Jeffrey Hunt |
Sri Lanka Zircon 7.28 ctStep Cut TrilliantDesign and Faceting by Roger Dery The rough for this amazing Zircon was imported by myself from Sri Lanka several years ago, and it quickly became one of my favorite gem materials to design and facet. The honey, sometimes-pinkish champagne hue is a common color of the Sri Lanka material. Sometimes when this Zircon is faceted the scintillation and sparkle display can be quite surprising. The surprise in this particular stone expertly faceted by Roger Dery was that the color turned much warmer. The stepped trilliant cut increased the intensity of the color, while still retaining brightness. When the gem is carried outside in shade and sunlight the scintillation, diamond like sparkles, interact wonderfully with the warm rich color. The large detailed photograph shows the double refracting pavilion facets. This too is the charm of the material. Combined with crisp scintillation this softening refraction displays a stone like no other. This Zircon is used to illustrate double refraction on the Gemology Project Website, and on the Antique Jewelry University Website |