Part 1

A Brief and Brilliant History of Gemstone Cuts

Before there were sparkle charts, ideal angles, and laser-aligned facets, gemstones were cut with one basic goal: don’t waste material. Ancient lapidaries didn’t have access to the precision machinery we have today, nor did they necessarily care about brilliance in the modern sense. The earliest faceted stones were essentially freeform. Whatever shape could best preserve weight and showcase color was the right one. Think of them as hand-sculpted compromise — beautiful, yes, but also a negotiation between flaw, shape, and yield.

About a hundred years ago, things started to shift. Scientific inquiry and optical theory caught up with gem cutting. Suddenly, cutters weren’t just sculptors — they were engineers of light. The invention and refinement of the brilliant cut in the late 19th to early 20th century marked a turning point. From then through the late 1900s, gemstone cutting focused almost singularly on maximizing brilliance, especially for transparent stones. Calculations replaced instincts. Precision replaced improvisation.

And now? Now we’re entering a renaissance. Contemporary gem artists are again pushing boundaries — not by ignoring brilliance, but by blending it with form, emotion, and narrative. The frontier today isn’t just about light performance. It’s about identity. Artisans are using machines like the rose engine, a tool traditionally used for guilloché-style engraving, to carve hypnotic geometric patterns into stones — from delicate ripples to full-on optical illusions. Others wield rotary tools and spindles to create micro-facets, hand-carved accents, and even figurative scenes inside the gem itself.

The disciplines are merging, too. Intaglio carvers, who once specialized in carving images into flat stones, are collaborating with faceters. The result? Portraits and symbols that appear to float within faceted gems — haunting, intricate, and lifelike. These hybrids don’t just challenge what a gemstone should look like — they demand that we expand the very language we use to describe them.

Structure in the Chaos: Shapes, Styles, and Subversions

Let’s back up for a second. Before everything went gloriously rogue, the gemstone world followed a relatively stable naming system — and it still does, at least commercially.

Gemstone shape refers to the outer contour: round, oval, square, pear, marquise, teardrop, rectangle, and so on. These are the silhouettes you’d see from a bird’s-eye view.

Cut style, on the other hand, refers to the way the stone’s surfaces are arranged — usually through faceting. Styles can include:

• Step cuts (like the emerald cut), where facets run in linear steps across the surface.
  
  

• Brilliant cuts, where the surface is divided into a myriad of triangular facets radiating from the center.
  
  

• Mixed cuts, which might combine brilliant facets on the crown with step facets on the pavilion.
  
  

And then there are the glorious rule-breakers. Some gems mimic cabochon shapes (domed tops, flat bottoms) but are covered in facets. Some stones are partially polished, partially carved. Some have no standard symmetry at all. Modern artistry has blurred the line between cabochon and facet, between transparent and opaque, between structure and sculpture.

Traditionally, opaque stones were cut as cabochons: smooth domes with flat backs. Transparent stones were cut with a pavilion — that conical underside — to reflect and refract light internally. That rule is no longer absolute. Some cutters are intentionally crafting transparent stones as cabs, prioritizing color or inclusions over brilliance.

And what about beads? Briolettes? Carved sculptures? Not everything has a girdle or even a flat face. Ironically, with the rise of invisible settings, girdles — once necessary to hold a gem in place — are now being treated as design elements. Function and form have swapped roles.

No Rules, Just Fundamentals

Yes, there’s a glossary. Yes, gemologists still need to memorize it. And yes — probably 98% of what they’ll encounter in the trade will fall into these conventional shapes and styles. These standardized cuts make grading and comparison possible. They provide a shared language for a global market.

But for the 2% who are watching closely — or cutting boldly — gemstone artistry is a riot of experimentation. Once you understand the fundamentals, you're free to shatter them. That’s the truth of modern gem cutting: it’s built on rules, but not confined by them. It’s a system... but it’s also a haywire rebellion in full sparkle.

Part 2

What You Actually Need to Know: The Most Common Gem Cuts in Commercial Jewelry

Let’s be real — you don’t need to memorize all 300+ wild and whimsical cuts ever dreamed up by artisan cutters, especially if you're working in the mainstream jewelry industry. While knowing the difference between a Saddle Cut and a Synapse™ Cut might win you points at a gem nerd trivia night, most stones you’ll encounter in commercial settings stick to a very small repertoire.

