Professionals in the diamond industry hear warnings about
"commoditization" at our trade conventions. We hear the warnings from
traditionalists, from sellers and suppliers, from revered industry
leaders. We hear the warnings from some of the most esteemed icons of
our industry. But what does it mean?
It is about the reduction of an emotional experience to a mere set of
numbers. That is the concern.
For many years diamond cutters were considered craftsmen and artists,
like blacksmiths and carpenters (the best still are). As technology
has moved forward, blacksmiths and carpenters have been replaced with
automated manufacture. In diamond-cutting, auto-dialits and assembly
line production have replaced the gray-haired cutter of old who took
the rough through every step from blocking to brillianteering.
However, the unalterable difference between 'smithing and diamond
fashioning is that producing a diamond will never be like stamping out
automobiles or pre-fabricated woodwork where pieces and parts are
interchangeable. Our craft is unique.
Every piece of diamond rough took millions of years to form. Every
diamond is a different story. Once mined from the earth each piece of
rough is individually studied and analyzed. A different plan is
developed for each piece to arrive at the shape, size and beauty that
will be yielded. No two diamonds are perfectly alike; not in rough
form nor polished. They may be comparable, but color, clarity and even
cut differ from piece to finished piece. There are subdivisions within
each color grade. There are microscopic elements of crystallization
within each diamond that do
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