With their slender, graceful shape, marquise-cut diamonds are distinguished by their discreet sophistication, while connoisseurs appreciate them for their elegance. In high jewelry, the marquise cut – often combined with the pear cut – adds an undeniably lightweight touch.
It has left its mark on jewelry history, but the way it is worn has evolved and modernized over time. A century ago, Van Cleef & Arpels set large marquise diamonds in pampilles on the finery of queens. Today, the larger gemstones are set as pendants or solitaires, whereas most of the smaller marquises are set in composition to enhance a jewel while giving it movement and a more lightweight feel. For example, Van Cleef & Arpels places them in a mysterious setting on a pinecone, Harry Winston combines them in a cluster of light, while Piaget assembles them in the shape of a wing to emphasize the airy side of a creation.
For the diamantaire, the marquise cut is one of the most difficult to achieve. Nathan Bensoussan, gemologist at Rubel & Ménasché, talks to us about this exceptional and complex stone.
IH: Where does the name ‘marquise’ come from?
The name appears to date back to the 18th century. Louis XV is said to have commissioned a polished diamond for his mistress, the Marquise de Pompadour, resembling the shape of her mouth. This story lends the stone a sensual and graceful side. It is sometimes called ‘navette’, alluding to the elongated shape of the weaver’s shuttle or the hull of the boat bearing the same name, though this somewhat less poetic term is only used in France. The term ‘marquise” is used elsewhere, but you’ll notice that both words come from the French language.
IH: Why do you need experience to work with marquise diamonds?
Sorting marquise diamonds does indeed require experience; it’s not a task you’re likely to be assigned initially. I had to wait just over a year before I started doing it. In our sorting department, gemologists initially start working on round-cut diamonds, with marquises only coming much later. And even then, to start with their work focuses solely on color and fluorescence. Each marquise has to be analyzed with a magnifying glass, because the interplay of facets makes them very difficult to observe. It’s a demanding job. The slightest pinpoint or the smallest inclusion may be reflected 5 or 6 times, giving the impression that the stone is very much included, when in fact it is not. It’s a responsibility that would never be entrusted to a beginner. You have to spend a lot of time looking and training your eye before you can be competent at sorting. Marquise-cut diamonds are usually the fancy cuts we learn to sort first, probably because they are the most complex to grasp. If you can assess a marquise well, chances are you can “see” inside a pear, oval, step cut and the various fancy cuts that exist.
IH: Are marquise-cut diamonds particularly complex?
In my opinion, marquises are the most complex cut to appraise, because there are so many reflections that can occasionally be misleading, or even imperfections.
‘Graining’ is one example, where there is a defect in the diamond’s atomic structure. It is more precisely known as ‘plastic deformation’, which causes carbon atoms to metamorphose and break apart. Internal graining is found in the material and external graining on the facets, where it can be mistaken for a trace of polish.
Another example is a defect in the way the stone is made, i.e., not very well polished. These defects are immediately obvious. Polishing marks made by the diamantaire can also be confused with the facets. As the facets reflect each other enormously in this type of cut, experience is the only way to identify these defects.
Another essential criterion for judging a marquise cut is symmetry. I focus heavily on this, because the facets must be perfectly symmetrical. If they are not symmetrical, a ‘bow-tie’ effect may appear. Light refraction makes the darker areas resemble a bow-tie. If symmetry or proportions are not perfectly respected on a marquise cut, facets will darken in the center of the stone, causing this ‘bow-tie’ effect (caused by a leakage of light on both sides of the diamond). Also found in pear cuts, this defect somewhat extinguishes the gemstone’s fire. But it’s almost impossible to eliminate completely, even on a highly polished diamond – it is part of the stone’s shape – so it should be minimized as much as possible.
Now let’s look at the most fragile parts of a diamond, its tips. When a gemmologist appraises a marquise, they will never handle it by the tips, but always by the sides, so as not to risk damaging them. This type of stone is in fact almost always set in a V-shape on the tips, to protect them. The same applies to pear-cut diamonds, which are equally fragile.
