An inscription is text that a laser writes on the girdle of a stone, too small to see without magnification. Most often it is the report number.
In more detail
It ties the stone to its report. GIA inscribes the number on every Dossier stone, and TREATED COLOR on an HPHT color-treated stone. GIA inscribes lab-grown stones with "Laboratory-Grown" and the report or assessment number. Check the lettering as well as the number: a fake inscription can copy a real number.
On a grading report
The report lists any inscription under Inscription(s). IGI calls its inscription Laserscribe. It inscribes every lab-grown stone with "LG" before the number, and natural stones on request.
Related terms
- Report number: The report number is the unique number a lab gives a report. GIA registers it in its database, so anyone can look it up.
- Girdle: The girdle is the narrow band at the widest part of a cut stone, between the crown and the pavilion. It is the edge that a setting grips.
- Diamond Dossier: The Diamond Dossier is a shorter GIA report for loose natural diamonds of 0.15 to 1.99 carats, D to Z. It gives the four Cs and a proportion diagram, but no clarity plot.
- Laboratory-grown diamond: A laboratory-grown diamond is a diamond that people grow with machines, by HPHT or CVD. It has essentially the same composition, crystal structure and properties as a natural diamond.
- Report Check: Report Check is GIA's online database. Enter a report number to see what GIA itself recorded; IGI's equivalent is Verify Your Report.