DG-Rafaello Diamond: fine twelve-fold sparkle that keeps its light as it tips

Brilliance 94 · Fire 80 · Scintillation 96 · in our census, where the T73 scores 93 · 78 · 80 in diamond

A twelve-fold round drawn for diamond. Against the T73 it sparkles more finely and holds its light better when tipped; the price is a slightly leakier pavilion.

See it in the simulatorGet the files
The DG-Rafaello in diamond, rendered at an angle in our 3D Gemstone Simulator under studio light
Rendered in our 3D Gemstone Simulator from the DG-Rafaello model, 1.00 ct, studio light.

DG-Rafaello Diamond

DG-Rafaello is our twelve-fold round for diamond. Its crown is plain, twelve stars and twenty-four mains; the work is underneath, where five pavilion tiers, each shallower than the one above, bend the cone into a gentle curve from girdle to point. The model we measured carries 145 facets over a depth of 59.0%.

In the census it beats the T73 Round Brilliant on two scores and trails it on one. Brilliance is level, 94 against 93, and so is fire. That is why the tilt result counts: a stone this close to the benchmark's light that keeps more of it at an angle has a real advantage, not a statistical one.

Is DG-Rafaello right for a diamond? Pros and cons

Pros

Cons

Compared with the T73 Round Brilliant 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-Rafaello in diamond (white) against the T73 Round Brilliant in diamond (dashed): solid white where it reaches further, hatched where it falls short. Each pro and con is explained, with pictures, below.

Performance wheel: DG-Rafaello in diamond, against the T73 Round Brilliant in diamond as an outline. Solid white marks where it reaches further, hatching where it falls short. The scores are listed below.50100Global+3Brilliance+1Fire+2Scintillation+16Spread+1Symmetry0Shape-norm+1Tilt+5

Against the T73 Round Brilliant in diamond: ahead on 7, level on 1.

  • Global93, the comparison 90, difference +3
  • Brilliance94, the comparison 93, difference +1
  • Fire80, the comparison 78, difference +2
  • Scintillation96, the comparison 80, difference +16
  • Spread101, the comparison 100, difference +1
  • Symmetry100, the comparison 100, difference 0
  • Shape-norm101, the comparison 100, difference +1
  • Tilt97, the comparison 92, difference +5
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-Rafaello gives a diamond

Much finer sparkle than the T73

Scintillation 96 against 80 for the T73 Round Brilliant in diamond: 16 points higher

Twelve-fold symmetry and a five-tier pavilion give 145 facets against the T73's 73, and our scintillation score rises with that count. Only three cuts we measure in diamond score higher.

DG-Rafaello · 145 facets · Scintillation 96

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

Holds its light better when tipped

Tilt 97 against 92 for the T73 Round Brilliant in diamond: 5 points higher

Our Tilt score asks how much face-up light survives a 20° tip. DG-Rafaello keeps more than any other round we measure in diamond with brilliance near the T73's. A curved pavilion offers light more than one angle to reflect from, which may be why.

DG-Rafaello in diamond · Tilt 97

Dg-rafaello in diamond tilted 0 degrees: Light Return map, 4% of the face leaking0° · 4% leak
Dg-rafaello in diamond tilted 10 degrees: Light Return map, 4% of the face leaking10° · 4% leak
Dg-rafaello in diamond tilted 20 degrees: Light Return map, 7% of the face leaking20° · 7% leak
Dg-rafaello in diamond tilted 30 degrees: Light Return map, 17% of the face leaking30° · 17% leak

T73 Round Brilliant in diamond · Tilt 92

T73 round brilliant in diamond tilted 0 degrees: Light Return map, 4% of the face leaking0° · 4% leak
T73 round brilliant in diamond tilted 10 degrees: Light Return map, 2% of the face leaking10° · 2% leak
T73 round brilliant in diamond tilted 20 degrees: Light Return map, 9% of the face leaking20° · 9% leak
T73 round brilliant in diamond tilted 30 degrees: Light Return map, 14% of the face leaking30° · 14% leak
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.

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

The one catch with DG-Rafaello in diamond

A little more light through the back

Leakage 5 against 2 for the T73 Round Brilliant in diamond: 3 points higher

The difference sits right at our threshold, so it counts, but it is small: 5% of the light in our census escapes through the pavilion, where the T73 lets out 2%. Both figures are low next to most fancy shapes we measure, where leakage often runs into double figures.

DG-Rafaello in diamond · Leakage 5

Dg-rafaello in diamond tilted 0 degrees: Light Return map, 4% of the face leaking0° · 4% leak
Dg-rafaello in diamond tilted 10 degrees: Light Return map, 4% of the face leaking10° · 4% leak
Dg-rafaello in diamond tilted 20 degrees: Light Return map, 7% of the face leaking20° · 7% leak
Dg-rafaello in diamond tilted 30 degrees: Light Return map, 17% of the face leaking30° · 17% leak

T73 Round Brilliant in diamond · Leakage 2

T73 round brilliant in diamond tilted 0 degrees: Light Return map, 4% of the face leaking0° · 4% leak
T73 round brilliant in diamond tilted 10 degrees: Light Return map, 2% of the face leaking10° · 2% leak
T73 round brilliant in diamond tilted 20 degrees: Light Return map, 9% of the face leaking20° · 9% leak
T73 round brilliant in diamond tilted 30 degrees: Light Return map, 14% of the face leaking30° · 14% leak
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: A steeper pavilion is not what our data points to: at 40.0° it already sits above diamond's 38.9° guide minimum, and size does not change the share. For the least leakage in a round, the T105 Round Brilliant Diamond loses 1% and DG-Vitruvio Diamond 2%.

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

Who a DG-Rafaello diamond suits

Choose DG-Rafaello for a round diamond that will be seen at many angles, in a ring that moves or a pendant that swings: it keeps the most light when tipped of any round near the T73's brilliance, and its sparkle is among the finest we measure.

If leakage is your first concern, DG-Vitruvio Diamond matches the T73 on light and scores 98 for scintillation. For more fire, DG-Miliano Diamond scores 82 against this cut's 80.

DG-Rafaello Diamond: questions

Is DG-Rafaello a good cut for diamond?

It was drawn for diamond, and the census agrees: Scintillation 96 and Tilt 97, against 80 and 92 for the T73, with brilliance level.

Does DG-Rafaello leak more light than a round brilliant?

Slightly: 5% against 2% for the T73. It is the only con we count on this page.

Why does DG-Rafaello have twelve-fold symmetry?

A twelve-fold plan puts more, narrower facets around the stone than the classic eight-fold one, and our scintillation score rises with the facet count.

What does a 6.5 mm DG-Rafaello diamond weigh?

Close to 0.94 ct; at 59.0% deep it is a little shallower than the T73's 61.7%.

Get the DG-Rafaello Cut files

6 formatsMillimetresWatertight

DG-Rafaello Cut 3D files

The DG-Rafaello Cut as exact geometry: 145 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-Rafaello Cut cutting files

The DG-Rafaello Cut as a faceting design: 121 + 24 girdles = 145 facets, 96 index, 12-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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