Old European Cut Ruby: the antique round, with a fifth of its light leaking

Brilliance 78 · Fire 39 · Scintillation 81 · in our census, where the T73 scores 94 · 37 · 80 in ruby

A small table and a high crown on a round outline: the 1870s look in ruby, with more light lost than any modern round we measure.

See it in the simulatorGet the files
The Old European Cut in ruby, 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 Ruby

Once bruting was mechanised, the old mine's facets could sit on a true circle, and the Old European cut was the result. We measured a 74-facet model with a 45.0% table under a tall 35.0° crown, over a 41.5° pavilion, 64.7% deep overall.

In diamond it comes close to a modern round. In ruby it does not: the T73 returns 94 where the Old European returns 78, and the leak climbs from 5% to 22%.

Its pavilion is not to blame in the usual way. At 41.5° it sits above ruby's guide minimum of 36.4°, so this is not the window of a shallow stone; the census lights the ruby from a wide cone, and corundum lets more of the off-axis light through.

Is an Old European cut right for ruby? Pros and cons

Pros

None by our margins. Its Tilt of 87 comes with a dimmer face, so we do not count it.

Cons

Compared with the T73 Round Brilliant in ruby 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 ruby (white) against the T73 Round Brilliant in ruby (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 ruby, against the T73 Round Brilliant in ruby as an outline. Solid white marks where it reaches further, hatching where it falls short. The scores are listed below.50100Global−5Brilliance−16Fire+2Scintillation+1Spread−2Symmetry0Shape-norm+20Tilt+12

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

  • Global74, the comparison 79, difference −5
  • Brilliance78, the comparison 94, difference −16
  • Fire39, the comparison 37, difference +2
  • Scintillation81, the comparison 80, difference +1
  • Spread98, the comparison 100, difference −2
  • Symmetry100, the comparison 100, difference 0
  • Shape-norm122, the comparison 102, difference +20
  • Tilt87, the comparison 75, difference +12
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 ruby gains in an Old European cut

No score beats the T73 in ruby or the Old European in diamond by our margins. Tilt reads 87 against 75, but Brilliance is 78 against 94, and our rule counts tilt only for a stone close to the baseline's light. What it offers instead is the period outline and its high crown on a hard, everyday stone.

The Old European's costs in ruby

Far less fire than the diamond version

Fire 39 against 74 for the Old European Cut in diamond: 35 points lower

Diamond gives this cut 74 for fire; corundum gives it 39. The high 35.0° crown would spread colour well in a stone with more dispersion, but corundum has little to spread.

Old european cut in ruby face-up under a single bright light: a render from our simulator, its coloured flashes are the fire (score 39)

Old European Cut in ruby · Fire 39

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.

What helps: Corundum sets the ceiling, and no antique round lifts it. Among all our ruby cuts the Oval Cut Ruby leads for fire at 74.

Try it yourself: See the fire in the 3D Gemstone Simulator

About a fifth of the light leaks

Leakage 22 against 5 for the T73 Round Brilliant in ruby: 17 points higher

About a fifth, 22%, leaves through the pavilion of the ruby, where the T73 loses 5%. With a 34.6° critical angle, more of the light that reaches the pavilion at a slant passes straight through.

Old European Cut in ruby · Leakage 22

Old european cut in ruby tilted 0 degrees: Light Return map, 25% of the face leaking0° · 25% leak
Old european cut in ruby tilted 10 degrees: Light Return map, 16% of the face leaking10° · 16% leak
Old european cut in ruby tilted 20 degrees: Light Return map, 34% of the face leaking20° · 34% leak
Old european cut in ruby tilted 30 degrees: Light Return map, 37% of the face leaking30° · 37% leak

T73 Round Brilliant in ruby · Leakage 5

T73 round brilliant in ruby tilted 0 degrees: Light Return map, 1% of the face leaking0° · 1% leak
T73 round brilliant in ruby tilted 10 degrees: Light Return map, 10% of the face leaking10° · 10% leak
T73 round brilliant in ruby tilted 20 degrees: Light Return map, 29% of the face leaking20° · 29% leak
T73 round brilliant in ruby tilted 30 degrees: Light Return map, 30% of the face leaking30° · 30% 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: Steeper mains are not the answer, since the pavilion already clears ruby's 36.4° guide minimum. A modern plan is: DG-Anteros Ruby leaks 3% in ruby.

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

Less light than a modern ruby round

Brilliance 78 against 94 for the T73 Round Brilliant in ruby: 16 points lower

Brilliance 78 against 94. The light that leaks is light that never comes back through the crown, so these two cons are one problem seen twice.

Old european cut in ruby face-up Light Return map: red, green and blue show where the light returns from, grey shows where it leaks (Brilliance 78)

Old European Cut in ruby · Brilliance 78

T73 round brilliant in ruby face-up Light Return map: red, green and blue show where the light returns from, grey shows where it leaks (Brilliance 94)

T73 Round Brilliant in ruby · Brilliance 94

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: Give up the antique look and a modern round recovers the light: the T73 Round Brilliant Ruby returns 94, DG-M5 Ruby 100.

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

Heavier than diamond

1.24 ct at 6.5 mm, against 1.09 ct for the same cut in diamond (+14%)

The Old European is deep, 64.7%, and ruby is denser than diamond: a 6.5 mm stone comes to 1.24 ct, against 1.09 ct in diamond.

Ruby1.24 ctDiamond1.09 ct
A Old European Cut 6.5 mm across, weighed from the model's measured volume and each stone's specific gravity.

What helps: Compare stones by diameter.

Try it yourself: Weights in all seven gemstones on the Old European Cut page

Who an Old European ruby suits

The Old European suits a ruby meant for a period piece, where the small table and tall crown are the look and some loss of light is acceptable. It is the brightest antique cut we measure in ruby, though well behind any modern round.

For a round ruby with full light, the T73 Round Brilliant Ruby or DG-Anteros Ruby. No antique cut in our ruby census returns more light than this one; outside the rounds, the Cushion Cut Ruby reaches 88.

Old European Cut Ruby: questions

Is an Old European cut good for ruby?

It is the best antique cut we measure in ruby, but it trails the T73: Brilliance 78 against 94, leakage 22% against 5%.

Old European ruby or Old Mine ruby?

The round one, clearly. The Old Mine cushion returns 50 in ruby and loses 49% through the back; the Old European returns 78 and loses 22%.

What does a 6.5 mm Old European ruby weigh?

About 1.24 ct, more than any other round on our ruby pages, because the cut is 64.7% deep.

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

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

Other cuts in ruby

The Old European Cut in other gemstones