Emerald Square Cut Moissanite: Pros & Cons

Take the emerald cut's steps, set them on a square, open the table a little wider than an Asscher's, and you have the emerald square. Ours is a true square with 49 facets, a flat 28.16° pavilion and 61.0% total depth.

In moissanite it has two pros and four cons. Its face-up size per carat is level with the T73's, 99 against 100, so size counts as neither.

Against the Asscher in moissanite, it keeps more light when tipped (82 against 77), but it returns less (58 against 64) and leaks more (17% against 12%).

Emerald square moissanite: good or not? Pros and cons

Pros

More fire than a diamond emerald square 93 vs 84
Lighter than in diamond 1.33 vs 1.46 ct

Cons

Less light than a round 58 vs 86
Darker when tipped 82 vs 94
More than twice a round's leakage 17 vs 7
Slightly fewer flashes 72 vs 80

Compared with the T73 Round Brilliant in moissanite and with the Emerald Square 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.

All eight scores against the T73

At a glance: the Emerald Square Cut in moissanite (white) against the T73 Round Brilliant in moissanite (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 moissanite: ahead on 1, level on 1, behind on 6.

Global77, the comparison 91, difference −14
Brilliance58, the comparison 86, difference −28
Fire93, the comparison 97, difference −4
Scintillation72, the comparison 80, difference −8
Spread108, the comparison 100, difference +8
Symmetry100, the comparison 100, difference 0
Shape-norm76, the comparison 93, difference −17
Tilt82, the comparison 94, difference −12

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 moissanite gains in an emerald square cut

More fire than a diamond emerald square

Fire 93 against 84 for the Emerald Square Cut in diamond: 9 points higher

The steps are the same in both stones; only the material changes, and fire rises from 84 to 93.

Emerald square cut in moissanite face-up under a single bright light: a render from our simulator, its coloured flashes are the fire (score 93) — 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.

Emerald square 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

Lighter than in diamond

1.33 ct at 6.5 mm, against 1.46 ct for the same cut in diamond (−9%)

For the same millimetres, moissanite's lower density, 3.22 against diamond's 3.52, gives this square a lower carat weight.

A Emerald Square 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 Emerald Square Cut page

The catch with an emerald square moissanite

Less light than a round

Brilliance 58 against 86 for the T73 Round Brilliant in moissanite: 28 points lower

58 against 86, and under the diamond version's 64. The guide minimum of 39.5° is drawn for rounds; this pavilion, at 28.16°, is much flatter, and we hold no figures for a steeper version.

Emerald square cut in moissanite face-up Light Return map: red, green and blue show where the light returns from, grey shows where it leaks (Brilliance 58) — 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 moissanite face-up Light Return map: red, green and blue show where the light returns from, grey shows where it leaks (Brilliance 86) — 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: Among square step cuts in moissanite, the Asscher returns 64. The brilliant Square returns 82; for the most light, DG-M5 Moissanite.

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

Darker when tipped

Tilt 82 against 94 for the T73 Round Brilliant in moissanite: 12 points lower

At 20° of tip it keeps 82 of its face-up light, where the T73 keeps 94. The emerald cut is level with it; the Asscher keeps less.

Emerald square cut in moissanite tilted 0 degrees: Light Return map, 21% 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.

Emerald square cut in moissanite tilted 10 degrees: Light Return map, 30% 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: A square outline that holds its light better and is bright: the Square, Tilt 88 with Brilliance 82.

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

More than twice a round's leakage

Leakage 17 against 7 for the T73 Round Brilliant in moissanite: 10 points higher

17% of the light in our census leaves through the back, against 7% for the T73; the diamond version loses the same 17%.

What helps: Leak share does not shrink with size. The Asscher leaks 12% and the Square 11%.

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

Slightly fewer flashes

Scintillation 72 against 80 for the T73 Round Brilliant in moissanite: 8 points lower

49 facets against the T73's 73 give Scintillation 72 against 80. It comes from the facet pattern, so the gap is the same in any stone.

Emerald Square Cut · 49 facets · Scintillation 72

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.

What helps: The step plan sets this. For more flashes on a square, the Princess scores 78 and the Cushion 85.

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

Who an emerald square moissanite suits

The emerald square suits centre stones and earrings where clean, architectural steps matter more than sparkle or brilliance. In moissanite a larger share of its returned light is split into colour: Fire 93 against 84.

For a brighter square, the Square; for a stepped square with more light, the Asscher.

Through the steps of a square step cut, moissanite's double refraction can show as doubled facet edges. We trace a single refractive index, so that stays outside our figures.

Emerald Square Cut Moissanite: questions

Is emerald square moissanite bright?

Brighter than our princess, dimmer than a round: Brilliance 58, against 51 for the princess and 86 for the T73.

Emerald square or Asscher cut moissanite?

The Asscher returns more light (64 against 58) and leaks less (12% against 17%); the emerald square holds its light better when tipped (82 against 77).

Does emerald square moissanite have more fire than diamond?

Yes, by a clear margin: 93 here, against 84 for an emerald square cut from diamond.

What does a 6.5 mm emerald square moissanite weigh?

1.33 ct; the diamond equivalent is 1.46 ct.

Get the Emerald Square Cut files

6 formatsMillimetresWatertight

Emerald Square Cut 3D files

The Emerald Square Cut as exact geometry: 49 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

Emerald Square Cut cutting files

The Emerald Square Cut as a faceting design: 41 + 8 girdles = 49 facets, 96 index, 4-fold 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

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

Emerald Square Cut Moissanite: more fire than in diamond, in concentric square steps