles of metal together in a continuous pattern.

Fracture A breaking or chipping in a diamond or in a gemstone, which usually reached to its surface and
that is not in the direction of a cleavage plane.

Fracture Filling A diamonds enhancement process in which cavity is filled in a diamond with an artificial substance
like glass.

French Back It is an earring back for non-pierced ears where the earring is tightened against the earlobe by
means of a screw.

French wire It is a fishhook shaped finding often used to make pierced earrings. The hook end passes through
the pierced ear, while an ornament hangs from the other end.

Freshwater Pearl A freshwater pearl is an irregular shaped pearl that was harvested from a freshwater mussel (a
mollusk). Usually these pearls are shaped like an uneven grain of rice, and are less valuable than
oyster pearls. Biwa and Tennessee are the varieties of freshwater pearls.

Full Cut Brilliant A full cut brilliant is a diamond or a gemstone usually with total of 58 facets, consisting of 32 facets
and a table above the girdle and 24 facets and a culet below the girdle.

Functional Jewelry Functional jewelry findings are used in making a piece of jewelry that serves to accomplish some
Findings sort of mechanical functions such as attaching, linking or joining. Functional jewelry findings
include catches, pin backs, posts, screw backs etc.

Gallery Gallery is metal strips used to make settings for gemstones or used as a decorative design
element in a piece of jewelry.

Garnet Garnet, which belongs to mineral quartz, is a family of stones having many varieties differing in
color and in their constituents. This name is derived from its resemblance in color and shape to the
seeds of the pomegranate. Garnet Stones are available in varieties named Grossularite, Pyrope,
Almandine, Rhodalite, Andradite, Essonite, Tsavorite, Spessartite, Melanite, Allochroite,
Ouvarovite and Demantoid. The most common color of Garnets range from light red to violet, but
can also be white, green, yellow, brown and black except blue. Its hardness in between 7.5 to 8 on
Mohs hardness scale and it is mainly found in Burma, Sri Lanka, South Africa, China, USA,
Tanzania, Madagascar, India and Australia.

Gauge Any device or instrument which is used to calculate the weight of diamonds, by measuring or
estimating physical dimensions like diameter, depth, length.

Gemological Gemological Institute of America (GIA) was founded as non-profit organization in 1931 by Roger
Institute Shipley. GIA maintains the highest standards for grading diamonds and other precious gems and it
of America (GIA) has one of the worlds most-respected and well-regarded gemological laboratories. GIA has
developed and standardize the diamond and gemstone grading system that is used by nearly all
other gem labs.
Gemologist A person with expertise in gemology is known as gemologist. There are many recognized courses
available from various Gemological Institutes which offer study in gem identification, grading and
pricing, as well as diamond grading and appraising.

Gemstone A gemstone is a mineral or rock, which can be used in jewelry after cutting or faceting and
polishing. Gemstones are diverse in their beauty and many gems are available in a stunning
variety of colors. Most gemstones have little beauty in the rough state and they may look like
ordinary rocks or pebbles in their rough form. After a skilled cutting and polishing of a gem, full
color and luster can be seen. Gemstones are classified into two categories, precious and semi-
precious, on the basis of their characteristics. Precious stones include diamonds, emeralds,
rubies, and sapphires whereas semi precious stones are Alexandrite, Amethyst, Aquamarine,
Citrine, Garnet, Iolite, Onyx, Opal, Pearl, Peridot, Tanzanite, Topaz, Tourmaline etc.

Geode Geode is a cavity within a rock which is crystal line grows from inner surface to center in a
gemstone. Usually geode found in Amethyst and Peridot stones.

Gilding A metal object usually decorated with a thin layer of gold, gold foil or gold leaf.

Girdle Girdle is the widest part or outer edge of a diamond or a gemstone and the dividing line between
the crown and pavilion. The girdle can be rough (matt), faceted, polished or unpolished but a
polished or faceted girdle doesn't improve a stone's grade. Most labs grade a girdle's thickness,
not its appearance and the descriptions of girdle thickness range as follows: extremely thin; thin;
medium; slightly thick; thick; extremely thick.

Girdle Facet The 32 triangular facets that adjacent to the girdle on a brilliant cut or other stone and split into 16
upper (crown) girdle facets, and 16 lower (pavilion) girdle facets. Sometimes facets are placed
directly on the girdle, in which case the diamond is usually said to have a faceted girdle.

Girdle Thickness It is the measurement describing the percentage of the stones average girdle diameter. The girdle
thickness ranges as follows: extremely thin; thin; medium; slightly thick; thick; extremely thick.

Girdling Girdling is the process of giving a circular shape to a diamond or a gemstone. In this process, a
stone is held in a lathe, or in a cutting machine, and cut or shaped by another diamond or tool,
called a sharp.

Gold Gold is an extraordinary and rare precious metal, with an unmatched combination of chemical and
physical properties. Gold is the most non-reactive of all metals and it does not oxidize under
ordinary conditions. No other metal is as malleable as gold. Pure gold is very soft and pliable, and
alloys of different other metals are combined with pure gold to enhance its durability and strength,
as well as creating a blush in the golds appearance with different color tones. 24 karat is 100 %
pure gold, and it is more expensive and less durable than gold that is alloyed with other metals.

Gold - 10 Karat Gold which combines 10 parts of pure gold and 14 parts of other metal alloys and appears in white
(White Tone) tone. Normally white gold is created by combining pure gold with a copper, zinc and nickel (or
palladium) alloy.

Gold - 10 Karat Gold which combines 10 parts of pure gold and 14 parts of other metal alloys and appears in
(Yellow Tone) natural yellow tone. By combining with copper and silver, yellow gold retains a rich yellow color
while increasing its strength.

Gold - 14 Karat Gold which combines 14 parts of pure gold and 10 parts of other metal alloys and appears in white
(White Tone) tone. As mentioned above, normally white gold is created by combining pure gold with a copper,
zinc and nickel (or palladium) alloy.
Gold - 14 Karat Gold which combines 14 parts of pure gold and 10 parts of other metal alloys and appears in
(Yellow Tone) natural yellow tone. As mentioned above, by combining with copper and silver, yellow gold retains
a rich yellow color while increasing its strength.

Gold - 18 Karat Gold which combines 18 parts of pure gold and only 6 parts of other metal alloys and appears in
(White Tone) white tone. As mentioned above, normally white gold is created by combining pure gold with a
copper, zinc and nickel (or palladium) alloy.

Gold - 18 Karat Gold which combines 18 parts of pure gold and only 6 parts of other metal alloys and appears in
(Yellow Tone) natural yellow tone. As mentioned above, by combining with copper and silver, yellow gold retains
a rich yellow color while increasing its strength.

Gold Eagles It is referred as modern gold bullion coin. American gold eagle contains 91.7% pure gold (22
karat) and for the remaining part silver and copper as alloy.

Gold Filled Gold filled refers to a layer of at least 10-karat gold that has been permanently bonded by heat
and pressure to the surface of the base metal, then rolled or drawn to a prescribed thickness. The
karat gold must be at least 1/20 of the total weight. It is also known as gold overlay.

Gold Flashed A gold coating in which thickness of layer is less than seven millionths of an inch. It is sometimes
also called gold washed.

Gold Plated Gold Plated refers to a thin layer of plating of 10-karat gold or better which has been bonded to a
base metal. The karat gold content may be less than 1/20, but it must be properly identified by
weight in terms of total metal content.

Gold Standard A monetary system in which currency can be redeemed or converted for a fixed amount of gold.
The government or bank must have enough gold in reserve to redeem all its circulating currency.

Gold Tone In its pure form, gold has a metallic luster with deep yellow in color, but when it is mixed or alloyed
with other metals, such as silver, copper, zinc, nickel, platinum, palladium, etc. then it creates
various color tones like white, pink/ rose, green and the seldom found blue, purple and black. It is
sometimes called gold color.

Golden finish Jewelry that does not contain actual gold but finished in such a manner that it has the look of gold
jewelry item.

Goldsmith A person, who is an expert for working with precious metal to create jewelry.

Grade A recognized measure of an aspect of diamonds or gemstone's quality, mainly clarity and color.

Grading The process of evaluating a diamond or a gemstone, and allocating grades to it.

Grading Report A grading report or certificate is a statement, issued by an independent Gemological Laboratory,
that at the time of evaluation, the diamond or gemstone in question has been examined,
measured, and scrutinized by experienced Graders, using various gemological instruments, and
determined to contain the characteristics as stated in the Report or Certificate. The grading report
should accurately describe the proportions, weight, color, clarity, symmetry, polish and possible
fluorescence seen in the stone.

