YELLOW DIAMOND: Defective or Expensive?

Yellow diamonds used to be so rare and quite expensive, until an abundant deposit came to light in South Africa. From that point, a yellow color in diamond became regarded as a defect. Are yellow diamonds truly defective, or do the fancy yellow stones demonstrate that yellow can enhance a diamond’s beauty and worth? Gain a deeper understanding of the yellow diamond as we explore its history and market dynamics.

The Yellow Diamond in the Beginning

Before the mid-1800s, yellow diamonds primarily came from India and Brazil. These old sources yielded limited quantities of yellow diamonds, which were thus relatively rare compared to colorless diamonds. This scarcity accordingly drove up their prices, thus intensifying their exclusivity. The historical scarcity of yellow diamonds, combined with their vibrant and alluring color, contributed to their high value.

A fine example of a valuable yellow diamond from the old world is the Florentine. A gem of exceptional size, the Florentine Diamond stands as a testament to the beauty and value of yellow diamonds. Unlike yellowish diamonds, which may be flawed by contemporary grading standards, the Florentine Diamond represents a rare and highly prized example of a yellow diamond. This light-yellow gem from India is huge, weighing 137 carats.

What sets the Florentine Diamond apart is not only its impressive size but also its decidedly yellow color. This distinct coloration places the gem in a category beyond that of yellowish diamonds, which the industry now simply considers off-colored and in this sense defective. The distinctive yellow of the Florentine Diamond made it a rare gem of exceptional beauty, thus elevating its allure and value.

The Florentine Diamond eventually disappeared, but its memory as a yellow diamond haunts gem enthusiasts to this day. Gem aficionados remember the great diamond for a radiant yellow color, and the mere mention of its name evokes a sense of intrigue and fascination. Revered as one of the most remarkable yellow diamonds known to exist, the Florentine Diamond’s legacy endures even in its absence.

Advantages of a Yellow Diamond

There are in fact several advantages to a yellow diamond. These benefits contribute to their appeal, and remain true even today.

1. Unique Color

Yellow diamonds exhibit a captivating, vibrant color that sets them apart from other diamonds. The intensity of the yellow hue can range from subtle and soft to vivid and intense, thus offering a wide spectrum of options for personal preference. Caused by the presence of nitrogen in the crystal, the distinct color of yellow diamonds adds a touch of uniqueness to the jewelry pieces they adorn.

2. Warmth and Radiance

The color of yellow diamonds exudes a warm and radiant glow. It can create a visually striking effect, especially when paired with the right cut and setting. The warmth and radiance of yellow diamonds can bring a beautiful contrast and depth to jewelry designs, and in this manner enhance their overall aesthetic appeal.

3. Distinctive Alternative to White Diamonds

While colorless diamonds are widely popular, yellow diamonds provide a captivating alternative for those seeking something different and unconventional. Yellow diamonds offer a departure from the traditional white diamonds, thus allowing individuals to express their personal style and preferences in a distinctive way.

4. Rarity and Exclusivity

Decidedly yellow diamonds, better known as ‘fancy yellow,’ remain less rare than colorless diamonds, and the truly exceptional yellows with intense coloration are even more scarce. Their rarity results in their exclusivity, and can make them highly sought after by collectors and connoisseurs.

5. Potential Investment Value

Yellow diamonds, particularly those with intense colors and exceptional characteristics, can hold investment value. High-quality yellow diamonds have demonstrated the potential for appreciation in value over time.

6. Versatile and Stylish

Yellow diamonds can go into a variety of jewelry designs, from engagement ring and pendants to earrings and bracelets. Their versatility allows for creative expression and the ability to tailor jewelry pieces to individual tastes and styles.