If you’re evaluating, identifying, buying, or selling commercially cut gemstones, these are the shapes and styles you really need to recognize:

Most Common Gem Shapes:

• Round – Found in over half of all faceted gems; always the default for brilliance.
  
  

• Oval – Popular in rings and pendants; elongates the finger.
  
  

• Pear (Teardrop) – Used in earrings and pendants, blending round and marquise.
  
  

• Marquise (Navette) – Long boat-like shape with pointed tips.
  
  

• Cushion – Soft square with rounded corners; often vintage in feel.
  
  

• Emerald – Rectangular step cut with clipped corners.
  
  

• Square – Often used in Princess and Radiant styles.
  
  

• Rectangular – Common for baguettes and step cuts.
  
  

• Heart – Usually brilliant-cut, used in sentimental or romantic settings.
  
  

• Trillion / Trilliant – Triangular shape with curved or straight sides.
  
  

Most Common Faceting Styles:

• Brilliant Cut – Radiating triangular and kite-shaped facets for max sparkle.
  
  

• Step Cut – Rows of rectangular facets, often used for emeralds, baguettes.
  
  

• Mixed Cut – Brilliant crown with a step-cut pavilion (or vice versa).
  
  

• Rose Cut – Flat back with a domed, triangular-faceted crown (popular in antique or opaque stones).
  
  

• Cabochon – Smooth domed top and flat base — typically for opaque stones like opal, turquoise, or jade.
  
  

• Baguette – Small, narrow rectangular step cuts — most often used as accents.
  
  

Common Commercial Variations:

• Princess Cut – Square with brilliant faceting; second only to round in popularity.
  
  

• Radiant Cut – A hybrid of emerald and brilliant cut — square or rectangular with sparkle.
  
  

• Asscher Cut – A square emerald cut with high crown and deep pavilion.
  
  

• Old Mine / Old European Cuts – Pre-modern roundish brilliants, often found in antique jewelry.
  
  

Bead & Pendant Styles:

• Briolette – Teardrop-shaped, faceted all over — drilled for earrings or pendants.
  
  

• Rondelle – Rounded and flattened, often used in beaded strands.
  
  

• Single Cut – A simplified round brilliant with fewer facets — common in small melee diamonds.
  
  

In short, you only need to master a few shapes and styles to identify 98% of what’s in today’s jewelry market. The rest — while fascinating — live in the world of collectors, custom artists, and avant-garde gem cutters who are shattering the rules on purpose (and often beautifully).

Glossary of Gem Cuts

Accordion™ Cut (Afton & Mervin Giacomini)
A pentagonal design blending brilliant and step facets on both the crown and pavilion. It totals 51 facets: 25 on the crown, 25 on the pavilion, and one decagon table.

American Brilliant Cut
This is the standard round diamond cut developed to optimize light return and dispersion based on Marcel Tolkowsky’s 1919 proportions. Typically has 57 or 58 facets and is designed to maximize brilliance through symmetrical angles and facet alignment.

Ascot™ Cut (Richard Homer)
A hybrid cut resembling a semi-navette, flat on one side with a curve on the other, featuring interior curvature faceting.

Asscher Cut
A square-shaped emerald cut with deeply clipped corners and a high crown. Known for its dramatic depth and optical echo.

Bagillion™ Cut (World Fancies)
A rectangular version of the baguette shape, modified with brilliant-style faceting instead of step facets.

Baguette Cut
A rectangular step cut with long straight sides, though some variations use slightly tapered edges.

Bar Cut
Rectangular cut with facets running lengthwise, typically used for channel-set jewelry.

Barion™ Cut (Basil Watermeyer)
A unique hybrid cut, square or rectangular with a brilliant crown and a step-cut pavilion, crafted to enhance light reflection. Commonly applied to emeralds and fancy shapes.

Baroness™ Cut (Raphaeli-Stschik)
An octagonally outlined cut evolved from an oval base, incorporating 65 facets and symmetrical elegance.