Grain Diamond crystals have different strength bonds in different directions and these directions are
known as grain. The term, grain is also an earliest known weight unit for gold in which one troy
ounce contains 480 grains.

Grain Center A small area of intense crystal structure distortion which usually associated with pinpoints.

Graining Usually graining refers to internal irregular crystal growth which may appear milky like faint lines or
streaks.

Gram Gram is the basic unit of weight of the metric system and generally used to express the weight of
jewelry items. One troy ounce contains 31.1035 grams.

Green Gold Pure gold is mixed with silver, copper and zinc to get green gold. Although this color is not very
popular but still it gives wearer an opportunity to look different.

Grinding Grinding is used to remove material from a work piece through machines and by using abrasive
minerals.

Guard Ring A tight ring worn above another ring to keep it from slipping off the finger.

Gypsy Setting The gypsy setting is a recessed setting in which the stone is sunk into the metal and there are
often engraved designs around the stone especially in star patterns. The gypsy setting is also
known as the star setting.

Half-Bezel Setting A setting type in which girdle of the stone is partially encircled on two sides rather than around the
entire stone.

Half-Hoop design An earring, bangle or bracelet which resembles a ring but does not form a complete circle.

Hallmark A hallmark is an official mark (or a series of marks) stamped onto a precious metal that indicates
the fineness of the metal and the manufacturer's mark. As well as sometimes hallmarks indicate
the country and year of manufacturing. Although marks are not officially required in USA but
usually they are carried by custom and practice.

Hammered Finish A hammered finish is a texture applied to the surface of a metal piece with a hammer to give it a
dimpled look. A hammered texture gives impression of a series of small depressions in the metal.
This finish is varied from light to deep hammering texture and usually increases the size of the
metal piece.

Hand Made Hand made jewelry is created completely by hand and only some hand tools are used for this.

Hardest Diamond is the hardest known naturally occurring substance on Earth.

Hardness The hardness of a gemstone refers it's resistance to scratching on a smooth surface. Moh's scale
of hardness, which scale from 1 (very soft) to 10 (very hard), is useful for comparing the relative
hardness of different gem materials. Diamond is the hardest known substance on Earth and it is
graded 10 on Mohs scale of hardness. Hardness is directional in most gemstones.

Head Head refers part of the setting that holds the center stone or solitaire in place.

Heart Cut The Heart shaped diamond or gemstone is essentially a pear-shaped with a cleft at the top and
which typically contains 59 facets. Due to the complexity of the shape, skilled cutting is necessary
to maintain the stones brilliance. Generally people prefer a heart shape stone for sentimental
purposes. This shape is mostly used in pendants, but also suitable for most jewelry items.

Heat Treatment Heat treatment is the process in which heat is offered to a gemstone for the purpose of improving
its color.

Herringbone Chain It is a short flexible chain that lies flat around the neck.

Hidden box clasp A box clasp that is hidden under the last link of chain so that when the chain is closed it looks
uniform, except for the release lever.

Hidden Screw A hidden screw clasp is similar to screw clasp where clasp is partially covered in the bead or pearl,
Clasp giving the necklace a clasp less look when screwed together.

High Polish Finish High polish finish is a super shiny and smooth polish applied to a metal surface that gives a highly
reflective and mirror-like finish.

Hinge Hinge is an assembled unit of a joint, top wire and catch, which permits movement to a piece of
jewelry.

Hoop Earring A circular-shaped earring for pierced ears, which look similar to a ring, goes in a loop from the
front to back of the earlobe. It is usually made of metal tubing and this hollow tubing is
permanently attached to the wire at the front of the ear, which slips into the tube at the back.
These earrings are available in many variations that include hoops with charms and with other
jewelry items to be hung from the hoop.

Hope diamond The Hope Diamond is the world's largest deep blue diamond. It is famous for its striking color and
infamous for its history of bringing bad luck to its owners. This attractive stone is also having a
history of stolen and recovered, sold and resold, cut and recut. It is now on display at the
Smithsonian Institute in Washington.

Hue Hue is an aspect of color such as pink, yellow, blue, green, etc. It is a primary factor in viewing and
grading fancy colored diamonds and gemstones.

Hybrid Jewelry Hybrid jewelry findings serve the purposes of both mechanical findings as well as decorative
Findings findings. These findings are used in making a piece of jewelry to link or attach whereas due to
their beauty and looks, these are considered as decorative also. Hybrid jewelry findings include
bracelet links, bead caps, locket bails etc.

Ideal Cut Theoretically perfect cutting proportions and facet angles, calculated mathematically to produce
maximum brilliancy consistent with a high degree of fire in a round brilliant cut gemstone. Ideal cut
is also known as American Cut.

Idiochromatic The colors in these idiochromatic gems come from elements that are an essential part of their
Gems chemical composition. These gems generally have only one color, or show a very narrow range of
colors. Peridot is an idiochromatic gem, which is always green, due to one of its essential
elements, iron.

IGI (International IGI (International Gemological Institute) is an organization which offers a grading report for
Gemological diamonds and other gemstones. IGI has laboratories located throughout the world, including New
Institute) York, Antwerp, Mumbai, Bangkok and Tokyo.
Igneous Rocks These are rocks that are formed from erupted volcanic lava or solidified magma.

Illusion Setting An illusion setting contains a faceted metal plate that surrounds the girdle of a stone, thus making
the stone appear larger.

Imitation Imitation diamonds or gemstones can be anything that resembles a natural stone but does not
have the same physical characteristics or chemical composition. These items are usually much
less expensive than the natural forms. Imitation stones are often made of glass or plastic and most
can be detected easily by a jeweler.

Imperfect An imperfect diamond or gemstone contains any external blemish or internal inclusion or flaw that
are visible to the unaided eye or that have a serious effect on the stones durability. The diamond
imperfection grade at the low end of the flawless-to-imperfect scale.

Included Crystal A diamond which contains a mineral crystal is known as included crystal.

Inclusion An internal imperfection or characteristic which reduces the clarity or brilliance of a diamond or
gemstone. Common stone inclusions are feathers, crystals, fractures, needles, graining, pinpoints
and cavities.

Industrial Low grade or very small diamonds which are not perfect for jewelry use and are generally used in
Diamonds various industrial applications.

Ingot An ingot is a metal cast into the shape of a bar or block.

Inlay This term refers to a decorative feature of an item of jewelry. An inlay is a piece of material (usually
stone or glass) that is partially embedded in another material (usually metal) and these two
materials make a level surface.

Intaglio Intaglio is a style of carving in which the design is carved into the surface of an engraved stone so
that the rim shows the highest portion.

Internal Graining A diamond or a gemstone which contains internal irregular crystal growth is known as internal
graining. It may appear milky like faint lines or streaks.

Internally Flawless
A clarity grade which refers no inclusions and only insignificant surface blemishes.
(IF)

Invisible Set In this setting, stones are positioned in such a manner so that metal is not visible from in-between
stones that ultimately show appearance of uninterrupted and continuous surface. Usually invisible
setting is best suited with square princess, emerald, baguette, and trillion cut diamonds and
gemstones because the straight edges can be positioned very close to each other without leaving
any space in-between.

Iridescent An iridescent material displays many lustrous, changing colors caused by the reflection of light due
to inclusions in gemstones.

Iridium Iridium is a metal of the platinum family which often alloyed with platinum to improve workability.
Jewelry pieces marked 80% Plat. 20% Irid would indicate that the alloy is containing 80 %
platinum and 20% iridium.
Iron Iron is a very common metallic element and mainly used to make steel. It usually appears dark
brown in impure form whereas silvery-white in pure form. Pure iron is quite soft and it is oxidized
(rusted) easily by moisture. The chemical symbol for iron is Fe.

Irradiated diamond A diamond which has been exposed to radiation usually to improve its color.

J Hoop Earrings A half hoop earring that resembles the English language letter J and does not completely encircle
the earlobe.

Jade Jade is a semiprecious stone, which is often used to describe jadeite and nephrite both as these
two are similar in appearance and use. It is available in varieties of shades like green, light purple,
yellow, pink, creamy white etc. Although this stone founds at many places but the best quality jade
comes from Myanmar (formerly Burma). Jade is quite hard stone with 6.5 to 7 on the Mohs scale
and used in many jewelry items.

Jewelry Jewelry is a personal ornament, such as a ring, bracelet, necklace or any other item made from
jewels, precious metals or any other material. The word jewelry is derived from the Latin word
Jocale means plaything. In present scenario the word Jewelry is used to describe any piece of
precious metal or gemstone used to adorn oneself.

