A Radiant Cut Diamond gives off brilliance and sparkles from across the room. It owes this brilliance to the 70 facets around its pavilion and the crown. The precision of each facet offers immense brilliance and fire. The radiant cut’s brilliance is surpassed only by the round brilliant cut.
Popular since the 1980s, the radiant cut diamond lives up to its name: it is impressively radiant and brilliant. Henry Grossbard designed the radiant cut in 1977 in pursuit of combining the finest elements of the round brilliant cut and the emerald cut.
Radiant Cut Features
The following features makes the radiant cut an excellent choice for an engagement ring that sparkles with brilliance and fire:
Excellent brilliance, fire and sparkle
Although the radiant cut isn’t quite as brilliant as the round brilliant cut, it’s not very far behind. Because of the 70 facets in its pavilion and crown, the radiant cut offers impressive brilliance and fire. This makes the radiant cut a great choice if you want a non-round diamond with a beautiful sparkle.
Larger perceived size than other diamond shapes
The radiant cut is well known for looking larger than most of the other diamonds of the same carat weight. The face-up area of the radiant cut is actually slightly smaller than that of a round brilliant cut diamond of an equal carat weight. However, the radiant cut’s long diagonal measurement tricks the eye and makes it look larger than it really is.
Better durability than other square diamonds
The radiant cut is often compared to square diamonds, such as the princess cut. Although it looks quite different (the princess cut is square, while the radiant cut is square or elongated), it’s easy to see the similarities.
However, the radiant cut has one advantage over the princess cut — it’s far more durable. Because the radiant cut has beveled corners, radiant cut engagement rings are less likely to chip, making the shape a good option for an active lifestyle.
Excellent value for money
The cutting process for the radiant diamond uses a large percentage of the original rough diamond, with very little going to waste. This means that a loose radiant diamond will be priced lower on a per-carat basis than most other diamond cuts. In fact, the radiant cut diamond is one of the most affordable diamond shapes.
Radiant Cut Diamond – Quality
Radiant diamonds are created with a modified brilliant cut facet pattern for both the pavilion and crown, giving this diamond its high level of brilliance (the amount of white light reflected back to the eye or ‘sparkle’). Because Cut is vital to any diamond’s beauty, especially the radiant diamond, a careful eye must be used when considering stones for purchase.
Radiant Cut Diamond – Cut Guide
| Excellent | Very Good | Good | Fair | Poor | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Table % | 61-69 | 57-60 or 70-72 | 54-56 or 73-74 | 51-53 or 75-79 | <51 or >79 |
| Depth % | 61-67 | 59-58.9 or 70.1-74 | 54-56.9 or 74.1-79 | 54-56.9 or 74.1-79 | <54 or >79 |
| Girdle | Very Thin – Slightly Thick | Very Thin – Thick | Very Thin – Very Thick | Extremely Thin – Extremely Thick | |
| Cutlet | None | Very Small | Small | Medium | >Medium |
Be sure to also look at the corners of a radiant, ensuring they are even and not too wide—or too narrow. The cropped corners of the Radiant give it stability, but also need to be symmetrical in order to maintain the overall beauty.
Radiant Cut Diamond – Length To Width Ratio
| Excellent | Very Good | Good | Fair | Poor | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Square | 1.00–1.03 | 1.04-1.05 | 1.06-1.08 or >1.08 | >1.08 | |
| Rectangle | 1.20-1.30 | 1.15-1.19 or 1.31-1.35 | 1.10-1.14 or 1.36-1.40 | 1.08-1.09 or 1.41-1.50 | <1.08 or >1.50 |
The ratio you choose for your radiant diamond is entirely dependent on what you find to be the most aesthetically pleasing. A common range for radiant length to width ratios is 1.00-1.35, with the lower end indicating a more square shape. Length to width ratios can go up to 2.0 for a more rectangular shape.
You’ll notice the diamonds in the following illustration vary in their ratios. From the lower end, 1.15, the Diamond is close to a square shape, while the higher end of 1.35 boasts a more vivid rectangular shape. Review several different length to width ratios before deciding on what you prefer.
Radiant Cut Diamond – Clarity
Clarity describes how clean a diamond is. In other words, it measures of how free of inclusions and blemishes it is.
The GIA ranks Clarity on the following scale:
- IF – Internally Flawless
- VVS1 – Very Very Small Inclusions
- VVS2 – Very Very Small Inclusions
- VS1 – Very Small Inclusions
- VS2 – Very Small Inclusions
- SI1 – Small Inclusions
- SI2 – Small Inclusions
- I1 – Inclusions
- I2 – Inclusions
The difference in appearance between two adjacent grades, such as VVS1 and VVS2, is rarely distinguishable to the naked eye.
In addition, radiants are cut with many facets and angles, making them look like crushed ice. More than anything, we recommend carefully reviewing a radiant cut Diamond for inclusions and blemishes, and having an expert assist you.
Radiant Cut Diamond – Color
In addition to Cut and Clarity, you’ll want to review Radiant Cuts for their Color. As graded by the GIA, Color rankings range from D to Z. The D grade represents the most clear, colorless diamonds while the Z grade represents those with noticeable yellow or brown tint.
The differences in Color for Radiant Cuts are slightly easier to perceive than other diamond shapes. Still, we generally recommend an H Color or better for Radiant Cut Diamonds, allowing your budget to be spent on other aspects, like Cut quality. To the naked eye, an H grade will appear white and colorless to the naked eye.
Do Radiant Cut Diamonds look bigger?
When Henry Grossbard designed the radiant cut in the 1970s, he did so aiming to create a diamond cut that looked as large as possible. His aim was to maximize the natural beauty of each diamond, rather than to cut it to maximize weight, as was the typical approach at the time.
Because of the radiant cut’s broad, shallow design, more of the diamond is visible when it’s set in a ring, helping to create the appearance of a larger stone. The end result is a shape that combines the best of the brilliant cut — namely, its brilliance — with a larger perceived size. If you are not sure what size to choose? Maybe this simple graphic will help you:
For one-on-one guidance on choosing a high quality radiant cut diamond, contact our experts today.
