Asscher Cut Cubic Zirconia: Pros, Cons & Light Return

The Asscher is a square step cut with deeply cropped corners, which give it an octagonal outline and concentric reflections. The model's 58 facets sit on a stone 60.4% deep, with a 27.6° pavilion.

Step cuts follow different rules from brilliants, and that low pavilion figure is not comparable with the 38.1° guide minimum we give for rounds. The light maps show the result plainly: grey from the start, and more of it as the stone tips.

Against the T73 in CZ, the light gap is wide. Against the Asscher in diamond, CZ wins on fire and returns a little more light.

Does an Asscher cut suit cubic zirconia? Pros and cons

Pros

More fire than the diamond Asscher 88 vs 80
Faces up larger for its weight 107 vs 100

Cons

Heavier than diamond 2.22 vs 1.34 ct
Much less light than the T73 in CZ 74 vs 98
Light leaks from the start 15 vs 1
Loses more light when tipped 77 vs 87

Compared with the T73 Round Brilliant in cubic zirconia and with the Asscher Cut in diamond. A difference counts from 3 points (Brilliance, Fire, Tilt, Leakage), 5 (Scintillation, Symmetry), 2 (Spread) or 5% (weight); Tilt counts as a pro only for a stone within 5 points of the brilliance it is compared with. How we measure.

All eight scores against the T73

At a glance: the Asscher Cut in cubic zirconia (white) against the T73 Round Brilliant in cubic zirconia (dashed): solid white where it reaches further, hatched where it falls short. Each pro and con is explained, with pictures, below.

Against the T73 Round Brilliant in cubic zirconia: ahead on 2, level on 1, behind on 5.

Global81, the comparison 93, difference −12
Brilliance74, the comparison 98, difference −24
Fire88, the comparison 87, difference +1
Scintillation72, the comparison 80, difference −8
Spread107, the comparison 100, difference +7
Symmetry100, the comparison 100, difference 0
Shape-norm97, the comparison 106, difference −9
Tilt77, the comparison 87, difference −10

Face-up light census, a different measure from the Cut Grading Tool; Spread and Shape-norm above 100 sit on the ring.

Open it in the Cut Performance Wheel

What the Asscher gives cubic zirconia

More fire than the diamond Asscher

Fire 88 against 80 for the Asscher Cut in diamond: 8 points higher

Broad steps and CZ's stronger dispersion put more colour into each reflection than the diamond render shows. Against the T73 in CZ the two are about level.

Asscher cut in cubic zirconia face-up under a single bright light: a render from our simulator, its coloured flashes are the fire (score 88) — Look at the coloured flashes: those are fire. Same light, same size, same face-up angle; rendered by our 3D Gemstone Simulator from each cut's own model.

Asscher cut in diamond face-up under a single bright light: a render from our simulator, its coloured flashes are the fire (score 80) — Look at the coloured flashes: those are fire. Same light, same size, same face-up angle; rendered by our 3D Gemstone Simulator from each cut's own model.

Try it yourself: See the fire in the 3D Gemstone Simulator

Faces up larger for its weight

Spread 107 against 100 for the T73 Round Brilliant in cubic zirconia: 7 points higher

For a given carat weight its face is wider than the T73's. The outlines at 1 ct, drawn to scale, show the Asscher's square beside the round.

Asscher Cut · 4.99 mm at 1.00 ct · Spread 107

T73 Round Brilliant · 5.49 mm at 1.00 ct · Spread 100

Both stones weigh 1.00 ct in cubic zirconia and are drawn to the same scale, from each cut's own model. Spread is face-up size per carat: a deeper stone carries more weight below the girdle and looks smaller for its weight.

Try it yourself: Compare the Spread spoke in the Cut Performance Wheel

The catch with an Asscher CZ

Heavier than diamond

2.22 ct at 6.5 mm, against 1.34 ct for the same cut in diamond (+65%)

A square 6.5 mm across holds more stone than a round of that diameter, and CZ adds 65% on top: 2.22 ct here, 1.34 ct in diamond.

A Asscher Cut 6.5 mm across, weighed from the model's measured volume and each stone's specific gravity.

What helps: Compare step cuts by their sides in millimetres.