Jewelry Findings Jewelry findings are basically components, materials and elements like clasps, pins, hooks, tabs
etc that can be used in making or assembling a piece of jewelry.

Jump Ring Jump ring is a round or oval shaped plain wire ring available in various sizes and used for
attaching jewelry parts. Normally, the ends of the wire are bent together instead of soldering.

Karat, Karat Weight Karat is the American spelling of carat which is now only used for gold or gold alloys weight
whereas English spelling carat is used in respect of weight of diamonds or other gemstones. Karat
is always based on pure 24 karat gold and if a jewelry item contains 18 karat gold that means it
has eighteen parts pure gold and six parts other metal alloys. Karat is also used in its abbreviated
'kt' form.

Kimberlite Rock The yellow or blue rock which forms diamond pipes and in which most diamonds are found.

Knot An included diamond crystal which reaches to the surface of a polished diamond. This knot is
difficult to cut or polish because of twinning, negative crystal growth, or similar feature.

Kohinoor, Koh-i- The name of Koh-i-noor means "Mountain of Light". It is an Oval Shaped Brilliant cut diamond with
noor 108.93 carat weight. This diamond was presented to Queen Victoria in 1850 to mark the 250th
anniversary of the founding of the East India Company. It is now on display with the British Crown
Jewels in the Tower of London.

Lapidary Lapidary is a skilled craftsman who cuts and polishes diamonds and gemstones to their finished
state.

Laser Drill Hole A tiny tube which is created in a diamond by laser drilling to treat a diamond. It is one of the few
man-made inclusions that can occur inside a diamond. The surface opening may resemble a pit,
while the tube usually looks needle like.

Laser Drilling A diamond enhancement technique by a laser which is used to drill a diamond to remove
inclusions. BY using this laser drilling technique, clarity grade of a diamond can be raised.
Lead Lead is a dense, soft metal with a dull blue-grey appearance. It has a low melting point and due to
this it is generally used in soldering. The chemical symbol for lead is Pb.

Length-to-width A comparison of the length and width of the girdle outline on fancy shaped stones. It is used to
ratio analyze the outline of fancy shapes only and it is never applied to round shaped stones. The ratio
is found by dividing the length of the stone by the width where stone width is always stated as 1.
This ratio is simply a matter of personal aesthetic preferences and there is no defined ideal ratio
for any of the fancy shaped stones.

Lever back An earring for a pierced ear with a hook-shaped ear wire that goes through the earlobe. It is
secured by a hinged lever attached to the back of the piece.

Light Brown A diamond which is not intense enough to be considered as fancy brown and often appear quite
white.

Light Yellow A diamond with light yellow tint is considered as fancy yellow.

Link A loop or any other object which is linked together in a series to make a chain.

Lobster Claw Clasp A lobster claw clasp is a jewelry fastener that resembles the claw of a lobster. A tiny spring keeps
the arm of this clasp closed, which can be opened by a lever on its side.

Locket A locket is a small box or hinged case which can be opened and closed and generally contains a
small photograph or other small item. These lockets are usually attached to chains and worn
around the neck. Lockets are often made of precious metals and available in various shapes like
heart, oval, circle etc.

Loose diamond Loose diamond is an unmounted polished diamond.

Lost Wax Casting This is one of the most commonly used casting techniques. Under this casting method, an object
is made of wax and coated in clay. When the clay is fired, the wax melts and is drained away or
evaporates leaving an exact impression of the object in the hardened clay, which is then filled with
molten metal.

Loupe Loupe is a French word for magnifying glass. It is a small magnifying lens used to examine
diamonds and gemstones. 10X magnification is the standard.

Lower Girdle Facet A diamond facet on the pavilion of a round brilliant cut just below the girdle.

Luster The quality of reflected and refracted light from the surface of a diamond or gemstone or pearl or
metal. Luster is mainly dependent on stone's surface (polish) and the reflective index of the
mineral. Luster can be described as: adamantine, pearly, greasy, metallic, silky, resinous, vitreous,
earthy (also known as dull) and waxy.

Main Facets The large crown and pavilion facets of a brilliant-cut diamond whereas on step-cut stone, the
center row of facets on the pavilion.

Make Make is a trade term refers to the proportions, symmetry and polish of a diamond or a gemstone.

Malleability Malleability is the physical property of metal that allows it to be hammered, rolled, compressed and
stretched. Gold is the most malleable of all metals.
Marina chain Marina chain is made of small round diamond cut links that are set very close.

Mariner link Mariner chain is made of flat oval links with a strip of metal down the middle of each link. It is also
known as anchor link chain.

Marquise Cut The Marquise Cut is a traditional shape having elongated ends at both edges. The pointed ends
make this shape the most fragile and the most expensive of brilliant style cuts. It has a total of 56
facets and construction of facet requires a lot of experience and delicacy of the sharp points
demands utmost precaution. Now-a-days this shape is very popular for engagement rings.

Matinee Length Matinee style offers one of the most popular necklace lengths with 20 to 24 inches and it comes in
between princess and opera length. Matinee necklaces look stunning on casual or business attire.

Matrix Matrix is a rock in which gemstones are found. It is also referred as the host rock or parent rock.

Matte Finish A matte finish, also known as a brushed finish, is a texture applied to metal surface, which gives a
dull and non-reflective finish. Matte finish is achieved either by a chemical process or by using an
abrasive material to scratch the top layers of the piece.

Melee This term is used to describe small brilliant-cut diamonds under .20 carat. Generally, these small
diamonds or gemstones are used to embellish mountings, setting or larger stones.

Memory Wire Memory wire is a tough, stiff wire that retains its shape. It does not require the use of a clasp and
is often used for necklaces and bracelets.

Metal Metal is a solid mineral element that usually has a shiny surface and generally a good conductor
of heat and electricity, and can be melted or fused, hammered into thin sheets, or drawn into
wires. Common metals include bronze, copper and iron whereas gold, platinum and silver are
considered as precious metals and used for making jewelry.

Metal Etching A technique of creating a design on metal using acid. Some parts of the metal are covered and
protected from the action of the acid, while the remaining exposed parts are eaten away by the
acid to form a design.

Metal Type The type of metal that is used to create jewelry.

Metamorphic Rock These are rocks that have been changed by heat and/or pressure to form new rocks consisting of
new minerals.

Milgrain It is a decorative technique in which a beaded design is impressed into the metal by using a
special engravers tool.

Millimeter The unit of measurement, which is used to determine a pearl and gem's diameter, equal to about
0.04 inch.

Mine A place where diamonds and other gemstones are extracted from the ground, by using various
methods of mining like open cast, deep pit etc.

Mineral Mineral is a naturally occurring, inorganic element of the Earth with a consistent atomic structure
and chemical composition.
Mirror Finish A highly reflective and mirror like finished surface with no visible abrasion pattern.

Mixed Cut A mixed cut refers to a cut in which the style of the facets above and below the girdle are different.
A standard mixed cut is brilliant cut above and step cut below.

MM The abbreviation for millimeter.

Modern Brilliant It is a round brilliant cut unless otherwise stated normally with 58 facets including the culet and
Cut polished using relatively modern theory. This shape is considered as ideal for a diamond because
it maximizes a stone's sparkle and brilliance.

Modified Brilliant A cut in a shape or style other than round brilliant cut, such as oval, pear, marquise, heart,
Cut princess, radiant, or baguette.

Mohs scale It is a ten point scale to find mineral hardness which is devised by Friedrich Mohs, a German
mineralogist, in the 19th century. The diamond is the hardest of all known natural substances and
it scores 10 on Mohs Scale.

Moissanite Transparent silicon carbide, which is a rare crystal in nature, marketed as a diamond stimulant. It
is named after Henri Moissan, famous French scientist. Its double refraction is one of the few
differences with a diamond whereas thermal conductivity is almost equal.

Mold Mold is the hollow form into which molten metal is poured to solidify and then ejected or broken
out to get a fabricated jewelry part. It is made from a refractory material either for temporary use or
for permanent use.

Molecule Diamonds are composed of large molecules or particles of carbon atoms with strong bonds in all
planes.

Mother of Pearl The iridescent lining of an oyster shell, often used as a nucleus for a cultured pearl.

Mother's Ring A ring worn by a mother showing the birthstones of her children is known as mothers ring.
Sometimes this ring includes birthstones of mother and father also.

Mounting The process of making a ring or other piece of jewelry into which gemstones will be set.

Muff Chain Muff chain is a long chain with a clasp used to suspend a ladys fur muff.

Multi-Stone A jewelry item containing several stones grouped together which creates the illusion of one large
center stone.

