Brilliance 51 · Fire 32 · Scintillation 78 · in our census, where the T73 scores 78 · 39 · 80 in emerald
A square brilliant with sharp corners and chevron pavilion facets. In emerald it trails the round on light and its diamond version on fire, leakage and tilt, and our square brilliant does better on all four.
The princess has sharp corners and chevron-patterned pavilion facets; the site's cut notes call it the square cut that keeps the most weight from rough. Our model has 85 facets, a 41.94° pavilion and a total depth of 68.5%.
That pavilion is steeper than emerald's 39.4° guide minimum, so a shallow pavilion is not what holds it back. Even so, 45% of the light leaks in our census, against 18% for the diamond princess.
Compared with the T73 Round Brilliant in emerald and with the Princess Cut 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.
At a glance: the Princess 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: level on 2, behind on 6.
1.14 ct at 6.5 mm, against 1.48 ct for the same cut in diamond (−23%)
A princess is deep, 68.5% here, and much of its weight sits in the pavilion. Emerald trims it: a 6.5 mm princess is 1.14 ct, against 1.48 ct in diamond.
Try it yourself: Weights in all seven gemstones on the Princess Cut page
Fire 32 against 83 for the Princess Cut in diamond: 51 points lower
32 against 83. The plan is the same in both stones, so the difference is the stone: emerald's dispersion is 0.014 against diamond's 0.044. It falls below the T73 in emerald too, 39.
Princess Cut in emerald · Fire 32
Princess Cut in diamond · Fire 83
What helps: For a square outline with a little more colour, our Square Cut Emerald scores 38. Among the cuts within 10 points of the T73's brilliance in emerald, the most fire belongs to DG-Anteros Emerald, 52 at 86 brilliance.
Brilliance 51 against 78 for the T73 Round Brilliant in emerald: 27 points lower
51 against 78. The diamond princess returns 57, only a few points more, so most of the gap to the round comes from the princess plan, not from emerald.
Princess Cut in emerald · Brilliance 51
T73 Round Brilliant in emerald · Brilliance 78
What helps: In a square outline the Cushion Cut Emerald returns 74 and the Square Cut Emerald 68.
Try it yourself: Open this Light Return map in the simulator
Leakage 45 against 18 for the Princess Cut in diamond: 27 points higher
45% against 18%. Emerald turns light back only when it strikes a facet beyond 39.4° from the perpendicular, diamond beyond about 24°, so light that diamond keeps can escape here.
Princess Cut in emerald · Leakage 45
Princess Cut in diamond · Leakage 18
What helps: Steepening is not the fix: at 41.94° the pavilion already clears 39.4°. The Square Cut Emerald leaks 26% in emerald.
Try it yourself: Tilt it yourself in the simulator's light map
Tilt 77 against 89 for the Princess Cut in diamond: 12 points lower
Tilted 20°, the emerald princess keeps 77 of its face-up light, level with the T73's 77 in emerald; the diamond princess keeps 89.
Princess Cut in emerald · Tilt 77
Princess Cut in diamond · Tilt 89
What helps: The Square Cut Emerald keeps 85 when tipped, at 68 brilliance: the steadiest of the cuts within 10 points of the T73's brilliance in emerald.
Try it yourself: Compare the Tilt spoke in the Cut Performance Wheel
A princess emerald suits a modern square design where the sharp outline is the point, with its corners protected by V-prongs. Emerald is 7.5 to 8 on the Mohs scale, and four sharp corners are four places to chip.
On our numbers the Square Cut Emerald is the better square brilliant in emerald: more light, less leakage, steadier when tipped and a little more fire. For the most light in a square, the Cushion Cut Emerald.
Not one of the stronger choices: Brilliance 51 against 78 for the T73, 45% leakage and Fire 32. Other square cuts do better in this stone.
The square brilliant: Brilliance 68 against 51, leakage 26% against 45%, Tilt 85 against 77. Scintillation is level, 78 against 78.
Little: 32, against 39 for the T73 in emerald and 83 for the same princess in diamond.
About 1.14 ct. A diamond princess of the same width comes to 1.48 ct.
The Princess Cut as exact geometry: 93 planar facets, real-world scale, ready for CAD, rendering, printing and casting.
The Princess Cut as a faceting design: 81 + 4 girdles = 85 facets, 96 index, 4-fold mirror-image symmetry, ready for the machine.
Questions before you buy? Email us.
Emerald: optical properties and the top ten cuts · The Princess Cut: specifications, model and files