7. Positive Symbolisms

Those who wear or gift a yellow diamond can also consider the symbolism associated with the stone as an additional advantage.

a. Positivity and Happiness

The color yellow is often associated with positivity, joy and happiness. Yellow diamonds can symbolize these uplifting qualities, thus making them a meaningful choice for special occasions, or as a symbol of optimism and good fortune.

b. Energy and Vitality

Yellow is a vibrant and energetic color that symbolizes vitality and enthusiasm. Yellow diamonds can thus be a representation of life, energy and the zest for living. Wearing or gifting a yellow diamond can serve as a reminder to embrace vitality and live life to the fullest.

c. Optimism and Sunshine

Yellow is often associated with sunshine, representing warmth, light and positivity. Yellow diamonds can therefore symbolize the bright and optimistic aspects of life, thus bringing a ray of sunshine into one’s world and reflecting an optimistic outlook.

d. Creativity and Inspiration

Yellow is a color often associated with creativity and inspiration. Yellow diamonds can accordingly serve as a symbol of artistic expression and the sparks of imagination. They can inspire creativity, encourage innovative thinking, and symbolize the pursuit of artistic endeavors.

e. Abundance and Wealth

The color yellow is sometimes associated with abundance and wealth. Yellow diamonds can on this account symbolize prosperity and success, hence serving as a reminder of abundance in various aspects of life, including wealth, love and personal achievements.

Along with these symbolic meanings, the unique beauty and characteristics of yellow diamonds make them a captivating choice for those looking for a distinctive and vibrant gemstone.

Yellow Diamond as Defective

Unfortunately for yellow diamonds, the market changed dramatically with the discovery of a vast deposit in South Africa in the late 19th century. The mine in Kimberly revealed a huge deposit of diamonds, including a significant number of yellows. The subsequent massive influx of yellow diamonds into the market had a considerable impact on their rarity and pricing.

The increased availability of yellow diamonds from South Africa significantly expanded the global supply, leading to a shift in the stones’ rarity. With a greater volume of yellow diamonds entering the market, their exclusivity diminished, causing their prices to fall.

The inferiority perceived of yellow diamonds then was particularly true of the faint-yellow variety. The industry considers a faint yellow color in diamonds as a defect, referred to as ‘off color.’

Diamonds are popular for their colorlessness, with the highest value traditionally placed on diamonds that exhibit no visible hue. As such, any discernible yellow tint, even in the faintest tinge, comes across as a deviation from the desired colorless ideal. Thus, the presence of a faint yellow hue in a diamond can significantly impact its perceived beauty and market value.

In fact, the faint color can dilute the diamond’s brightness and fire, therefore giving it a subdued appearance, less vibrant compared to colorless or more vividly colored diamonds. Since this diminishes the diamond’s visual appeal, a yellow tint comes across as a defect, and is accordingly often associated with lower quality.

On this account, consumers and industry professionals often consider stones of a faint yellow color less desirable. Hence, they are generally less valuable, priced lower than their colorless counterparts. This inferiority in value is rooted in both market preferences and the belief that colorless diamonds are the most desirable and rarest.

Fancy Yellow Diamond Prevails

Still, there exists a subset of yellow diamonds that defy the conventional categorization. The fancy yellow diamonds are exceptional gems that boast of a vivid and vibrant yellow color, captivating the eyes and imaginations of collectors and connoisseurs. Hence, while faint-yellow diamonds are inferior in value, fancy yellows remain more valuable than their white counterparts.

In the context of colored diamonds, the term ‘fancy’ refers to stones that exhibit an intense, vivid or strong color saturation. In the case of fancy yellows, the color is decidedly yellow, which stand out prominently. These diamonds display a range of shades within the yellow spectrum, from light yellow to deep canary yellow. Their designation as ‘fancy stones’ distinguishes them from diamonds with a faint or light yellow color, which still belong with the white diamonds.

With their rich and captivating yellow colors, fancy yellow diamonds command attention and evoke a sense of luxury. Moreover, not only are they desirable due to their distinct and vibrant colors; fancy yellow diamonds are also rare. Both their exclusivity and the intensity of their yellow hue make them highly sought after by collectors and connoisseurs. This increased demand consequently drives up their market value. Thus, fancy yellow diamonds tend to fetch higher prices. While white diamonds hold high value, fancy yellows are even more valuable.