Nacre A shiny iridescent substance made from the lining of mollusk shells or fish scales. Over time,
layers of nacre build up to become a pearl.

Natural A small portion of the original surface of a rough diamond or gemstone left by the cutter when
polishing and faceting a stone which is frequently on or near the girdle. This is generally the sign
of a cutter attempting to maximize the weight retention of the rough diamond or gemstone. Usually
naturals do not affect the clarity grade and in most cases, they are undetectable to the naked eye.

Natural Gemstones These have been formed in natural environment with no interference by human. They form in a
variety of ways in many different environments from many different chemical compounds. By the
time they appear in our jewelry they've been cut or polished, but they've not been treated or
altered in other ways.

Natural pearl A pearl that forms naturally, in an oyster, is known as natural pearl. When a grain of sand or other
small object enters in the shell and the oyster is unable to eject the object then the oyster will coat
the object with layers of nacre to form a pearl. There is no way to determine if an oyster contains a
pearl, so to create a dependable pearl supply, the culturing process was invented.

Necklace A necklace is a jewelry item, which is worn around the neck. Necklaces come in numerous forms
& styles and can be ornamented with pendants or lockets. Necklaces are mainly categorized by its
size as well as its design and material, which include pearl necklace, choker, collar, princess
necklace, matinee necklace, opera necklace, rope necklace etc.

Needle A long, thin and sharp crystal inclusion which looks like a tiny rod.

Nick A minor chip out of the surface of a diamond, usually found near or on the girdle of the stone.

Nickel A multipurpose hard, bright, silver-white metallic element of the iron group that is malleable, ductile
and resistant to corrosion. It is most commonly used in alloys and plating.

Nonmetallic An object or material which is not composed of metal.

Non-precious Metal Non-precious metal is any metal that is not considered to be a precious metal.

Nose Stud A nose stud is a simple style of jewelry that is worn through a piercing in the nostril and it contains
single stone, pearl or metal ball on a straight post.

NYMEX NYMEX is New York Mercantile Exchange which is a future exchange where platinum and
palladium are traded.

Off Make A poorly proportioned Diamond, particularly with poor symmetry.

Oiling Oiling is a process of applying mineral oil to a stone. It is used to mask inclusions or enhance the
color of a gemstone. This technique is commonly used on emeralds to fill the cracks and to
enhance the color.

Old European Cut The earliest known form of brilliant cut diamond with a very small table, a heavy crown, and usually
great overall depth. This is also known as old mine cut.

Omega A flat and solid chain with close fitting rectangular links and worn high on the neck.

Onyx Onyx is a beautiful gemstone composed of chalcedony (a variety of quartz) and available in colors
like black, white, black with white bands, red, brown etc. Onyx which is available in a red, brown or
reddish brown color is known as Sardonyx. The bands that are found on this stone run parallel and
are consistent. It is extremely similar to Agate, another variety of quartz. Agate bands are round or
circular and are not consistent. Its hardness in between 6.5 to 7 on Mohs hardness scale and it is
mainly found in Madagascar, India, Brazil, United States, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

Opal The name Opal is derived from three sources: Sanskrit Upala, Latin Opalus, and Greek
Opallios. All three of these words mean the same thing precious stone. Opal is made from sand
and water. It has the same chemical formula as quartz with the addition of 3 to 10 % water content.
This is a very popular gemstone, mainly due to its wonderful variety of rich and beautiful colors like
black, white, gray, yellow, red, orange and colorless. High quality opals have an extraordinary
feature of opalescence in which light reflects and bounces around the very small structures of the
stone, giving it a wonderful aura and sometimes iridescence. The group of fine Opals includes
quite a number of wonderful gemstones which are differentiated on the basis of the variety, place
of occurrence, and color of the main body, into Dark or Black Opal, White or Light Opal, Milk or
Crystal Opal, Boulder Opal, Opal Matrix, Mexican and Fire Opal. Its hardness in between 5 to 6.5
on Mohs hardness scale and it is mainly found in Australia, Brazil, Mali, Japan, Russia, USA and
Mexico. Australia is the major supplier of Fine Opals and almost 95 per cent of all Opals come
from Australian mines.

Opalescence Opalescence is a kind of light play that happens with certain high quality stones. In these stones,
light reflect and bounce around the stone structures which give them a wonderful aura and
sometimes a milky blue form of iridescence.

Opaque Opaque refers to the transparency of a diamond or gemstone. Generally opaque stone does not
transmit light as it is so thick with inclusions or flaws and due to that light is blocked from passing
through the stone.

Opera Length Opera necklace comes in a stretched length which ranges from 30 to 36 inches long. It is perfect
for high or crew necklines and gives ease and versatility especially to evening wear.

Optical Effects Some gemstones exhibit extraordinary optical effects known as phenomena. These rare and
beautiful effects very often add value to gemstones. Some of these popular phenomena are
Chatoyancy (cat's eye effect), Asterism (star effect), Color Change, Aventurescence and
Iridescence.

Orange A very rare and attractive fancy color of diamond.

Ore An ore is a group of rocks containing valuable minerals that can be extracted.

Organic Gem Gemstones made by or derived from living organisms are known as organic gems. These include
pearls from oysters, amber from tree resin etc.

Orloff Orloff is a Mogul-Cut Rose diamond with 189.62 carat weight. It is with exceptionally pure clarity
and slightly bluish green color. According to a tale, the Orloff was set as the eye of Vishnu's idol
(one of the Hindu Gods) in the innermost sanctuary temple in Sriangam and was stolen in the year
1700 by a French deserter disguised as a Hindu.

Ounce A unit of weight. For precious metals, an ounce means a troy ounce which is equal to 31.1035
grams.

Oval Cut The Oval Cut is a beautiful Fancy shape which offers great brilliance and fire through its 56 facets.
This is an elongated version of round cut, provides the same brightness which comes from a round
brilliant shaped diamond or gemstone.

Overlay Overlay is a type of jewelry decorative technique that involves two flat metal pieces. The top piece
is highly polished whereas the bottom layer is darkened with oxidation to provide good contrast
when the two pieces are soldered together.

Oxidation Oxidation is a chemical process in which a metal is blackened as a reaction to oxygen.


Pad Insert It is a molded rubber insert that usually fits into or over the clip portion of a clip earring for greater
comfort of the wearer.

Palladium Palladium is a member of the Platinum group metal and it is lighter and less expensive than
platinum. Palladium is usually mixed with yellow gold to create white gold.

Parcel Parcel is a packed paper envelop for diamonds which is purchased by buyer without selection of
containing diamonds. Although sometimes buyer is permitted to reject a small number of
diamond.

Parti-colored Gems These are crystals that are made up of different colored parts. Stones made up of two colors are
known as bicolor and made up of three colors are known as tricolor whereas sometimes these
are available in more than three colors also. In some cases, Tourmaline exhibits as many as 15
different colors or shades within one crystal.

Past, Present and A collection of three stone jewelry representing the past, present and future of a relationship. It
Future Collection symbolizes the treasured past, the comforting present and the magical promise of the future.

Paste Powder of very small diamonds in paste form, which is made with oil or any other binder and
used as an abrasive for cutting and polishing any material including other diamonds.

Patina The change in an object's surface resulting from natural ageing due to oxidation and wear.

Pave An attractive style of jewelry setting in which numerous small stones are mounted as close
together as possible to create a sparkly stone shell. The pave setting is very popular with
diamonds and this setting style covers the whole piece of jewelry with diamond crust and
conceals the metal under it.

Pavilion Pavilion is the lower part of a diamond or gemstone, below the girdle.

Pavilion Angle This is the angle between the main pavilion facets and the girdle. In a diamond, this is the most
important dimension and ideal pavilion angle should be around 40.75 to 41.

Pavilion Main Facet The eight facets found on the pavilion of a round brilliant diamond.

Pear Cut The Pear Cut is a fancy shape stone that looks like a teardrop due to its single point and rounded
end with 56 to 58 facets. This shape is popular for its uniqueness and brilliance.

Pearl A Pearl is an organic gem, produced when certain mollusks, primarily oysters cover a foreign
object with beautiful layers of nacre. A good sized Pearl can take between five to eight years to
form, which is usually the entire life of the oyster or mollusk. There are two types of Pearls:
Natural Pearls, formed inside wild oysters, practically impossible to find nowadays, and Cultured
Pearls in which the production of the pearl is artificially induced. For producing cultured pearls,
shell beads are placed inside an oyster and the oyster is returned to the water. When the pearls
are later harvested, the oyster has covered the bead with layers of nacre. The finest Natural
Pearls are fished almost exclusively from the Persian Gulf and the China Sea, while the best
cultivated ones come from Japan, Korea and more recently Australia. Its hardness in between 2.5
to 4.5 on Mohs hardness scale and it should be handled with care. Pearls are usually white,
sometimes with a creamy or pinkish tinge, but may be tinted with yellow, green, blue, brown,
purple, or black. Pearls are available in different shapes: round, semi-round, button, drop, pear,
oval, baroque, and ringed. Perfectly round Pearls are the rarest and most expensive. Fine Natural
Pearls are much more expensive and rare to find than Cultured Pearls.
Pearl drop A metal ring is attached to a real or imitate pearl which hangs from a piece of jewelry.

