DG-Elongated Hexagon Emerald: Pros, Cons & Fire

DG-Elongated Hexagon is an elongated hexagon with square points, step cut the same on both faces: two steps either side of a six-facet girdle, a table in front and a flat of the same size behind. It was drawn for emerald. Our model has 32 facets, a 50.0% table, 36.0° steps above and 36.0° below, and it is 45.3% deep.

One note on our census comes first. The flat at the back is a window by design: the cut's own page leaves it out of its head-on figures, but our census counts the light that passes through it as lost. Every light figure on this page carries that.

No cut we measure gains more light moving from diamond to emerald: 12 becomes 25.

DG-Elongated Hexagon in emerald: pros and cons

Pros

Far more fire than a round emerald 69 vs 39
Lighter than in diamond 1.39 vs 1.80 ct
A little more face for its weight than the T73 107 vs 100

Cons

Far less light than a round 25 vs 78
Over two-thirds of the light leaks 69 vs 22
Less steady when tipped than in diamond 61 vs 100
Fewer flashes than a round 51 vs 80

Compared with the T73 Round Brilliant in emerald and with the DG-Elongated Hexagon in diamond. A difference counts from 3 points (Brilliance, Fire, Tilt, Leakage), 5 (Scintillation, Symmetry), 4% (face-up size per carat) 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-Elongated Hexagon in emerald (white) against the T73 Round Brilliant in emerald (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 emerald: ahead on 2, behind on 6.

Global48, the comparison 73, difference −25
Brilliance25, the comparison 78, difference −53
Fire69, the comparison 39, difference +30
Scintillation51, the comparison 80, difference −29
Spread111, the comparison 100, difference +11
Symmetry73, the comparison 100, difference −27
Shape-norm33, the comparison 84, difference −51
Tilt61, the comparison 77, difference −16

Face-up light census, a different measure from the Cut Grading Tool; Spread and Shape-norm above 100 sit on the ring. Spread is the census's estimate from depth alone; the face-up size in the pros and cons is measured from each model's outline.

Open it in the Cut Performance Wheel

What emerald gains in DG-Elongated Hexagon

Far more fire than a round emerald

Fire 69 against 39 for the T73 Round Brilliant in emerald: 30 points higher

69 against 39 for the T73: the third-highest fire we measure in emerald, after the oval and DG-Bowtie. The diamond version scores 97.

Dg-elongated hexagon in emerald face-up under a single bright light: a render from our simulator, its coloured flashes are the fire (score 69) — 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.

T73 round brilliant in emerald face-up under a single bright light: a render from our simulator, its coloured flashes are the fire (score 39) — 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

Lighter than in diamond

1.39 ct at 6.5 mm, against 1.80 ct for the same cut in diamond (−23%)

For a pendant that shows both faces, weight hangs from the bail. A 6.5 mm wide DG-Elongated Hexagon weighs 1.39 ct in emerald and 1.80 ct in diamond.

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

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

A little more face for its weight than the T73

Face-up size 107 against 100 for the T73 Round Brilliant in emerald (T73 = 100): 7% more face-up area for the same weight

At 45.3% deep it is a shallow stone, and long for its width, so each carat spreads more face than the T73's. The figure comes from the model's outline and volume, so it is the same in any stone.

DG-Elongated Hexagon · 9.89 x 5.82 mm at 1.00 ct · Face-up size 107

T73 Round Brilliant · 7.06 mm at 1.00 ct · Face-up size 100

Both stones weigh 1.00 ct in emerald and are drawn to the same scale in millimetres, from each cut's own model. Face-up size is the outline's area per carat, with the T73 at 100: a deeper stone, or a rounder outline, spreads less area for its weight.

Try it yourself: See its size at 1.00 ct in emerald in the 3D Gemstone Simulator

The catch with a DG-Elongated Hexagon emerald

Far less light than a round

Brilliance 25 against 78 for the T73 Round Brilliant in emerald: 53 points lower

25 against 78. Our census scores light through the back window as lost light, so the window counts against this figure. The site's cut notes add that in emerald the steps beside the table also sit below the critical angle and let some light through.

Dg-elongated hexagon in emerald face-up Light Return map: red, green and blue show where the light returns from, grey shows where it leaks (Brilliance 25) — 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 emerald face-up Light Return map: red, green and blue show where the light returns from, grey shows where it leaks (Brilliance 78) — 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: The window is part of the design, and we have not measured a version without it, so we promise nothing from one. For an elongated step cut with more light in emerald, the Emerald Cut Emerald returns 58.

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

Over two-thirds of the light leaks

Leakage 69 against 22 for the T73 Round Brilliant in emerald: 47 points higher

69% of the light in our census, against 22% for the T73. The window is counted here too: light that goes straight through the back flat is leakage by our census's rules, whatever the design intends.

Dg-elongated hexagon in emerald tilted 0 degrees: Light Return map, 72% 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.

Dg-elongated hexagon in emerald tilted 10 degrees: Light Return map, 70% 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 Emerald Cut Emerald leaks 35% in emerald.

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

Less steady when tipped than in diamond

Tilt 61 against 100 for the DG-Elongated Hexagon in diamond: 39 points lower

Tipped by 20°, it keeps 61 of its face-up light; the diamond version keeps 100. In diamond, though, it starts from far less light, 12.

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

Fewer flashes than a round

Scintillation 51 against 80 for the T73 Round Brilliant in emerald: 29 points lower

32 facets in long steps against the T73's 73: Scintillation 51 against 80, in emerald or any other stone.

DG-Elongated Hexagon · 32 facets · Scintillation 51

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

Who a DG-Elongated Hexagon emerald suits

DG-Elongated Hexagon suits pendants and open settings where the back is on show and the stone should read the same from either side. In emerald it brings plenty of fire and a face a little larger for its weight than the T73's, 107 against 100; judged by light returned to the front, it is weak; our census counts the back window as lost light.

For an elongated emerald that returns light to the front, the Emerald Cut Emerald, at 58 for light.

DG-Elongated Hexagon Emerald: questions

Why does DG-Elongated Hexagon score so low for light?

Brilliance is 25 and 69% leaks. The back flat is a window by design, and our census counts light through it as lost; the cut's own page leaves the window out of its head-on figures.

Is DG-Elongated Hexagon better in emerald than in diamond?

For light, yes: 25 against 12, the largest gain over diamond of any cut we measure. Diamond has more fire, 97 against 69.

Does DG-Elongated Hexagon have fire in emerald?

Plenty for emerald: 69, against 39 for the T73. Only the oval and DG-Bowtie score higher in this stone.

What does a DG-Elongated Hexagon emerald weigh?

About 1.39 ct at 6.5 mm wide, and 1.7 times as long; in diamond it would be 1.80 ct.

Get the DG-Elongated Hexagon Cut files

6 formatsMillimetresWatertight

DG-Elongated Hexagon Cut 3D files

The DG-Elongated Hexagon Cut as exact geometry: 32 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-Elongated Hexagon Cut cutting files

The DG-Elongated Hexagon Cut as a faceting design: 26 + 6 girdles = 32 facets, 96 index, 2-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

Emerald: optical properties and the top ten cuts · The DG-Elongated Hexagon: specifications, model and files

DG-Elongated Hexagon Emerald: far more fire than any round we measure in this stone, and a larger face for its weight than the T73