Blue Diamonds

Natural fancy blue diamonds are completely natural and are usually classified as either gray-blue or green-blue. The color in gray-blue, grayish blue, blackish blue, or black-blue colored diamonds is caused by the presence of minor amounts of boron in their structure. Blue is one of the rarest and most desirable colors. The Hope diamond, which we have viewed in the Smithsonian Institution in Washington D.C., is the most famous blue diamond in the world, and the largest at 45.52 carats.

Blue diamonds are very rare, like the pink diamond that sells for one million US dollars per carat. They are one of the most rare and valuable gemstones in the world. Their color is derived from a trace amount of boron in the stone.Natural blue diamonds are so rare that most jewellers have never seen one, and will never own one. In recent years, methods of producing intensely colored diamonds, including fancy blue, have been developed. We believe that the process probably recreates the conditions which existed millions of years ago to produce natural fancy colored stones.

A natural diamond that is treated by the irradiation process to enhance the color to blue. Although millions of years old, diamonds are the hardest substance known to mankind, and are made from highly compressed carbon molecules.Genuine fancy blue diamonds are of course expensive, even more so than the best quality white diamond, carat for carat. You can expect to pay top dollar for a treated blue diamond and as for a genuine natural blue diamond, well a carat could cost about a million dollars.

Blue diamonds range in color from pale sky blue to a vivid peacock blue with or without other color casts (such as gray or green). Color depth, from the most color to the least, is graded as Vivid, Intense, Fancy or Light. Most natural blue diamonds are a very light blue.A 6 carat natural blue diamond broke all previous records, becoming the most expensive diamond ever. It sold for almost 8 million dollars, or 1.3 million dollars per carat.

Synthetic blue diamonds are created by adding boron as an impurity. Boron is trivalent, having three valence electrons; where a boron atom replaces a carbon atom in the diamond structure there is one fewer electron than usual. This missing electron, or hole, creates an acceptor energy level above the valence band. The number of natural blue diamonds in the world may be small compared to other gemstones, but the larger-than-life histories, attention and value surrounding these magnificent, precious jewels will likely continue to grow.

For some enhanced (irradiated) blue diamonds, the color closely resembles natural blue diamonds. However, most of the enhanced blue diamonds resemble natural teal blue diamonds.The fast growing group of collectors and jewelry buyers possess an insatiable appetite for fancy colored diamonds. Blue diamonds are considered one of the top colors, along with green, pink and red. Blue diamonds are a unique asset because they offer fascinating beauty, concentrated wealth and resistance to downward price performance.

The most valuable natural fancy yellow diamonds have a distinct hue, darker tone, and vivid or strong color saturation. The more even and saturated the diamond, the more rare and valuable it is.Cut controls 98% of a diamonds brilliance, and thus combining an ideal cut on a Fancy Vivid blue diamond means incredible color and scintillation.

Color treatment is used to enhance the appearance of the diamond and to increase its market value, so treatments are generally applied to low-quality, off-color stones. The treatment changes the diamond’s appearance to the naked eye, but a color-treated diamond is worth considerably less than a natural fancy diamond of similar appearance.