Pendant A pendant is a decorative ornament that hangs from jewelry items like necklace or earring.
Pendants are generally made of precious stones and precious metals and often used to enhance
the beauty of a necklace or an earring.

Pennyweight Pennyweight, usually shortened by dwt, is an American unit of weight for gold. One pennyweight
equals 24 grains or 1/20 of a troy ounce. Also a pennyweight is equal to 1.5552 grams.

Peridot Peridot, a verity of mineral olivine, is a very old but still very popular gemstone. Peridot is formed
deep within the earth under tremendous heat and pressure. The color of peridot is an integral part
of its structure. Chemically peridot is an iron-magnesium-silicate and its intensity of the color
depends upon the amount of iron contained by it. It is available in only one color shade with
colors like yellow green, olive and brownish green. This gemstone is in fact identified by three
names, Peridot, Chrysolith and Olivin. Its hardness in between 6.5 to 7 on Mohs hardness scale
and it is mainly found in Australia, Mexico, Sri Lanka, South Africa, Tanzania, China, Burma,
Arizona, USA, Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Periodic Table It is a tabular method to classify, systematize and compare all the 116 (94 natural, 22 synthetic)
basic chemical elements.

Phosphorescence A diamond, which is exposed to daylight, ultra-violet or other light, continues to glow after the light
source has been removed.

Pick The term pick is used when seller permits buyer to select one or more diamonds from a parcel.

Pierced Earrings Earrings that are specifically designed for pierced ears. Piercing is done either in the earlobe or
some other external part of an ear and a wire or post is inserted through the earlobe ot that
external part.

Pin A pin is a type of fastener that contains small metal rod with a sharp point and generally used to
attach a jewelry item on clothing.

Pin Back A pin back is an assembled unit of a joint, catch and pin-stem that is pre-assembled on a metal
plate. This entire unit is attached to a piece of jewelry by soldering or gluing.

Pink Diamond Pink is one of the rarest and most desirable fancy colors for a diamond. Any diamond with pale
reddish, purplish-red and purplish hue is known as pink diamond.

Pink Gold Pink gold, also known as rose gold, is alloyed with copper, and at times possibly even with silver.
The proportions are about three parts of 24-karat gold to one part of copper.

Pinpoint Tiny or very small inclusions, of pinpoint size, internal to a diamond. Whereas a cluster of
pinpoints can form a cloud.

Pipe This term is used for vertical, columnar rocks that are originated due to lava flow and after that
cooled and solidified in the neck of a volcano. When these rock masses consist of kimberlite, they
often contain diamonds.

Pit A tiny opening or surface mark on a diamond which often looks like a white dot.
Plating Plating is the technique to cover or coat a thin layer of a metal to another metal surface mainly for
the decorative purposes.

Platinum Platinum, an extremely rare and expensive metal, is a silvery gray precious metal often used for
setting or mounting high quality diamonds and gemstones. Platinum is a strong, durable and
dense metal which is valued for its white color and purity.

Platinum Platinum, an extremely rare and expensive metal, is a silvery gray precious metal often used for
setting or mounting high quality diamonds and gemstones. Platinum is a strong, durable and
dense metal which is valued for its white color and purity.

Pleochroism Pleochroism refers to the ability of certain gems to display two or more colors when viewed from
different directions.

Plotting Diagram A graphical representation or a diagram in a diamond certificate that illustrates the facets of a
diamond as well as the approximate locations and types of internal and external characteristics.
These characteristics can be spotted as internal and external by the different colors generally red
and green.

Plumb Gold It is a term used to describe gold jewelry that contains the precise amount of gold in the alloy that
the karat mark indicates. A jewelry piece with 18kt plumb gold means that the gold will be at a
minimum 18 parts gold mixed with 6 parts alloys.

Poesy Ring A poesy ring is a ring with a short inscription, usually a love poem, on its outer surface.

Point A unit of measurement which is used to describe the weight of diamonds and other gemstones
where one point is equivalent to one-hundredth of a carat. For example, a 1/2 carat diamond
weighs 50 points.

Poison Ring A poison ring contains a small-hinged box, which is made to resemble a normal setting. This box
can be opened easily and its small space can be used to hold poison.

Polish Polish is considered as smoothness of the surface of a fashioned stone in which optical reflection
is maximized. Generally a polished stone does not show visible wheel marks or burn marks under
10X magnification. Polish is an indicator of the quality of stones cut which is graded as Ideal,
Excellent, Very Good, Good, Fair or Poor. In terms of metal, polish is considered as smoothness
of the surface of a metal object in which optical reflection is maximized.

Polish Lines Polish lines refer tiny or faint surface lines which are visible due to imperfect polishing or
irregularities in crystal structure.

Polish Mark A burn mark or surface clouding on a diamond caused by excessive heat while grinding or
polishing.

Polished Girdle A girdle that is polished or lapped to yield a lustrous and highly reflective surface.

Polishing The process of polish which converts a stones or metal's rough or irregular surface to a smooth
surface by using various methods.

Porosity Porosity refers to the areas of the mold that absorbed some of the casting material and leaves
the cast object with a rough, granular surface.
Post A post is a pin-like component attached to an earring that passes through the pierced earlobe and
is usually secured by a clutch.

Pot Metal Pot metal, also known as white metal, is a mixture of alloys which does not contain any precious
metal.

Powder The term powder refers to very small diamonds used for polishing other diamonds or materials.

Prayer Ring A prayer ring is similar to poison ring in shape but the small space of its box is used to keep a
small piece of paper with a prayer written on it.

Precious Metal A precious metal is a metal with rare metallic chemical element. Gold, platinum and silver are
widely traded and considered as precious metals due to their rarity, beauty and physical
properties. Precious metals are less reactive than most elements, have high luster, and have
higher melting points than other metals.

Precious, Precious The term precious is used for stones as well as metal. Stones those are highly valuable for their
Stone hardness and rarity, are known as precious stones. Precious stones include diamonds, emeralds,
rubies, and sapphires.

Price Price of a diamond or gemstone is extremely variable and based on all aspects of quality.

Princess Cut The princess cut is a fancy shape gem which has pointed corners and square in shape. The ideal
princess cut will have length to width ratio is as close to 1.00:1.00 as possible, as princess cut
stones can range from this perfect square through to almost rectangular. This cut is the most
popular non-round diamond cut.

Princess Length Princess length is the most popular necklace length offers length from 17 to 19 inches that falls
just below the throat. It comes in between choker and matinee length. A pendant can also be
added for a bold and eye-catching look. Princess necklaces also look beautiful on all types of
attire.

Promise Ring A promise ring is given to a romantic partner to indicate a promise to be committed in a
relationship. These rings are generally small and inexpensive.

Prong Prong is a claw or wire used to fasten and hold a stone in a setting.

Prong Setting Prong setting is the most frequently used method of setting diamonds or gemstones into jewelry.
This setting usually consists of four or six small metal tips or claws to hold the stone tightly. This
setting allows maximum amount of light to enter in a stone from all angles and because of this,
stone appears more brilliant and larger than its actual size.

Proportion The consideration of each part of a diamond in relation to all other parts. Proportion is an
important quality element which evaluates the overall shape of a diamond.

Proportion-scope It is an equipment or tool for assessing, measuring and demonstrating the proportions of
diamonds either individually or comparing them with ideal.

Purity Purity is also known as clarity which describes the absence or presence of flaws inside or on the
surface of a diamond or a gemstone. For diamonds, purity is graded on a scale from Flawless (no
inclusions or blemishes visible under 10x magnification) to Included (eye visible inclusions or
blemishes). Whereas for other colored gemstones, purity is classified into three Types. Type I
colored stones include stones with very little or no inclusions, Type II colored stones include
stones that often have a few inclusions whereas Type III colored stones include stones that
usually always have inclusions.

Purity Ring Purity ring is a ring that symbolizes virginity of the wearer.

Purple An exceptional and attractive fancy diamond color.

Quartz Quartz is the most common mineral on earth. It is a crystalline mineral


that comes in many forms.

