Clarity

Diamonds, like all of Natures creations, posses imperfections in their natural state. The conditions, under which a diamond is formed, extreme heat and pressure, create characteristics that aid gemologists in separating natural diamonds from synthetics. These imperfections, or Inclusions, tell the history of their formation. These inclusions serve as a “fingerprint”, identifying each and every stone as unique. Clarity is the grading factor that describes presence or absence of inclusions in a stone. The Clarity Scale has grades ranging from F (flawless) to I3. A diamond without inclusions earns the highest clarity grade. To determine clarity, a trained professional views a diamond under a 10-power magnification.

The Size, Number, Position, Nature, and Relief (visibility) of a diamond’s inclusions are used to determine the Clarity grade. What these five factors boil down to is, how easily the gemologist can see the inclusions.