Natural-Color Green Diamonds: A Beautiful Conundrum

Abstract

valued of gemstones due to their beauty and rarity. Interestingly, the rarest of diamond colors correlate with the three most popular choices for favorite color, in general—green, blue, and pink to red. The unique set of conditions in nature that produce the structural imperfections (defects in the lattice of carbon atoms; see Shigley and Breeding, 2013) responsible for the most vibrant hues of green, blue, and pink/red diamonds are so uncommon that many people are not even aware these stones exist. Over the last ten years, diamonds with these natural color components comprised less than 0.4% of all diamonds submitted to GIA’s laboratories worldwide (including both fancy-color and those on the D–Z scale). Pure hues of green, blue, or red are even rarer, accounting for less than 0.07% of all diamonds examined. Many articles published over the last 20 years in the scientific and gemological literature have looked at specific properties of colored diamonds, quality grading characteristics, or particular treatments. Few researchers, however, have had the opportunity to examine large quantities of similarly colored natural diamonds and report on their distinctive characteristics. Colored diamonds are extremely rare and, consequently, highly valued. This value factor means that laboratory reports are requested for most colored dia-