Pear Cut Emerald: Pros, Cons & Tilt

The pear has one rounded end and one point. Our model is 1.502 times as long as wide, 60.0% deep, with 64 facets and a 34.93° pavilion.

That pavilion is some way under emerald's 39.4° guide minimum for round designs. The census puts its light at 56, against 78 for the T73, and its fire at 59, above the round's 39 but well under the diamond pear's 84.

Pear-shaped emerald: good or not? Pros and cons

Pros

Lighter than a pear diamond 1.06 vs 1.37 ct

Cons

Less fire than the diamond pear 59 vs 84
Gives up light as it tips 57 vs 80
Less light than the T73 in emerald 56 vs 78
A less regular pavilion 85 vs 100

Compared with the T73 Round Brilliant in emerald and with the Pear 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 Pear 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.

Against the T73 Round Brilliant in emerald: ahead on 2, behind on 6.

Global63, the comparison 73, difference −10
Brilliance56, the comparison 78, difference −22
Fire59, the comparison 39, difference +20
Scintillation76, the comparison 80, difference −4
Spread101, the comparison 100, difference +1
Symmetry85, the comparison 100, difference −15
Shape-norm66, the comparison 84, difference −18
Tilt57, the comparison 77, difference −20

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 a pear cut

Lighter than a pear diamond

1.06 ct at 6.5 mm, against 1.37 ct for the same cut in diamond (−23%)

Pears are often worn as drops, where every carat hangs from the ear. In emerald a pear 6.5 mm wide is 1.06 ct; in diamond it would be 1.37 ct.

A Pear 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 Pear Cut page

The catch with a pear emerald

Less fire than the diamond pear

Fire 59 against 84 for the Pear Cut in diamond: 25 points lower

Emerald splits light into colour less than a third as strongly as diamond, so 84 becomes 59.

Pear cut in emerald face-up under a single bright light: a render from our simulator, its coloured flashes are the fire (score 59) — 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.

Pear cut in diamond face-up under a single bright light: a render from our simulator, its coloured flashes are the fire (score 84) — 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

Gives up light as it tips

Tilt 57 against 80 for the Pear Cut in diamond: 23 points lower

57 of the face-up light survives a 20° tilt, against 80 for the same pear in diamond.

Pear cut in emerald tilted 0 degrees: Light Return map, 33% 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.

Pear cut in emerald tilted 10 degrees: Light Return map, 33% 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: We have not measured a modified pear, so we cannot promise a steeper one would help. Swapping the outline does: an emerald Oval Cut Emerald holds 71 of its light at 20°.

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

Less light than the T73 in emerald

Brilliance 56 against 78 for the T73 Round Brilliant in emerald: 22 points lower

56 against 78. The diamond pear returns 53, so emerald is not the weak link: the pear plan returns less light than a round in either stone.

Pear cut in emerald face-up Light Return map: red, green and blue show where the light returns from, grey shows where it leaks (Brilliance 56) — 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: In emerald the Cushion Cut Emerald returns 74, the most of the fancy shapes on our pages.

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

A less regular pavilion

Symmetry 85 against 100 for the T73 Round Brilliant in emerald: 15 points lower

A pear has one axis of symmetry, not eight, so its pavilion facets differ in size from end to end. Our symmetry score reads that as 85, in any stone.

Pear Cut · 64 facets · Symmetry 85

T73 Round Brilliant · 73 facets · Symmetry 100

Symmetry scores how regular the pavilion facets are within the design. Compare how evenly the facets repeat around each pavilion. Drawn from each cut's own model.

What helps: It is the shape, not the cutting. The Oval Cut Emerald keeps a near-regular pavilion at 98.

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

Who a pear emerald suits

A pear emerald suits a pendant or drop earring where the outline matters and some fire is welcome. In a ring, worn point to the fingertip, it is seen face-up more often, where it holds its light best.

For more fire and a steadier stone, the Oval Cut Emerald. For more light, the Cushion Cut Emerald or DG-M5 Emerald.

Pear Cut Emerald: questions

Is a pear cut good for emerald?

It gives more fire than a round (59 against 39) and less light (56 against 78), and it keeps 57 of its light when tipped.

Pear or oval for an emerald?

The oval: more fire (71 against 59), more Tilt (71 against 57) and a more regular pavilion. Light is about level, 55 against 56.

Does a pear emerald show a bowtie?

Our census has no bowtie score. Pears, like other elongated shapes, can show a dark band across the widest part.

How much light does a pear emerald lose when tilted?

At 20° it keeps 57 of its face-up light; the T73 in emerald keeps 77 and the diamond pear 80.

Get the Pear Cut files

6 formatsMillimetresWatertight

Pear Cut 3D files

The Pear Cut as exact geometry: 64 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

GemCad64 index

Pear Cut cutting files

The Pear Cut as a faceting design: 50 + 14 girdles = 64 facets, 64 index, 1-fold mirror-image symmetry, ready for the machine.

.ascGemCad design file, 64 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 Pear Cut: specifications, model and files

Pear Cut Emerald: a classic drop outline, lighter in weight than diamond