Bead Cut
A rounded, rose-cut-like style yielding a nearly spherical gemstone, often drilled for stringing.

Beauty™ Cut (Jerry Muchna)
An intensely faceted oval brilliant style with a total of 160 facets (split between crown and pavilion) for maximal sparkle.

Bevel Cut (or Table Cut)
A large, flat table facet dominates the top, surrounded by minimal steps or bevels. Double bevels refer to cuts with added edge tiers.

Bicentennial™ Cut (Bob Livingston)
A high-precision round brilliant variation with a staggering 200 facets (120 crown, 80 pavilion), created to celebrate detail and symmetry.

Birdcage™ Cut (Edwin Porter)
A long hexagonal step cut ending in fan shapes, comprised of 41 facets — ideal for elongated layouts.

Brazilian Cut
A historical adaptation of the old mine or triple cut, modified to include extra facets near the culet for added depth.

Brilliant Cut
A broad category where facets radiate from the center, often in triangular or kite shapes. Commonly associated with round cuts but also applied to other shapes.

Briolette
A teardrop-shaped gemstone that is either smooth or fully faceted across its surface. Typically used as pendants or dangles.

Concave Spiral Brilliant™ Cut (Gronlund)
Faceting style with spiraled or swirling concave facets, designed to create an optical vortex within the stone.

Concave Teardrop™ Cut (Homer)
A pear-shaped cut where the outer curves of the stone are concaved and faceted from within, producing a fluid, internal depth.

Context™ Cut (Ulrich Friesleben)
A square outline with two culets and diagonal facets that intersect into a four-pointed star when viewed from the crown.

Cosmos™ Cut (Larry Winn)
A scalloped octagonal cut with interlocking skewed facets that mimic the structure of a flower, named for its resemblance to a cosmos blossom.

Crisscut Diamond™ (Christopher Designs, Inc.)
A 77-facet rectangular style using scissor-style steps for enhanced refraction across long stones.

Cut Corner Triangle Cut
A triangular design with trimmed corners, creating a softened version of the traditional triangle shape.

Dahlia™ Cut (Gabriel Tolkowsky)
An oval-shaped cut with 12-fold symmetry and 67 facets, mimicking the layered complexity of a flower.

Devil’s Triangle™ Cut (Betty Scott)
A modified triangle design that includes a devil face motif carved into the crown. Contains 73 facets, including a stylized pavilion.

Diamond Cut
Used generically to refer to a round brilliant design when applied to stones other than diamond, typically with 57 or 58 facets.

Diamond Shape Cut
Faceted like a brilliant cut, but with the outline resembling a four-sided diamond playing card.

Diamond Stars™ (Fanoldi Reg. Trust)
A brilliant cut shaped like a five-pointed star — often used for thematic or symbolic jewelry.

Emerald Cut
A rectangular or square step cut with clipped corners and long parallel facets on both crown and pavilion. If the outline is square, it’s called a Square Emerald Cut.

Empress™ Cut (Raphaeli-Stschik)
A 64-facet straight-edged fancy cut derived from the pear shape, typically with strong symmetry and linear edges.

English Square / English Double / English Star Cut
Historic cushion-style cuts known for extra depth and alternating brilliance-step facet combinations. Often used in antique or revival jewelry.

Epaulet Cut
A modified pentagon shape with sides of varying lengths and angles; also called the Epaulette Cut.

Fairy Wand™ Cut (Edith Strout)
A modified round brilliant featuring 121 facets, creating a wand-like shimmer across its surface.

Fancy Cut
A catch-all term for any gem shape that isn’t round — includes hearts, marquise, ovals, and custom outlines.

Fan Shape Cut
As the name suggests, this resembles a handheld fan — often with a curved top and radiating edge facets.

Fantasia™ Cut (Glenn Lehrer)
A freeform cabochon style often sculpted into whimsical or symbolic shapes, such as faces, flowers, or creatures.

Fantasy Cut™ (Idar-Oberstein Gem Guild)
A highly intricate round brilliant with 209 total facets across crown and pavilion, known for its visual complexity.

Fantasy Cut (General Use)
A generic term for irregularly shaped gems with asymmetric facet patterns, including carved or cabbed elements.

