Old European Cut Emerald: an antique round, lighter in the hand than diamond

Brilliance 64 · Fire 42 · Scintillation 81 · in our census, where the T73 scores 78 · 39 · 80 in emerald

The antique round with a small table and a tall crown. In diamond it nearly keeps up with a modern round; in emerald it does not.

See it in the simulatorGet the files
The Old European Cut in emerald, rendered at an angle in our 3D Gemstone Simulator under studio light
Rendered in our 3D Gemstone Simulator from the Old European Cut model, 1.00 ct, studio light.

Old European Cut Emerald

The Old European put the old mine cut's facets on a circular outline. Our model has 74 facets, a small 45.0% table, a 35.0° crown and a 41.5° pavilion, and stands 64.7% deep.

Its pavilion is above emerald's 39.4° guide minimum, yet over a third of the light leaks in our census. Against the T73 in emerald it returns 64 to 78. Tilted, it keeps 96 of its face-up light, but a stone this far behind on light keeps its share of less, so we do not count that as a pro.

Its 74 facets keep the sparkle of a modern round: scintillation 81 against 80.

Is an Old European cut a good choice for emerald? Pros and cons

Pros

Cons

Compared with the T73 Round Brilliant in emerald and with the Old European 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 Old European Cut 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.

Performance wheel: Old European Cut in emerald, against the T73 Round Brilliant in emerald as an outline. Solid white marks where it reaches further, hatching where it falls short. The scores are listed below.50100Global−3Brilliance−14Fire+3Scintillation+1Spread−2Symmetry0Shape-norm+16Tilt+19

Against the T73 Round Brilliant in emerald: ahead on 4, level on 1, behind on 3.

  • Global70, the comparison 73, difference −3
  • Brilliance64, the comparison 78, difference −14
  • Fire42, the comparison 39, difference +3
  • Scintillation81, the comparison 80, difference +1
  • Spread98, the comparison 100, difference −2
  • Symmetry100, the comparison 100, difference 0
  • Shape-norm100, the comparison 84, difference +16
  • Tilt96, the comparison 77, difference +19
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 emerald gains in an Old European cut

Lighter than an antique diamond

0.84 ct at 6.5 mm, against 1.09 ct for the same cut in diamond (−23%)

Deep stones carry weight, and at 64.7% this is one. In emerald a 6.5 mm Old European is 0.84 ct, against 1.09 ct in diamond.

Emerald0.84 ctDiamond1.09 ct
A Old European Cut 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 Old European Cut page

Where the Old European falls short in emerald

Far less fire than in diamond

Fire 42 against 74 for the Old European Cut in diamond: 32 points lower

The tall crown that gives the diamond version 74 for fire has little to work with in emerald: 42.

Old european cut in emerald face-up under a single bright light: a render from our simulator, its coloured flashes are the fire (score 42)

Old European Cut in emerald · Fire 42

Old european cut in diamond face-up under a single bright light: a render from our simulator, its coloured flashes are the fire (score 74)

Old European Cut in diamond · Fire 74

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

Over a third of the light leaks

Leakage 36 against 5 for the Old European Cut in diamond: 31 points higher

36% in our census, about seven times the diamond version's 5%, from the same facets.

Old European Cut in emerald · Leakage 36

Old european cut in emerald tilted 0 degrees: Light Return map, 37% of the face leaking0° · 37% leak
Old european cut in emerald tilted 10 degrees: Light Return map, 40% of the face leaking10° · 40% leak
Old european cut in emerald tilted 20 degrees: Light Return map, 36% of the face leaking20° · 36% leak
Old european cut in emerald tilted 30 degrees: Light Return map, 48% of the face leaking30° · 48% leak

Old European Cut in diamond · Leakage 5

Old european cut in diamond tilted 0 degrees: Light Return map, 3% of the face leaking0° · 3% leak
Old european cut in diamond tilted 10 degrees: Light Return map, 7% of the face leaking10° · 7% leak
Old european cut in diamond tilted 20 degrees: Light Return map, 10% of the face leaking20° · 10% leak
Old european cut in diamond tilted 30 degrees: Light Return map, 17% of the face leaking30° · 17% 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: Not by steepening: at 41.5° the pavilion already clears emerald's 39.4° guide minimum. DG-Anteros Emerald leaks 14% in emerald.

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

Under three-quarters of the diamond version's light

Brilliance 64 against 90 for the Old European Cut in diamond: 26 points lower

64 against 90. The T73 in emerald returns 78, so the antique proportions cost light here as well as the stone does.

Old european cut in emerald face-up Light Return map: red, green and blue show where the light returns from, grey shows where it leaks (Brilliance 64)

Old European Cut in emerald · Brilliance 64

Old european cut in diamond face-up Light Return map: red, green and blue show where the light returns from, grey shows where it leaks (Brilliance 90)

Old European Cut in diamond · Brilliance 90

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 round emerald with more light, the T73 Round Brilliant Emerald returns 78, DG-M5 Emerald 90.

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

A shade smaller for its weight

Spread 98 against 100 for the T73 Round Brilliant in emerald: 2 points lower

At 64.7% deep it carries more below the girdle than the T73, so at equal carats it is slightly narrower across. Spread is the same in any stone.

Old European Cut · 6.88 mm at 1.00 ct · Spread 98

T73 Round Brilliant · 7.06 mm at 1.00 ct · Spread 100

Both stones weigh 1.00 ct in emerald 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.

What helps: Compare stones by width: a 6.5 mm Old European emerald is 0.84 ct.

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

Who an Old European emerald suits

Choose it for a period-style emerald ring where the antique outline matters more than light. Of the two antique rounds on our emerald pages it is the stronger by far: the Old Single returns 17. Its tall crown and small table give it the period face; the census does not score that, only what it costs in light.

For a round that returns more light, DG-M5 Emerald or the T73 Round Brilliant Emerald. For the 1919 plan without a faceted girdle, the T57 Round Brilliant Emerald at 78.

Old European Cut Emerald: questions

Is an Old European cut good for emerald?

It trails a modern round: Brilliance 64 against 78 for the T73 in emerald, with 36% of the light leaking.

Does an Old European emerald hold its light when tilted?

It keeps 96 of its own face-up light at 20°, more than the T73 (77), but from a smaller start: Brilliance 64.

Old European or Old Single cut for emerald?

The Old European, by a wide margin: Brilliance 64 against 17, leakage 36% against 75%.

Get the Old European Cut files

6 formatsMillimetresWatertight

Old European Cut 3D files

The Old European Cut as exact geometry: 74 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

Old European Cut cutting files

The Old European Cut as a faceting design: 58 + 16 girdles = 74 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.

More gemstones and cuts

Emerald: optical properties and the top ten cuts · The Old European Cut: specifications, model and files

Other cuts in emerald

The Old European Cut in other gemstones