Mazarin Cut Cubic Zirconia: Pros, Cons & Fire

Cubic zirconia disperses light more than diamond (0.060 against 0.044), so the same Mazarin shows more fire in CZ than in diamond. That is the one gain we measure.

Everything else follows the cut's geometry: a shallow 31.4° crown, a 44.33° pavilion and a cushion outline 68.8% deep, with light leaking through the back.

Why compare CZ with diamond at all? Because cubic zirconia is most often bought to look like one. Against the same Mazarin in diamond it gains fire and gives up little light (62 against 65); against the T73 in CZ, the cut's age shows.

Is CZ good in a Mazarin cut? Pros and cons

Pros

More fire than in diamond 77 vs 63

Cons

Far heavier than diamond 2.18 vs 1.32 ct
Much less light than the T73 in CZ 62 vs 98
A fifth of the light leaks 21 vs 1
Fewer flashes than a modern round 61 vs 80

Compared with the T73 Round Brilliant in cubic zirconia and with the Mazarin 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 Mazarin 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 1, level on 1, behind on 6.

Global77, the comparison 93, difference −16
Brilliance62, the comparison 98, difference −36
Fire77, the comparison 87, difference −10
Scintillation61, the comparison 80, difference −19
Spread96, the comparison 100, difference −4
Symmetry100, the comparison 100, difference 0
Shape-norm67, the comparison 106, difference −39
Tilt100, the comparison 87, difference +13

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 cubic zirconia gains in a Mazarin cut

More fire than in diamond

Fire 77 against 63 for the Mazarin Cut in diamond: 14 points higher

CZ's higher dispersion turns more of the returned light into colour. In the renders the CZ shows more small coloured flashes under the same light.

Mazarin cut in cubic zirconia face-up under a single bright light: a render from our simulator, its coloured flashes are the fire (score 77) — 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.

Mazarin cut in diamond face-up under a single bright light: a render from our simulator, its coloured flashes are the fire (score 63) — 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

The catch with a Mazarin CZ

Far heavier than diamond

2.18 ct at 6.5 mm, against 1.32 ct for the same cut in diamond (+65%)

CZ is far denser than diamond, so a Mazarin of the same width carries much more weight in a setting.

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

What helps: None in the cut. Set it by millimetres; a 6.5 mm stone is 2.18 ct.

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

Much less light than the T73 in CZ

Brilliance 62 against 98 for the T73 Round Brilliant in cubic zirconia: 36 points lower

Grey wedges run into the corners of the face-up map, where the T73's face is nearly all colour.

Mazarin 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 62) — 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: Our modern Cushion Cut returns 88 in CZ; the Old European Cut Cubic Zirconia 92 if a round will do.

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

A fifth of the light leaks

Leakage 21 against 1 for the T73 Round Brilliant in cubic zirconia: 20 points higher

A fifth of the light (21%) goes out through the pavilion; the T73 in CZ loses only 1%.

Mazarin cut in cubic zirconia tilted 0 degrees: Light Return map, 24% 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.

Mazarin cut in cubic zirconia tilted 10 degrees: Light Return map, 21% 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: The Cushion Cut leaks 7% in CZ.

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

Fewer flashes than a modern round

Scintillation 61 against 80 for the T73 Round Brilliant in cubic zirconia: 19 points lower

42 facets against 73: a slower sparkle.

Mazarin Cut · 42 facets · Scintillation 61

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.

What helps: The Peruzzi Cut Cubic Zirconia keeps an antique cushion with 81.

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

Who a Mazarin CZ suits

A Mazarin in CZ suits practice and prototypes: a cheap way to cut or set the double cut and see its fire.

For a brighter cushion, the modern Cushion Cut; for an antique look with more light, the Old European Cut Cubic Zirconia.

If you are cutting it, the Mazarin's 42 facets take far less work than a 73-facet round, and CZ forgives practice. The cutting file is the same for any material.

Its fire comes closer to the T73's than its light does: Fire 77 against 87 in CZ, where brilliance trails by far more, 62 against 98.

Mazarin Cut Cubic Zirconia: questions

Does a Mazarin cut CZ have fire?

More than the diamond version: Fire 77 against 63. The T73 in CZ scores 87.

Is Mazarin cut CZ bright?

Not very: Brilliance 62 against 98 for the T73 in CZ, with 21% leakage.

What does a 6.5 mm Mazarin CZ weigh?

About 2.18 ct, against 1.32 ct in diamond.

Mazarin CZ or Mazarin diamond?

CZ shows more fire (77 against 63) with similar light (62 against 65); diamond is lighter and much harder.

Get the Mazarin Cut files

6 formatsMillimetresWatertight

Mazarin Cut 3D files

The Mazarin Cut as exact geometry: 42 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

Mazarin Cut cutting files

The Mazarin Cut as a faceting design: 34 + 8 girdles = 42 facets, 96 index, 4-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.

More gemstones and cuts

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

Mazarin Cut Cubic Zirconia: more fire than the diamond version, at a fraction of the price