Flanders Brilliant™ Cut
An octagonal brilliant cut that delivers brilliance and symmetry similar to a round, often with 61 facets.

Fire Rose™ Cut (Tolkowsky)
A hexagon or multi-sided brilliant cut that may take the form of a star, heart, or pear — typically 61 to 105 facets.

Freeform Cut
Non-standard shape, usually artistically carved or cut freehand to emphasize color zones, inclusions, or asymmetry.

French Cut
A square cut with a cross-shaped table arrangement, with corners oriented diagonally relative to the table.

Full Cut
A miniaturized version of the round brilliant — usually used in melee or pavé settings.

Gabrielle™ Cut (Tolkowsky)
A triple-brilliant style with 105 facets and multiple outline shapes: round, marquise, princess, and more.

Glyptic™ Cut (Bart Curren)
Carving-focused style — not necessarily faceted — which incorporates traditional gem engraving or relief carving.

Grace™ Cut (Raphaeli-Stschik)
A symmetrical 62-facet fancy shape derived from a heart, offering a balanced but stylized brilliance.

Half Brilliant Cut
Uses a brilliant-cut crown, but leaves the pavilion either flat or minimally faceted; often found in smaller or accent stones.

Half Moon Cut
A round brilliant divided in half vertically, typically yielding two mirror-image stones with curved edges and flat bases.

Halo™ Cut
A round or brilliant-style cut with a fully polished girdle — decorative more than functional.

Heart Brilliant Cut
A heart-shaped brilliant design with 57 to 59 facets. Includes a cleft at the top and rounded lobes.

Hearts and Arrows™ Cut
A precision round brilliant aligned so that symmetrical patterns of hearts (pavilion view) and arrows (crown view) appear under magnification.

Hearts on Fire® Cut (Di-Star Ltd.)
A proprietary cut with extreme facet precision, optimized to show perfectly aligned hearts and arrows.

Heraldic Brilliant™ Cut (Homer)
Square cushion cut where each side is curved inward to mimic a medieval heraldic shield.

Hexagon Cut
A six-sided symmetrical step cut, sometimes with clipped corners or used as a base for fantasy styles.

High Twelve™ Cut (Gerald Hemrich)
A hexagonal brilliant design with 145 facets — half each on the crown and pavilion — designed for maximal light play.

Illusion™ Cut (Giacomini)
A step cut designed to enhance perceived size; typically a rhomboid base with 18 total facets.

Isoduo™ Cut (Giacomini)
A variant of the rhomboid step cut with added brilliant facets on the crown.

Jubilee Cut
Modified round brilliant with 88 facets — traditionally cut for the British monarchy or commemorative pieces.

King™ Cut
An 86-facet brilliant design that modifies the classic round for higher dispersion.

Kite Cut
A four-sided angular step cut resembling the traditional kite shape.

Lazare Diamonds™ Cut
Round brilliant engineered to precise proportions — one of the earliest branded ideal cuts.

Lili Diamond® Cut
A clover-shaped brilliant with 65 facets. Known for whimsical, romantic outlines.

Lisbon Cut
An adaptation of the Old Mine cut where main crown and pavilion facets are split for better performance.

Long Hexagon Cut
Extended hexagonal form, often resembling a baguette but with six sides.

Lozenge Cut
Four-sided step cut shaped like the "diamond" on a playing card.

Luminaires™ (Dyber)
Optically carved internal pathways that bend light dramatically — used for transparent and clean gems.

Magna™ Cut
Round brilliant with 10-fold radial symmetry, designed to exaggerate the “burst” effect of light.

Marigold™ Cut (Tolkowsky)
A hexagon, heart, or pear with between 43 and 73 facets, often styled with curved domes.

Marquise Cut
Elongated oval with pointed ends — also known as the navette shape.

Miser™ Cut (Clem Svoboda)
A rectangular cut-corner step cut with 55 facets, using non-parallel triangular facets.

Mixed Cut
Any cut combining brilliant and step elements. One part might sparkle, the other stay sleek.

Modified Brilliant Cut
A round cut that deviates from the standard brilliant formula — often with added or fewer facets.

Mogul Cut
An antique style often with a large table and shallow facets on a domed crown.