Radiant Cut The Radiant Cut is a fancy shaped rectangular or square stone with cut corners. This shape
comes with 62 to 70 facets and offers the elegance of the emerald shape with the brilliance of the
princess shape. Trimmed corners are the signature of this shape, and they help to make the
radiant cut a popular and versatile choice for jewelry.

Ratio The term ratio is also known as length to width ratio which is a comparison of the length and width
of the girdle outline on fancy shaped diamonds. It is used to analyze the outline of fancy shapes
only and it is never applied to round diamonds. The ratio is found by dividing the length of the
diamond by the width where diamond width is always stated as 1. This ratio is simply a matter of
personal aesthetic preferences and there is no defined ideal ratio for any of the fancy shaped
diamonds.

Red Diamond One of the rare most and very desirable colors for diamond.

Reflection The term reflection is used for important optical effect where light bounces or returns once it
strikes the surface of a diamond or a gemstone.

Refraction The term Refraction is also used for optical effect where light deviates or change its direction once
it enters in a diamond or a gemstone.

Refractive Index When light meets the surface of a polished diamond or gemstone, some of the light is reflected,
(RI) whereas most is absorbed. This entered light in the gem slows down and is bent from its original
path due to the difference of density between air and stone. This process is known as refraction.
This refraction varies from gem to gem depending on density and can be measured and used to
help identify the gem type. This measurement is known as refractive index (RI).

Refractometer Refractometer is a device that is used to measure the refractive index of gemstones including
diamonds.

Regard Ring A regard ring is a type of acrostic jewelry, which consists all or any of the precious stones named
Ruby, Emerald, Garnet, Amethyst, Ruby, and a Diamond. The name Regard taken from first letter
of each gemstone.

Relief Relief is a kind of decoration that projects from the surface, like a cameo.

Repouss A method of decorating a metal surface by pressing or hammering a design from the inside or
backside and then polishing it up in front with a chasing hammer, producing a three-dimensional
base-relief surface.

Reticulation It is a process of giving the metal surface a rough or wrinkled texture.


Rhodium Rhodium is a noble metal, from the platinum family, with a whitish gray appearance. Rhodium, in
raw natural state, comes in liquid state and in jewelry industry, it is very popular plating metal
which gives very smooth, shiny and expensive look, just like platinum, to a metal piece.

Rhodium Plating In this process, rhodium is applied through the electroplating process to base metals like gold,
sterling silver or some other metal alloy. This rhodium plating gives silver tone finish, which is
darker than a silver plated finish and darkens with time rather than tarnishing like silver plate.
Rhodium plating is virtually identical to Platinum but on a fraction of the cost and often it is used on
fashion rings and brooches.

Ring A ring is a circular band worn on the finger. Ring is the most popular and used jewelry item in the
world. In most cultures, rings are worn as an emblem of engagement or wedding whereas in some
cultures it is worn for the religious purposes also. Rings are available in wide range of styles and
designs, which can be worn on any finger. Rings are mainly made of precious metal with
gemstones attached to them but they can also be made of any material like plastic, wood, bone,
glass etc.

Ring adjustor Ring adjustor is a type of jewelry finding which is made and used to temporarily reduce the inside
diameter of a ring.

Ring Guard A ring guard is a tight ring worn above another ring to keep it from slipping off the finger.

Ring Size Ring size is a measurement of how large the ring needs to be to fit on a person's finger. The
average ring size for women is 6 and for men is 10.

Rolled Gold Rolled gold is a very thin layer of gold that is applied to a lesser or base metal usually brass.
Rolled gold metal pieces are marked rolled gold plate or R.G.P. or RGP.

Rope Chain A style of chain with a series of small oval shaped links that are arranged in such a manner that
they resemble a rope.

Rosary Ring A rosary ring is a ring worn around the finger with 10 indentations and a cross on its surface, which
exhibits one decade of rosary.

Rose Finish A type of finished jewelry that resembles to rose gold jewelry but actually does not contain any
gold content.

Rough The term rough is used for any uncut or unpolished diamond or gemstone.

Rough Girdle A grainy, pitted or uneven girdle surface, often with nicks.

Round Brilliant cut The round brilliant cut is one of the most traditional and popular shapes. It has 58 facets which
offer great brilliance and stability. These 58 facets include 1 table, 8 bezel facets, 8 star facets, 16
upper-girdle facets on the crown, 8 pavilion facets, 16 lower-girdle facets, and usually a culet on
the pavilion, or at bottom. This cut is considered as ideal for a diamond because it maximizes a
stone's sparkle.

Ruby Ruby is the red variety of the mineral corundum and known for its magnificent color, excellent
hardness and outstanding brilliance. Only red corundum is entitled to be called ruby, all other
colors being classified as sapphires. This stone is available in colors like bright red, brownish-red,
purplish-red, dark red and blood red. The name Ruby comes from Latin Rubens which means
Red. In Sanskrit, the ruby is called Ratnaraj, means the king of precious stones. This gemstone
has excellent luster, rarity and durability. Its hardness is 9 on Mohs hardness scale and it is mainly
found in Burma, Thailand, Sri Lanka and Tanzania. Transparent rubies of large sizes are even
rarer than diamonds.

Safety Catch It is a type of catch which contains a tongue or pin that can be operated to close the opening in the
catch, which prevents the loss of jewelry.

Safety Clasp A safety clasp is a protected type of fastener that uses more than one method to secure the
closure on a piece of jewelry such as necklace or bracelet. Safety clasps are frequently used for
fine or more expensive jewelry items.

Sand Blasting Sand blasting refers to the process of cleaning, smoothing or etching a hard surface by forcing
very fine bits of solid material across that surface at high speeds.

Sand Casting Sand casting is the oldest and most popular casting technique. Under this technique, natural sand
(lake sand) or green sand (mixture of sand, clay and some water) is packed onto wood or metal
pattern halves, removed from the pattern, and metal is poured into resultant cavities. And finally,
mold is broken to remove casting. This technique requires a lead-time of days to obtain castings.

Sapphire Sapphire is a verity of the mineral corundum and represents all the colors except red corundum,
which is ruby. Its physical and chemical properties are virtually similar to properties of ruby. Blue is
the main color of the sapphire whereas this gemstone is also found in colors like yellow, green,
orange, pink, gray, colorless, black, brown, and purple. The word Sapphire in its plain context
refers only to blue sapphire, unless a prefix color is specified. Sapphire is one of the most
desirable gems due to its color, hardness, durability, and luster. Its hardness is 9 on Mohs
hardness scale and it is mainly found in Sri Lanka, Thailand, Burma, Australia, India, Brazil and
Africa.

Sardonyx Onyx which is available in a red, brown or reddish brown color is known as sardonyx.

Satin Finish Satin finish is a texture of a metal surface that is in between matte finish and a brilliant one. In this
finish, a series of tiny parallel lines are scratched onto a metal surface with a wire brush or
polishing tool to produce texture. This finish gives impression of a soft, pearl-like luster instead of a
bright polish.

Saturation A color's position in a diamond or in a gemstone on a neutral to vivid scale.

Scintillation This term refers to the display of sparkle or reflection from the polished facets of a diamond visible
when the observer is in motion.

Scoring A technique of using a tool to engrave a groove or furrow into the flat surface of the metal.

Scratch Scratch is a narrow, shallow, elongated nick on the surface of a diamond which usually appears as
faint white lines, curved or straight, under magnification.

Screw Back Screw back, a type of fastener, consists of a nut or clutch that actually screws onto a threaded
post for tightening an earring against a non-pierced earlobe through tension adjustment.

Screw Clasp A screw clasp is a type of fastener consisting two short barrels with screws, which are used to
connect a necklace.

Secondary Deposit Minerals and/or gemstones that have been separated from their original host rock, usually due to
effects of weather, and deposited elsewhere. An alluvial deposit is an example of a secondary
deposit.

Semi Precious, Stones those are valued for their beauty and not covered under any one of the four Precious
Semi Precious Stones, Diamond, Emerald, Ruby or Sapphire, are known as semi precious stones. Semi precious
Stone stones are available in all price ranges from low priced to high priced. Semi precious stones are
Alexandrite, Amethyst, Aquamarine, Citrine, Garnet, Iolite, Onyx, Opal, Pearl, Peridot, Tanzanite,
Topaz, Tourmaline etc.

Semi-mount A style of jewelry setting that has the side stones already mounted, but which contains an empty
set of prongs which are intended to mount a center stone as per the customers choice.