As for the color of a marquise diamond, it may appear slightly more tinted on the tips if it is not excellent. In fact, the color tends to concentrate in the tip, altering our perception of the diamond and revealing it to be more colored than it actually is.
Another feature of the marquise cut is the table’s large surface area. When compared with a brilliant cut of the same weight, the marquise will appear much larger. This is because there is more material on the crown than on the culet.
IH: Tell us about the ideal proportions for the marquise cut.
The marquise can take different shapes: it may be rounded to various degrees, more ‘plump’ or more elongated, depending on the customer’s taste. This is called the ratio (length of stone divided by width), with the ideal ratio sitting between 1.95 and 2. To keep the proportions harmonious and pleasing to the eye, the ratio should be between 1.75 and 2.25.
The higher the ratio, the longer and more tapered the stone. With a lower ratio, the stone will appear a little more rounded. It all depends on the customer’s taste. The same phenomenon exists with pear-shaped diamonds, where the aesthetic appearance and proportions of the stone vary according to the ratio. These two cuts have their own jargon: the ‘belly’ (the center, the heart), the ‘wings’ which are the sides – also called the shoulders – and finally the tips. Vocabulary lesson over!
IH: What qualities should the rough diamond from which a marquise is cut have?
Today, rough stones are scanned. It’s this scan that tells us what sizes we can obtain from the rough stone, optimizing its use in relation to its crystallization, its imperfections and wasting as little material as possible. Both diamantaires and major jewelry houses alike use technology. In the case of a marquise cut, you need a fairly elongated surface, but if you’re dealing with a perfectly octahedral rough stone – i.e., perfect crystallization – the diamantaire will prefer to cut two brilliants rather than a marquise. This will waste less material.
IH: What’s so special about the diamond you’ve chosen to show us (photo)?
It’s a stunning gemstone, firstly because of its E color, and secondly because of its IF purity, so it’s a totally pure diamond. It’s perfect! It also has very harmonious proportions, with a ratio of 1.95. When I look at its symmetry, its play of light, the presence or absence of a ‘bow-tie’, the finish of the tips, any traces of polish, the fluorescence (it has none) and the color, it’s just perfect! It’s an incredible stone.
IH: Are marquise cuts coming back into fashion?
Fancy brilliant cuts, compared to step cuts, are still the most popular, especially for engagement rings. The marquise cut is not the most sought-after fancy cut, as it makes for a rather sophisticated piece of jewelry. But a major jeweler on the Place Vendôme orders a lot of them from us, which shows that there is a clientele in high jewelry who appreciate the elegance of this shape of stone. Tastes also vary from market to market, and I know that American women love them. The marquise cut was widely used during the Art Deco years, and the style of this era – a popular period in jewelry – tends to come back into fashion. But stonework is constantly evolving and modernizing with the times. We no longer cut a marquise (which today has between 56 and 58 facets) the way we did a hundred years ago. Similarly, the brilliant cut, which started out with just a few facets, now has 58.
IH: How would you talk to a customer about marquise diamonds?
I would start by telling them about a legendary stone, the Cullinan diamond, the largest rough diamond ever discovered. Weighing 3,106 carats, it was mined in 1905 near Pretoria, South Africa. This exceptional stone was split into 9 diamonds, including two magnificent marquises, already considered noble cuts at the time. I would then tell them about the stone’s sophistication. Worn as a ring, it elongates the finger and adds elegance. Then finally I would highlight the unique light refraction of a marquise cut, with its intricate facets shimmering against each other and bringing out one of the most beautiful lights that diamonds can offer.
Today, many jewelers use marquise diamonds as pavé stones, to create movement, landscapes and compositions. Marquises are not just the center stones they once were, although there are some very beautiful ones, such as Maison Graff’s 22.84-carat, purplish-pink, fancy Pink Orchid.
Regardless of how popular it is, the marquise cut has been around for centuries. From the 18th century to the present day, it has seduced the greatest jewelers throughout the ages. Difficult to appraise even for the most discerning eye because of its unique play of light, the marquise is still used today in high jewelry in pavage form, pushing the boundaries of jewelry art.
