DG-Vitruvio Cubic Zirconia: Pros, Cons & Scintillation

DG-Vitruvio is the 1919 round brilliant plan at its finest subdivision: the crown and pavilion keep the classic proportions, and all the extra work sits in a girdle band of ninety-six facets. The pavilion mains sit at 40.75°, the T73's angle, and the whole stone is 61.9% deep.

In CZ it ties the T73 on Brilliance, Fire, Tilt and leakage. Only scintillation separates them, and there the gap is wide. Against the same cut in diamond, CZ adds light and fire and gives up some steadiness when the stone tips.

Does DG-Vitruvio suit cubic zirconia? Pros and cons

Pros

Far more sparkle than the T73 98 vs 80
More fire than DG-Vitruvio in diamond 87 vs 79
More light than the diamond version 98 vs 93

Cons

Heavier than diamond 1.68 vs 1.02 ct
Less steady than in diamond when tipped 87 vs 93

Compared with the T73 Round Brilliant in cubic zirconia and with the DG-Vitruvio 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 DG-Vitruvio 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 6.

Global95, the comparison 93, difference +2
Brilliance98, the comparison 98, difference 0
Fire87, the comparison 87, difference 0
Scintillation98, the comparison 80, difference +18
Spread100, the comparison 100, difference 0
Symmetry100, the comparison 100, difference 0
Shape-norm106, the comparison 106, difference 0
Tilt87, the comparison 87, difference 0

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 DG-Vitruvio gives cubic zirconia

Far more sparkle than the T73

Scintillation 98 against 80 for the T73 Round Brilliant in cubic zirconia: 18 points higher

The finely divided girdle band breaks the outline into many small facets, and our scintillation score counts every one. The facet diagrams print both counts side by side.

DG-Vitruvio · 153 facets · Scintillation 98

T73 Round Brilliant · 73 facets · Scintillation 80

Scintillation follows the number of facets: more facets, more and smaller flashes as the stone moves. Count the facets in each crown. Drawn from each cut's own model.

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

More fire than DG-Vitruvio in diamond

Fire 87 against 79 for the DG-Vitruvio in diamond: 8 points higher

The plan is identical in both renders, so the extra colour in the CZ one is the material: a dispersion of 0.060, where diamond's is 0.044.

Dg-vitruvio in cubic zirconia face-up under a single bright light: a render from our simulator, its coloured flashes are the fire (score 87) — 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.

Dg-vitruvio in diamond face-up under a single bright light: a render from our simulator, its coloured flashes are the fire (score 79) — 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

More light than the diamond version

Brilliance 98 against 93 for the DG-Vitruvio in diamond: 5 points higher

The extra girdle facets cost no light at all in CZ: Brilliance is level with the T73 here, 98, and above what the same cut returns in diamond.

Dg-vitruvio 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.

Dg-vitruvio in diamond face-up Light Return map: red, green and blue show where the light returns from, grey shows where it leaks (Brilliance 93) — 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.

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

The catch with a DG-Vitruvio CZ

Heavier than diamond

1.68 ct at 6.5 mm, against 1.02 ct for the same cut in diamond (+65%)

At 61.9% this is the deepest of our T-series rounds, so the 65% that CZ adds over diamond lands on a full-bodied stone.

A DG-Vitruvio 6.5 mm across, weighed from the model's measured volume and each stone's specific gravity.

What helps: No cut fixes density. Choose by size.

Try it yourself: Weights in all seven gemstones on the DG-Vitruvio page

Less steady than in diamond when tipped

Tilt 87 against 93 for the DG-Vitruvio in diamond: 6 points lower

Tilted, it keeps 87 of its face-up light; the diamond version keeps 93. Every 1919-proportioned round we measure in CZ sits at 87, so this follows the stone, not the girdle band.

Dg-vitruvio in cubic zirconia tilted 0 degrees: Light Return map, 0% of the face leaking — Tilt is how much of its own face-up light a stone keeps when tilted. 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.

Dg-vitruvio in cubic zirconia tilted 10 degrees: Light Return map, 1% of the face leaking — Tilt is how much of its own face-up light a stone keeps when tilted. 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: DG-Miliano Cubic Zirconia keeps 90 when tipped in CZ, with Brilliance 97 and the same sparkle score.

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

Who a DG-Vitruvio CZ suits

Choose DG-Vitruvio in CZ for everything the T73 does plus far finer sparkle, and an outline that reads smooth in renders and settings. There is nothing on light or fire to give up for it.

If you want slightly more light, DG-Rafaello Cubic Zirconia reaches 100. If you want a plan a polisher would recognise at a glance, the T73 Round Brilliant Cubic Zirconia.

The fine girdle is the cutter's challenge: ninety-six small facets to meet cleanly. In CZ that practice costs little, and the same file cuts the same plan in any stone you move on to.

Against the diamond version, the CZ trades steadiness for light: brighter and more colourful face-up, a little quicker to lose its light when tipped, and about 65% heavier.

DG-Vitruvio Cubic Zirconia: questions

DG-Vitruvio or T73 in cubic zirconia?

Light and fire are level, 98 and 87 for both. DG-Vitruvio sparkles far more: 98 against 80.

Is DG-Vitruvio brighter in CZ than in diamond?

Yes: Brilliance 98 here, 93 in diamond, with Fire 87 against 79.

What does a 6.5 mm DG-Vitruvio CZ weigh?

Roughly 1.68 ct; a diamond that size is 1.02 ct.

Does DG-Vitruvio leak light in CZ?

Hardly: 1% in our census, the same as the T73. Its pavilion sits at 40.75°, comfortably over CZ's guide minimum of 38.1°.

Get the DG-Vitruvio Cut files

6 formatsMillimetresWatertight

DG-Vitruvio Cut 3D files

The DG-Vitruvio Cut as exact geometry: 265 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

DG-Vitruvio Cut cutting files

The DG-Vitruvio Cut as a faceting design: 57 + 96 girdles = 153 facets, 96 index, 8-fold mirror-image 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.

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Cubic Zirconia: optical properties and the top ten cuts · The DG-Vitruvio: specifications, model and files

DG-Vitruvio Cubic Zirconia: the T73's light, with far finer sparkle