Semi-Mount Ring A semi-mount ring is a finished ring without the placement of center stone. Side stones and all
other stones are placed and metal finishing, stone finishing, engraving etc. of the jewelry ring is
completed. Jewelry ring is sold in this manner to allow a buyer to put a center stone of his own
choice. Semi-mount rings are generally used for diamond rings.

Setter Setter is the person who puts diamonds or other gems into jewelry mounts.

Setting Setting is the process of fixing a diamond or other gem into a mount to create a piece of jewelry.

Shank The portion of a ring that encircles a finger. The shank holds the head (setting), which in turn,
holds the gemstone. The shank and head are collectively referred as a ring mounting.

Shape A diamond or a gemstone cut by Shape describes the outline of the stone and pattern of the facet
arrangement. stones are available in various shapes like Modern Round Brilliant, Emerald,
Princess, Heart, Oval, Pear etc. Round brilliant is the most popular shape for all jewelry items. All
other non-round shapes are called fancy shapes.

Sieve A tool for sorting rough or polished diamonds by size. Diamond sieve sets have interchangeable
sieve plates each drilled with different sizes holes.

Signet ring A signet ring often contains a carved design like an intaglio. This ring was pressed into soft wax to
authenticate or seal a document. The designs were usually a family crest, coat of arms or some
other type of monogram or insignia.

Silver Silver has been known and used for thousands of years and it is considered as one of the three
precious metals along with gold and platinum. Pure silver is very soft metal with its lustrous white
color. Silver is used as jewelry metal well before the development of white gold alloys, and before
platinum could be isolated. It is normally stable in pure air and water but tarnishes when exposed
to ozone, hydrogen sulfide or sulfur. The chemical symbol for silver is Ag.

Silver - Coin A mixture of 90% pure silver and 10% metal alloy is known as Coin Silver.

Silver - Fine It is the purest form of silver with 99.9% purity. In this form, silver is too soft to be used for jewelry.

Silver - Mexican Silver from south of the border is known as Mexican silver, which consists anywhere from 90% to
99% pure silver.

Silver - Sterling A mixture of 92.5% of pure silver and 7.5% of copper is known as Sterling Silver. Pure silver is
alloyed with copper to give strength and durability. It is one of the most familiar and used forms of
silver alloys.
Silver Eagles It is referred as modern silver bullion coin.

Silver Finish Jewelry or any other item that does not contain actual silver but finished in such a manner that it
has the look of silver jewelry item.

Silver Plating Silver plating is a method of depositing a silver layer on other metal surface mainly for decorative
purposes on household and jewelry items.

Simulant, Simulated stones can be anything that resembles a natural gemstone but does not have the same
Simulated Stones physical characteristics or chemical composition. These items are also known as imitation stones
and usually much less expensive than the natural forms. Simulated stones are often made of glass
or plastic and most can be detected easily by a jeweler.

Single Cut A very small round stone with only 17 or 18 facets, instead of the normal 57 or 58 facets of a full
cut round brilliant. These facets include 8 bezel, 8 pavilions, a table and sometimes a culet facet.

Slight Inclusions, Slightly Inclusion is clarity grade that refers slight inclusions in a diamond which are easily visible
SI, SI1, SI2 under 10X magnifications. It is graded as SI1 and SI2.

Snake Chain This chain gives smooth scaly texture like snake skin as small round metal rings are closely
secured together forming a flexible tube.

Snap-bar Closure A straight, hinged bar on the back of a lever back that lifts up and down in order to secure or
Earrings release an earring.

Soldering Soldering is a technique, used by jewelers, in making and repairing jewelry. By using this
technique, two or more metal pieces are joined by applying a molten metal or metal alloy that has
a lower melting point than the two metals being joined. This molten metal forms a bond when
cooled and solidified. Soldering is also used in adding findings or links in a metal piece.

Solid Gold As per the rules of the Federal Trade Commission, the term solid gold can be used for items
which are not hollow and contain at least 10 karat or finer gold.

Solitaire Solitaire ring is a ring with single gemstone often a diamond and does not contain side stones or
any other gem embellishment. This ring looks exceptional with a high quality and larger sized
diamond. Prong setting is the most popular setting type, but the size and number of the prongs
can vary to highlight the look and features of the stone. Solitaire ring is mainly used as an
engagement ring and exhibits beauty and elegance through its single quality gemstone.

Sort, Sorting Usually this term is used to classify rough diamonds into groups depending on their size, color,
surrounding material where as in case of polished diamonds it is used classify into grades
depending on size, color, clarity.

Sparkle Sparkle is the combination of gemstones fire and brilliance.

Specific Gravity Specific gravity of a gem is an indication of its density. It is calculated by comparing the
gemstone's weight with the weight of an equal volume of water. The greater the specific gravity of
a gem, the heavier it will feel.

Split Ring Split rings are most commonly used for key rings. It has an opening to the side of the ring at each
end to allow a key or other small ring to slide into the slit and be pulled around the circumference
of the ring until it reaches opening at the other end of the split.
Spread Stone A Diamond which has been cut with a large table and a thin crown, to retain greater weight. In
other words, a diamond which is cut too shallow.

Spring Hinge It is a type of hinge that integrates a spring in its assembly to always keep a jewelry piece, such as
a bracelet made of two halves, in the closed position.

Spring ring clasp A spring ring clasp is a circular shaped tube, which is just short of a complete circle. Inside this
tube, a wire exists that works on spring mechanism and projects from the tube to complete the
circle. A lever exists on the edge of that incomplete circle and on pressing the lever, the wire can
be pushed back into the tube, allows the ends of necklace or bracelet to be attached.

Stainless steel An extremely durable metal alloy of steel and chromium that can be polished to resemble a
precious metal and is almost unaffected to rust, discoloration and corrosion.

Stamping Stamping is the process of cutting or embossing a mark on metal sheet with a punch or a die.

Star Facet The eight triangular facets that surround the table facet of a round, brilliant-cut diamond. It is
named star facets because they from an eight pointed star when viewed from above.

Step Cut Step cut is a style of faceting arrangements which is named because of its broad, flat planes that
resemble stair steps. In this style of arrangement, there are three concentric rows of facets
arranged around the table and, on the pavilion, there are three concentric rows arranged around
the culet.

Sticks A type of fashionable earrings, which has long straight lines resembling sticks.

Stone A general word for any gemstone including diamond.

Stud Earrings A small, usually round earring with a single stone or metal ball on a straight post worn on pierced
ears.

Surface Graining Surface graining is an indication of structural irregularity in a diamond. Usually parallel lines are
visible on the surface or facet edges which look similar to grain in wood. These grain lines reflect
due to imperfect polishing.

Swage Swage is a technique which uses a tool or hammer to bend or shape a metal available in solid
state.

Symmetry Symmetry is an important aspect of the stone cutting process which refers to the balance of the
outline shape and alignment of the facets. It is graded as Ideal, Excellent, Very Good, Good, Fair
or Poor.

Synthetic A synthetic diamond or gemstone shares a natural stone's physical, chemical and optical qualities,
but it is created in a laboratory. Some modern synthetic stones look more natural and are more
difficult to identify, but an experienced jeweler or gemologist can usually detect them.

Table Table is the largest and flat facet which is placed on top of a diamond or a gemstone. Most of the
light enters and exits from this part of a stone.

Table Percentage The table percentage is a comparison of the diameter of the table facet to the diameter of the
entire gemstone.
Tanzanite Tanzanite is a blue variety of the gemstone zoisite and named after the East African state of
Tanzania, the only place in the world where it has been found. It is a trichroic gem which displays
three layers of color. The colors dark blue, green-yellow and red-purple can be seen. Tanzanite is
a beautiful gemstone, known for its brilliance but on the other hand it is a delicate gemstone which
comes in between 6 to 7 on Mohs hardness scale.

Tarnish A dull metal finish or luster due to its exposure to air or dirt that discolors the surface of metal as
well as due to reaction between metals and other chemicals which discolors the surface,
particularly silver which reacts with sulfur. Tarnish is a form of corrosion.

Tennis Bracelet A bracelet which contains a symmetrical pattern of diamonds in a thin line is referred as tennis
bracelet. The name, tennis bracelet, comes from an incident that took place in 1987 in a tennis
match at US Open with tennis star Chris Evert, one of the all time great players of the game. In
that match, she was wearing an elegant and stylish, light in-line diamond bracelet which
accidentally broke during the match and the match was interrupted as she was allowed to recover
her precious diamonds. After that incident, this type of bracelets got this new name and created a
huge demand for this item. The tennis bracelet is one of the most popular bracelet styles.

Tension Setting A method of setting diamonds and other gems using only the springiness of the mount to hold the
stone firm. Although it look quite spectacular but very unsafe and it should be avoided.