Moonbeam™ Cut (C. Svoboda)
A 105-facet modified round brilliant with a high facet count on both the crown and pavilion.

Multifacet™ Cut
Round or other brilliant with a fully faceted girdle — maximizing texture and reflection.

Octabrill™ Cut (R. Thompson)
Octagonal brilliant with 57 facets, combining geometric form with sparkle.

Octagon Cut
Eight-sided layout that can be step cut or brilliant. Angle length may vary to create elongated versions.

Octoval™ Cut (Avery)
Elongated octagon blending rectangular and oval curvature.

Ogdoad™ Cut (Giacomini)
Oblique octagon with 70 facets — a more exotic take on the traditional octagon.

Old European Cut
A predecessor to the modern round brilliant with a small table and high crown — often seen in antique jewelry.

Opposed Bar Cut
Faceting style where parallel facets on the pavilion are perpendicular to those on the crown.

Oval Cut
Elongated ellipse-shaped brilliant. Sometimes called Oval Brilliant.

Oval Elegance™ Cut (Lazare Kaplan)
A refined 58-facet oval designed for even light return and symmetry.

Paisley Pear™ Cut (Homer)
A pear cut with a concaved wing that creates a paisley silhouette.

Pampillote Cut
An elongated pear-like form, sometimes similar to the pendeloque.

Parallax™ Cut (Giacomini)
An oblique hexagon with alternating curved and straight facets to induce visual layering.

Pasha Twist™ Cut (Jack Hamm)
Octagonal brilliant with twisted pavilion grooves — 57 facets.

Pavilion™ Cut (Livingston)
A modified marquise with a step-faceted pavilion and rhomboid table.

Pear Shape
Teardrop outline with a faceted pavilion — 56 to 58 facets in brilliant versions.

Pendeloque Cut
A pear-shaped variation with greater length and a narrow point.

Pentagon Cut
Five equal-length sides with step or brilliant faceting.

Pentazag™ Cut (Giacomini)
Pentagon with twisted pavilion and crown — 36 total facets.

Pinwheel™ Cut (Ed Hume)
Octagon with spiral facet layout — 73 total facets.

Portuguese Cut
High-facet brilliant with multiple rows on crown and pavilion. Known for dramatic light dispersion.

Portuguese Checkerboard™ Cut (Avery)
Lozenge-shaped stone with full-surface checkered crown facets.

Postal Stamp™ Cut (Homer)
Flat, square design with scalloped edges mimicking a stamp’s perforations.

Princess Cut
Square or rectangular brilliant style — typically 57 to 76 facets.

Princette™ Cut (Mark Silverstein)
Tapered or straight mini-version of the Princess cut.

Profile Cut
A layout utilizing natural plate crystals, with grooved bases to create custom shapes like Vs or crescents.

Prophase™ Cut (Winn)
Facet arrangement inspired by mitosis — bar and crown facets create mirrored optical interference patterns.

Quadopp™ Cut (Avery)
A square variant with cathedral-like arches and opposing pavilion angles.

Quadrillion™ Cut (Ambar Diamonds, Inc.)
Rectangular brilliant with 49 facets, designed for geometric sparkle.

Quadriskelion™ Cut (Homer)
See Heraldic Brilliant — triangular faceting mimicking a triple-armed spiral.

Radiant Cut Diamond™ (Radiant Cut Diamond Co.)
A square or rectangular shape with brilliant-style facets (typically 70), combining sparkle and symmetry.

Reverse Cut
Rectangular brilliant with a minimal 28-facet layout, often used in optical experiments.

Rhomboid Cut
Parallelogram-shaped step cut, often asymmetrical.

Rondelle
Flat, circular form with side facets. Commonly drilled.

Rose Brilliant™ Cut (Philip Youngman)
A dome-style cut with between 16 and 32 facets. Comes in multiple shapes.

Rose Cut
Antique cut with a flat bottom and domed top. Often seen in 6-, 12-, or 24-facet styles.

Royalcrest™ Cut (Merit Corp.)
Rectangular cut with arched crown and step-faceted pavilion.

Saddle Cut (Homer)
An arched, often concave variation of a cabbed tablet — used for large opaque stones.

