GIA Ceritfied Diamonds: Why It is Important

Diamonds are the most sought-after gemstone in the world. Being the best recognised, and widely adopt gemstone in the top four gems that make up the world, there is no shortage of attention that surrounds them. And rightly so. Given the considerable demand, market value, and ever-growing adoption of these gemstones the need for standards has grown with it.

Arguably the most recognised diamond quality standard in the world today is the 4Cs: which measures an individual diamond’s market value in accordance to its colour, clarity, cut and carat. If you are familiar with these terms and their specific use in the world of diamonds then you ought to wonder where they came from. Who or what were the origins of this measure? The answer is the GIA.

In this Education page, we will explain the GIA or Gemological Institute of America: Its origins, its contributions to diamond jewellery standards, and why it is an important measure.

The Origins of GIA

The origins of the Gemological Institute of America go back to the early part of the 20th century. Its origins can be traced to the works of Robert Shipley. An enterprising man in search of success, who at a point lost almost all of it and had to start again. This is what happened to the one-time jewellery store owner in the United States, who when faced with this challenge, proceeded to seek his prospects in Europe. Having spent some years in the UK he acquired valuable experience in the then nation with the diamond trading capital of the world.

With his newfound expertise, Mr Shipley returned to the US and this time proceeded to advance his cause by educating people on jewellery standards. The aim was to establish a system for diamond and jewellery standards to put together a credible authority when it comes to determining the quality and authenticity of fine jewellery. Most notably diamonds.

His commitment paid off and over the following years and decades the business of standardising gem quality for diamonds, and the adoption of a fixed system by those in the diamond and jewellery industry started to take shape. With the establishment of an academic arm, peopled by experts who provide professional guidance on diamond quality and standards. Key Developments such as the establishment of the D – Z colour scale came into effect in 1953; the recognition of synthetic or lab-grown diamonds have come to be integral parts of the industry’s diamond quality measure.

Why is GIA Diamond Certification Important?

The simple answer is that considering the kind of investment a diamond or diamond jewellery buyer makes with a prospective purchase, it is important that you get your money’s worth in terms of the quality and authenticity of the product. And the certification of diamonds under GIA standards is not just about separating out the authentic from the fake, diamonds are a complex business and given the supply of low to mid-quality stones in the market there needs to be selection criteria with which to determine the relative quality of the gemstone.

This is a subject we have dealt with in our other Education pages, but for now, it is enough to mention that diamonds in the market vary considerably in terms of the various quality factors: carat, cut, clarity and colour. However the differences between these gemstones in terms of these quality factors are often marginal, With an immensely small range of differences but which correspond to, when taken in aggravate with other quality factors, will translate into significant price differences. 

If the diamond jewellery and gemstone industry was left to itself, there would be no way to correctly measure the standard of each and every diamond in the gemstone and jewellery market. And here we are only talking about cut gemstones which are traded among reputed jewellery and gemstone companies.

Another key factor when it comes to GIA certification is that it provides a framework for understanding how these diamonds are classified according to various quality measures. So that new gemstone buyers, who are looking to educate themselves on what they are getting into, the GIA and affiliated sources online, including our own resources, give first-time buyers and those who want to gain a deeper understanding are able to do so thanks to these diamond accreditation authorities.

How Does GIA Certify Diamonds

The GIA’s diamond certification process is a complex one. One that involves industry-trained experts who work in the field and dedicate their time to learning the various factor and subject areas that relate to the origins, development, quality and character of diamonds. Before and after the polishing and cutting process. This process of diamond certification brings together different fields such as mineralogy, optics and gemmology. Thus it is important to recognise the extent of the study that is involved in this area.

When it comes to how the GIA actually goes about measuring diamond quality and determining the specific standard of each carbon-based gemstone the process is an in-house one. The GIA makes use of dedicated laboratories, and skilled professionals to measure a number of diamond quality factors. Notable here is the use of 10x magnification-which is an industry-standard, to determine the gemstone’s cut, clarity, and these breakdown into a number of factors.

GIA certification is considered the most authoritative, for it measures a variety of key factor that goes beyond the surface-level measures. Such as looking at polish, symmetry, fluorescence and cutting style. These factors analyse the quality of diamonds at a deeper level, and that is validated by the GIA certificate. In fact, GIA-certified diamonds are even embedded with identifiable QR, so there is no room for confusion.

What about Competing Diamond Quality Standards?

This is an interesting subject that we will deal with in our discussion of other diamond quality measures. However, when it comes to purchasing a top-class diamond what buyers need to look for are key measures that the certifying authority is looking at + the history and credibility of the company that is doing so. According to this measure, GIA remains the top authority, with the vast majority of top diamond jewellery companies and rising online jeweller businesses opting for GIA-certified diamonds.

Why You Should Choose GIA Certified Diamonds?

In case we haven’t given you enough reason as to why you should choose GIA certified diamonds, the main reason why GIA certified stones are a great choice is that they give diamond buyers an assurance that what they have purchased is an authentic, durable carbon-based gemstone, which is important in areas like diamond engagement rings. If you are serious about owning an authentic diamond that is carefully cut, wonderfully polished and shaped with good resale value, then GIA diamonds are among the best. And given how they are integrated into the gemstone and jewellery industry they make a great choice for you.