Three Stone This ring holds three diamonds of the same quality and shape representing the past, present and
Diamond Ring future of a relationship. Usually the center stone is slightly larger than the other two side stones.

Tiara A tiara, a type of ancient jewelry item, is a semi-circular or sometimes circular piece of jewelry item
worn on the head mainly by women. Tiara is usually made of precious metals and gemstones and
worn on special occasions like marriage ceremonies, pageants etc. It is also known as diadem.

Tiepin A tiepin, also known as tie clip, is a type of ornament that uses spring tension to attach the mid-
portion of the tie to the shirt. Tiepin is usually made of precious metals and its front portion
contains diamonds or other gems. Tiepins are generally worn by men on occasions like business
meetings, marriage ceremonies, parties etc.

Tiffany The Tiffany, the best of ever found yellow diamonds, weighs 128.51 carats and cut as cushion-
shaped brilliant with 90 facets.

Tin A silvery metallic element with a low melting point and resistant to corrosion, which is often used
as soldering material and alloy for other precious metals. The chemical symbol for tin is Sn.

Titanium Titanium is an ultra-light but very strong and hypoallergenic metal comes in silvery color. In jewelry
industry, it is generally used for wedding bands and watches.

Toe Ring A toe ring is a kind of body ornament that is worn around one or more toes. Toe rings are very
similar to finger rings except a major variation that is in toe rings, a small gap is available on the
ring shank which allows the wearer to wear these rings easily. Toe rings are generally made of
precious metals and worn mainly by women in second toe of either foot or both feet.

Toggle Clasp A toggle clasp is a type of fastener that contains a ring on the one end and a short metal bar on
the other end. This bar is inserted through the ring which sits across that ring in such a manner so
it does not slide.

Tola Tola is a unit of weight mainly used in India which is equal to 180 grains or 0.375 troy ounce or
11.7 grams. Usually gold bars are measured in tolas and the most popular of which is the 10-tola
cast bar (3.75 troy oz).

Tone An attribute of color which determines its lightness or darkness of shading and important in
grading fancy colored diamonds and other gemstones.

Topaz Topaz, a member of quartz family, is a beautiful gemstone that most commonly found in yellow
color. It is also available in various other colors like blue, brown, green, orange, pink, red, white,
gold, colorless etc. The name topaz is derived from the Sanskrit word Tapas, meaning Fire.
Topaz, with 8 on Mohs hardness scale, is considered tough and durable gemstone but still it is not
an invincible stone. It cracks and chips easily than many other gemstones. It is mainly found in
Brazil, Sri Lanka, Burma, Nigeria, USA, Australia, Madagascar and Mexico.

Tourmaline Tourmalines are gemstones with deep brilliance and an incomparable variety of colors like black,
red, pink, blue, green, grey and yellow. These Gemstones are mixed crystals of aluminium boron
silicate with a complex and changing composition. The name tourmaline comes from the
Singhalese words 'tura mali', means something like 'stone with mixed colors'. Tourmalines with
different colors have different names. It comes in between 7 to 7.5 on Mohs hardness scale and it
is mainly found in Brazil, Sri Lanka, South Africa, Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Tanzania,
Mozambique, Madagascar, Pakistan, Afghanistan and USA.

Translucent Translucent is used to describe stones that allow light to pass through them, but the light is
diffused.

Transparent, Transparent is used to describe stones that are clear and transmit light without any diffusion so
Transparency that objects can be seen through the stones. Ideally, a diamond should be completely transparent
and any opacity is undesirable.

Treated Diamond, Treated diamonds or gemstones are those which have been processed in some way to enhance
Treatment their color or clarity. A number of treatment techniques are used to improve the color and
appearance of natural and synthetic diamonds and gemstones. Heat treatment is the oldest
method whereas other techniques include bleaching, dying, laser drilling, fracture filling, high
pressure high temperature (HPHT), annealing, irradiation, and surface coloration.

Trichoric Trichoric refers to a gemstone that displays three different colors or shades when viewed from
different angles or directions.

Trigon Trigon refers to very small triangular marks usually on surfaces of rough and polished diamonds,
due to twinning and other crystal growth factors.

Trilliant Cut, Trillion The trilliant cut is a triangular fancy shaped diamond or gemstone which is also known as trillion
Cut cut. This shape of stone looks unusual and displays a very sharp brilliance or fire. It may either
have pointed corners or more rounded corners.

Trinket Trinket is a small decorative piece of jewelry, which is of little value or worth. It is also known as
bauble.

Trio Set Trio set comprises three rings which include womans engagement ring & matching wedding band
and mans matching wedding band.

Troy ounce It is a unit for measuring the weight of precious metal. One troy ounce equals 31.1035 grams or
480 grains (20 pennyweights (dwt) each of 24 grains) or 1.09711 avoirdupois ounces.

Tungsten In jewelry industry, Tungsten is a fairly new metal which often used for wedding bands. It is four
times harder than titanium and resistant to corrosion.

Twinning Twinning refers to two or more mineral crystals that have grown together in a symmetrical nature
and crystal growth direction of one crystal has changed or a negative crystal growth has taken
place.

Two-Tone A piece of jewelry that either uses both white and yellow metals or uses two different tones of
same metal.

Ultrasonic Cleaner Ultrasonic Cleaner is a tool, generally used by jewelers, to clean jewelry effectively. The ultrasonic
vibrations help to free most types of dirt, grime, and oils from these jewelry items. Some ultrasonic
cleaners come with a heating unit also.

Ultraviolet light Ultraviolet light consist short wavelengths in comparison of visible lights wavelengths and due to
this it is invisible to naked eye. Ultraviolet light is in between visible light and X-rays.

Upper Girdle Facet Upper Girdle Facet is any of the sixteen facets on the crown, adjoining the girdle of a diamond.

Vacuum Coating A coating process in which an extremely thin metallic coating is applied generally on very
inexpensive metals, by volatilization within a vacuum.

Vermeil Vermeil refers to gold plating, with at least 10-karat gold, onto the surface of sterling silver. The
finishing looks are very similar to pure gold jewelry and very hard to differentiate.

Very Slight
It is a clarity grade that refers minor or slight inclusions in a diamond which are difficult to see
Inclusions,
under 10X magnifications. It is graded as VS1 and VS2.
VS, VS1, VS2

Very Very Slight


It is a clarity grade that refers tiny or very slight inclusions in a diamond which are extremely
Inclusions,
difficult to find, even under 10X magnifications. It is graded as VVS1 and VVS2.
VVS,VVS1,VVS2

Vivid The term vivid is used for color grading of fancy colored diamonds to denote the most intensely
colored stones.

Wedding Ring A wedding ring is a ring presented to spouse on a marriage ceremony to exhibit marital
commitment. This ring symbolizes marriage and is generally made of precious metals like gold,
platinum and precious stones mainly diamonds. Wedding ring is one of the most popular and
demanded jewelry items and these days, it is used in most cultures of the world.

White Diamond White diamonds are transparent or colorless and promoted as the best, but only because other
attractive colors are extremely rare.

White Metal White metal, also known as pot metal, is a mixture of alloys which do not contain any precious
metal.

Wisp Wisp refers to a type of inclusion which occurs due to twinning or in other words it is an irregularity
in the crystal growth.

X-Ray, X-Rays X-rays are used to sort rough diamonds as most diamonds fluoresce when
exposed to these rays.
YAG YAG stands for Yttrium Aluminum Garnet which is used as a simulant, so an imitation for a natural
diamond.

Yellow Diamond Generally most diamonds contain nitrogen which gives them a slight yellow tinge. But diamonds
with more intense yellow hue are considered as fancy colored diamonds which make them rare
and valuable.

Yellow Gold Yellow gold is the most frequently seen and a timeless color. It is usually alloyed with silver and
copper. Depending on the karat gold (14K, 18K or 22K), the color of yellow gold may vary from a
softer shimmering yellow to a bright rich yellow. This is due to the varying alloy combinations. The
color contrast of yellow gold is most suitable to diamonds and other delicately colored gemstones,
as they can appear brilliant and vivid.

Zinc Zinc is a lustrous bluish-white metal from the magnesium-cadmium group and generally alloyed
with other precious metals. This metal is also used for coating iron and steel to protect against
rust. The chemical symbol for zinc is Zn.

Zirconium, Zirconia Zirconium (cubic zirconium) or CZ is a widely used simulant, an imitation for a natural diamond.
Although it is easily detectable by its 80% higher weight than a diamond of the same proportions
or by thermal conductivity testing.

Zn The chemical symbol for zinc.

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