21 October 2026
A Diamond for the Years You’ve Shared
Choose an Old Mine diamond for the hand you know so well. An anniversary article about shared years, familiar jewellery and the pleasure of…
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The Journal
Articles on antique diamonds, cut, character and the details worth examining.
18 October 2026
Why We Love Warm Old Mine Diamonds
A little colour, broad reflections and a cushion outline to fall for. Explore warm Old Mine diamonds through real photographs and a video of…
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15 October 2026
A Diamond Chosen Together
Choosing an Old Mine Cut diamond together can become part of your engagement story. See two real stones in photographs and motion, then take…
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7 October 2026
Setting an Elongated Old Mine Diamond: Prongs, Bezel and the Visible Culet
An elongated Old Mine Cushion needs a setting drawn from its actual outline, girdle and pavilion. Compare prongs, bezel coverage and culet clearance.
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18 June 2026
Taylor Swift’s Old Mine Diamond and the Craft Behind Her Ring
The 2025 ring is confirmed as an old mine brilliant designed by Kindred Lubeck. Imperial study stones show which cut details a photograph can…
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17 March 2026
Fair Symmetry in an Old Mine Cut: What to Inspect
Read a Fair symmetry grade alongside the actual stone, with a real Old Mine Brilliant report and a focused checklist for the next inspection.
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3 December 2025
Clarity in Old Mine Cut Diamonds: What to Check Face-Up
Read an Old Mine Cut clarity grade beside its plot, comments and movement video, with a real SI1 example and a practical face-up inspection…
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8 April 2025
Why an Antique Diamond Goes Dark When You Tilt It
A practical distance, tilt and lighting test for separating observer obstruction, table reflection, windowing and a visible open culet in an antique diamond.
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13 November 2024
Elongated Cushion Cut Diamonds: Old Mine vs Modern
Compare the shape, broad flashes and open culet of an elongated Old Mine cushion with modern cushion sparkle, illustrated with real diamonds and video.
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6 October 2024
Antique Gemstones: Provenance, Condition and Documentation
A practical way to assess an antique jewel through gem identity, treatment, condition, geographic-origin opinion and documented ownership history.
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6 October 2024
The Prestige of Golconda Diamonds
The Regent Diamond, Louvre The Prestige of Golconda Diamonds Golconda once stood at the centre of India’s diamond trade. Stones from mines in…
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6 October 2024
Antique Diamonds and Gemstones: What to Inspect
What to check in an antique jewel: stone identity, treatment, condition, age, provenance and laboratory documentation.
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6 October 2024
Old Mine Cushion Diamonds: Shape, Facets and Face-Up Character
How to judge an old mine cushion by outline, facet pattern, spread, condition and movement.
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21 February 2024
Does D Color or IF Clarity Mean a Diamond Is Type IIa?
D, IF and Type IIa describe different properties. Verify colour and clarity on the grading report, and request an explicit laboratory type result for…
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15 August 2023
How Can You Verify That a Diamond Is Type IIa?
Verify Type IIa with an explicit laboratory type letter tied to the grading report and the stone. Colour, clarity and geographic origin require separate…
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26 January 2023
The Cullinan Diamond: A Famous Type IIa Stone with a Documented Origin
The Cullinan was found near Pretoria in 1905 and later cut for the Crown Jewels. GIA identifies it as Type IIa; that classification is…
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9 June 2022
The Princie Diamond and the Paper Trail Behind a Golconda Claim
The Princie Diamond has a vivid modern record, from a 1960 auction to its Paris naming. Its Golconda origin deserves careful attribution to the…
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12 October 2021
Was the Hope Diamond Really from Golconda?
The Hope Diamond has a documented royal history, but its often-cited Kollur mine origin remains an inference. Follow the records from Tavernier to the…
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25 March 2021
Two Three-Carat Old Mine Cushions: A Side-by-Side Comparison
A 3.01 ct G VS2 and a 3.09 ct F SI2 compared through their GIA reports, outlines and videos.
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17 September 2020
Is an Old Mine Cut Diamond Always Antique?
Old Mine Brilliant describes a cutting style. Learn which records and observations can support a diamond's date, and where the evidence stops.
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6 February 2020
High Crowns in Old Mine Cut Diamonds: How to Read the Profile
How to read crown height, table, depth and side profile in an Old Mine Cut diamond without turning one measurement into a quality grade.
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14 May 2019
Asymmetry in Old Mine Cut Diamonds: Flaw or Character?
When asymmetry in an Old Mine Cut reflects hand-cut character, and when outline, facets, condition or setting need closer inspection.
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23 October 2018
Should You Recut an Old Mine Cut Diamond or Preserve It?
A direct framework for deciding whether to preserve, repolish or recut an Old Mine Cut diamond.
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16 May 2018
The Old Mine Divine – Part 1 – Introduction
The original Old Mine Divine introduction, accompanied by photographs of three individual cushions and a closer study of their outlines, facets and documented histories.
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12 July 2017
Old Mine Cut Face-Up Size vs Carat Weight: What Actually Looks Larger?
Why equal-carat Old Mine Cut diamonds can look different in size, with verified dimensions and a direct comparison method.
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26 February 2017
The Old Mine Cut: A Short Technical History
How older tools, rough shape and hand cutting produced the high crowns, small tables, open culets and broad flashes associated with old mine diamonds.
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26 February 2017
The Tiffany Setting: What Six Prongs Changed
The 1886 six-prong Tiffany Setting, its construction and how to verify a signed Tiffany ring.
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26 February 2017
Buying an Antique Engagement Ring: 10 Checks Before You Commit
Ten practical checks for stone identity, condition, sizing, documentation and the work an antique ring may need before daily wear.
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8 November 2016
Why Antique Diamonds Return Light Differently
Why broad facets, open culets, lighting and movement make old mine cushion diamonds return light at a different pace.
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19 April 2016
What Does an Open Culet Mean in an Antique Diamond?
What an open culet is, how to distinguish it from damage and how to judge it inside the complete antique facet pattern.
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