Shades of Yellow Diamond

Yellow diamonds come in a vast range of quality, from the off-colored stones to the fancy yellows, both also varying immensely in prices. In response to this wide range of variation, gemological authorities came up with color grades to distinguish yellow diamonds by. These grading systems help differentiate yellow diamonds based on their color intensity, hue and saturation, thus allowing for a more accurate representation of their quality.

Some of the widely recognized color grading systems come from the Gemological Institute of America (GIA). In theirs as in other grading systems, there are subtle nuances that distinguish the yellowish white diamonds from the valuable fancy yellow. Of GIA’s color grades, the following remain within the category of white diamonds:

1. Faint Yellow Diamond

Faint Yellow diamonds exhibit a very subtle yellow color, often appearing almost colorless, just with a hint of yellow.

2. Very Light Yellow Diamond

Very Light Yellow diamonds have a slightly more noticeable yellow color compared to Faint Yellow diamonds. The yellow hue is still relatively light but more easily discernible.

3. Light Yellow Diamond

Light Yellow diamonds display a pale yellow color that is more distinct than Very Light Yellow diamonds. The yellow hue in Light Yellow diamonds is visibly present but still on the lighter end of the yellow color spectrum.

When diamonds are more distinctly yellow, they fall under one of the following categories of fancy yellow diamonds:

4. Fancy Light Yellow Diamond

This grade refers to decidedly yellow diamonds that exhibit a light yellow hue.

5. Fancy Yellow Diamond

The Fancy Yellow grade represents yellow diamonds with a more noticeable and distinct yellow color than the Fancy Light Yellow.

6. Fancy Intense Yellow Diamond

Fancy Intense Yellow diamonds have a deep and vibrant yellow color with strong saturation.

7. Fancy Vivid Yellow Diamond

This is the best color grade for yellow diamonds, representing stones with an exceptionally vivid and saturated yellow color, but not too dark or murky.

8. Fancy Deep Yellow Diamond

Fancy Deep Yellow diamonds feature a deeper yellow color than Fancy Vivid Yellow diamonds, but are darker too and thus less vibrant.

9. Fancy Dark Yellow Diamond

Fancy Dark Yellow diamonds have a dark yellow hue approaching brown.

Supremacy of Canary Yellow Diamond

Of the different fancy yellow diamonds, those of an intense or of vivid yellow color go by the name ‘canary diamonds.’ Canary diamonds typically fall within the Fancy Intense Yellow and Fancy Vivid Yellow color grades. These diamonds exhibit a bright, vibrant and rich yellow hue that resembles the color of a canary bird, hence the name ‘canary diamonds.’ Their exceptional color and attractiveness make them highly sought after. Canary diamonds are accordingly among the most expensive of diamonds.

Endurance of Yellow Diamond

Despite the increased supply and subsequent decrease in prices of yellow diamonds, their allure endured, particularly in their intense and vivid varieties. While the discovery of the South African deposit had an undeniable negative implication on their rarity, yellow diamonds remain valued for the remarkable touch of color they bring to jewelry pieces. The unique beauty and warm radiance of these gemstones continued to captivate jewelry enthusiasts. Hence, their distinct color remained highly sought after.

Indeed, while the more common occurrence of yellow diamonds has made them more accessible, this did not diminish their inherent beauty and desirability. Also, while a hint of yellow renders diamonds flawed and less valuable, the fancy yellow diamonds remain highly coveted and rather expensive. Like the Florentine Diamond of the old world, fancy yellow diamonds remind us that not all yellow diamonds are defective. On the contrary, some rare specimens possess exceptional beauty and desirability that elevate them to prominent ranks among diamonds.

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The author wrote this article as he conducted research for a book about diamonds. ‘Diamond, its Magic and History’ is still in progress and will take more time to finish. Pending the book’s release, readers can explore the author’s other publication.

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Jomar Pandan

Jomar ‘Deomar’ Pandan is the author of Power Birthstone. He’s on the fourth draft of a high-fantasy novel, Cybelym, and the first of a historical fiction, Gem Faerie. He hopes to release a nonfiction book about diamond soon. Follow him for updates. Or see his jewelry and designs.

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