Sail Cut
Triangle-style cut with curved leading edge — resembles a boat sail.

Satin™ Cuts (Homer)
Brilliant cuts with etched or polished motifs: sunbursts, snowflakes, clovers, or roses.

Scissors Cut
Crossing crown facets layered above a modified brilliant pavilion.

Semi-Navette Cut
A marquise-inspired half shape with soft curves.

Shield Cut
Any multi-faceted design resembling a shield, often with step or brilliant facets.

Single Cut
A round brilliant style with only 17 or 18 facets — often used in accent stones.

Skew Cut
Step cut triangle with non-aligned edges — 23 total facets.

Slash™ Cut (Avery)
Step cut with cut corners, checkered crown, and curved girdle.

Snowflake™ Cut (Mel Roth)
90-facet hexagonal cut — highly symmetrical and crisp.

Spectrum™ Cut (Giacomini)
121-facet brilliant with twisted crown geometry.

Spiral Cut
Brilliant design using spiral facet arrangements for motion-like effects.

Spirit Sun™ Cut (Friesleben)
Round with two culets and 32 total facets — adds a mirror symmetry feel.

Split Brilliant Cut
Round brilliant variant with 40 total facets and a culet.

Square Antique Cut
Alternate name for the Old Mine Cut.

Star Cut
Any star-shaped brilliant — usually 5 points.

Starburst™ Cut (Louis Glick/U. Doppelt)
Square or rectangular brilliant modified with starlike symmetry.

Starburst Gem™ Cut (Winn)
Intricate variation using concave hemispheres to generate radial brilliance.

Step Cut
Parallel rows of facets, usually on rectangles or squares. Includes emerald and baguette styles.

Step Fan™ Cut (Giacomini)
Modified hexagon with 55 total facets — fan-shaped faceting.

Sunburst™ Cut (Alton Walls)
145-facet brilliant known for its dense brilliance.

Sunflower™ Cut (Tolkowsky)
Multiple shape variants — all incorporating concentric step and brilliant facets.

Swiss Cut
A simplified brilliant — 32 total facets. Also called a 16x16.

Synapse™ Cut (Winn)
Fancy cut with engraved internal grids — mimicking neuron signaling.

Table Cut
A flat-topped, flat-bottomed cut — traditionally for opaque stones.

Tablet Cut
See Table Cut.

Tangent™ Cut (Giacomini)
Oblique octagon with 41 total facets.

Tapered Pentagon Cut
Pentagon variation with curved sides.

Tapillion™ Cut (World Fancies)
Tapered baguette brilliant cut — used in custom settings.

Tetrasag™ Cut (Giacomini)
31-facet step cut in a square form with twist detail.

Torque™ Cut (Giacomini)
Another twisted pentagon — 41 total facets.

Torus Ring™ Cut (Lehrer)
Cut with a hole in the center and a sculpted negative pavilion. Looks like a gemstone donut.

Trap Brilliant Cut
A trapezoid-shaped brilliant cut.

Trapeze™ Cut (Steven Baker)
48-facet tapered baguette variant.

Trapeze Twist™ Cut (Bill Steele)
Trapezoid with misaligned triangular facets.

Trapezium™ Cut (Giacomini)
Trapezoid with brilliant-style faceting — 31 facets.

Trapezoid Cut
Two parallel edges, two tapered — often step cut.

Triangle Cut
Three-sided stone, either step or brilliant.

Triangle Brilliant Cut
Also known as Trillion or Trilliant — brilliant triangle with 44–50 facets.

Trilele™ Cut (Trillion Co.)
Trademarked name for triangular brilliant.

Tri-Fan™ / Trizig™ Cuts (Giacomini)
Modified hexagons with brilliant crown and step-cut pavilion.

Trigon™ / Trirad™ Cuts (Giacomini)
Shield shapes with opposing facets — 85 total.

Trilliant™ Cut (Henry Meyer Diamond Co.)
Equilateral triangle with sharp brilliance — usually 50 facets.

Triolette™ Cut (Premier Gem Corp.)
Shield-style variant of the Trilliant.

Triopp™ Cut (Avery)
Opposed bar triangle with cathedral crown and curved base.