Try it yourself: Weights in all seven gemstones on the Asscher Cut page

Much less light than the T73 in CZ

Brilliance 74 against 98 for the T73 Round Brilliant in cubic zirconia: 24 points lower

Head-on, a fifth of the Asscher's map is grey, where the T73's map has none. The steps return light in large planes rather than collecting it as a brilliant pavilion does.

Asscher cut in cubic zirconia face-up Light Return map: red, green and blue show where the light returns from, grey shows where it leaks (Brilliance 74) — Red, green and blue = light returning to the eye; grey = light leaving through the pavilion. This is the head-on view; the Brilliance score averages a wider cone of light, so the score can differ from what one picture shows.

T73 round brilliant in cubic zirconia face-up Light Return map: red, green and blue show where the light returns from, grey shows where it leaks (Brilliance 98) — Red, green and blue = light returning to the eye; grey = light leaving through the pavilion. This is the head-on view; the Brilliance score averages a wider cone of light, so the score can differ from what one picture shows.

What helps: For a square-ish outline with far more light in CZ, DG-Octagonal Kite Cubic Zirconia returns 93.

Try it yourself: Open this Light Return map in the simulator

Light leaks from the start

Leakage 15 against 1 for the T73 Round Brilliant in cubic zirconia: 14 points higher

15% in our census, against 1% for the T73. The strip shows grey face-up, about level to 20°, then a third of the map by 30°.

Asscher cut in cubic zirconia tilted 0 degrees: Light Return map, 20% of the face leaking — Each frame is the Light Return map with the stone tilted away from you by the angle shown; grey is light leaving through the pavilion. The share under each frame is that picture's own.

Asscher cut in cubic zirconia tilted 10 degrees: Light Return map, 23% of the face leaking — Each frame is the Light Return map with the stone tilted away from you by the angle shown; grey is light leaving through the pavilion. The share under each frame is that picture's own.

What helps: We have no measurements of a steeper Asscher. DG-Octagonal Kite Cubic Zirconia leaks 5% with a similar eight-sided outline.

Try it yourself: Tilt it yourself in the simulator's light map

Loses more light when tipped

Tilt 77 against 87 for the T73 Round Brilliant in cubic zirconia: 10 points lower

Tilted, it keeps 77 of its face-up light against 87 for the T73 in CZ. At 30° the diamond Asscher's map shows less grey than the CZ's.

What helps: The Portuguese Bird's Nest Cut Cubic Zirconia keeps 100 tipped in CZ, at 83 brilliance.

Try it yourself: Compare the Tilt spoke in the Cut Performance Wheel

Who an Asscher CZ suits

Choose the Asscher in CZ for the Art Deco look and a face that is large for its weight, and accept the grey in its light map. CZ is usually clean inside, which suits a step cut.

For the most light in an eight-sided outline, DG-Octagonal Kite Cubic Zirconia. For a brilliant square, the Cushion Cut Cubic Zirconia.

Asscher Cut Cubic Zirconia: questions

Is an Asscher cut CZ bright?

Less than a round: Brilliance 74 against 98 for the T73 in CZ, with 15% leakage.

Does an Asscher CZ look bigger than a round?

For its carat weight, yes: Spread 107 against 100.

Asscher CZ or Asscher diamond?

CZ has more fire (88 against 80) and a little more light (74 against 69); diamond weighs far less and holds its light better at 30°.

Get the Asscher Cut files

6 formatsMillimetresWatertight

Asscher Cut 3D files

The Asscher Cut as exact geometry: 58 planar facets, real-world scale, ready for CAD, rendering, printing and casting.

STEPExact faceted solid for CAD
3DMRhino, closed mesh on its own layer
STLWatertight mesh for printing and casting
OBJMesh for modelling and rendering
FBXBlender, 3ds Max, Maya, Cinema 4D, Unity, Unreal
GLBWeb, AR and quick previews

€9.99 · Personal useBuy the 3D files

GemCad96 index

Asscher Cut cutting files

The Asscher Cut as a faceting design: 58 facets, 96 index, 4-fold symmetry, ready for the machine.

.ascGemCad design file, 96 index gear
.csvTier table: angles, indices and cutting order
DiagramPrintable faceting diagram

€9.99 · Personal useBuy the cutting files

Questions before you buy? Email us.

More gemstones and cuts

Cubic Zirconia: optical properties and the top ten cuts · The Asscher Cut: specifications, model and files

Asscher Cut Cubic Zirconia: faces up larger for its weight, with more fire than diamond