The Carat Weight
The term Carat derived from an ancient method of fine weighing used in the medieval market places. If you were trading in any precious commodity that required very fine measurements of weight, you would have used The Carob Seed.
These seeds originate from the Carob Tree and grow like Runner Beans. Their unique aspect was there uniformity in weight and this made them the ideal unit of weight for the ancient gem traders. This weight (one carob seed) was later standardized to be 1 Carat or 1/5th of a gram, hence a five carat diamond equals 1 gram and 155.51 carats equal one ounce.
The Carob Tree highlighted with a setting sun
Diamond Carat Weight
Diamond weight is measured in carats; this small unit of measurement is equal to 200 milligrams. Each carat is divided into 100 points in the same way as pence in the pound. Therefore, I would refer to a half-carat Diamond as a “50-pointer” or “50-points” A .75 carat diamond is the same as a 75-point diamond or a 3/4 carat stone.
Carat weight is the easiest of the 4 C’s for me to determine, if the Diamond is loose (un-mounted) all I require to do is weight it. If on many occasions I am required to estimate the weight of a Diamond, maybe mounted in a Ring or some other setting, I can take accurate measurements of any cut shape and work out with very reasonable accuracy the Diamond weight.
Diamonds of equal size may vary widely in value and brilliance. Two diamonds of equal carat weight might vary greatly in value depending upon their cut, colour and clarity. Alternately one diamond may appear larger than the other, although they actually weigh the same.
While larger diamonds are highly prized and are rare, they generally have a greater value per carat. For example, the price of a two-carat stone will be several times higher than four 50-pointers of equal quality.
We have to be careful here as a statement that says ‘A large Diamond will be more valuable than smaller Diamond’ is quite simply untrue, we have to take into account the contributing factors of the other 3C’s, It is quite possible to have a 50-pointer with a higher value than a Diamond weighing two-carats.
Carat is often confused with size even though it is actually a measure of weight. The cut of a diamond can make it appear much larger or smaller than its actual weight. One carat weighs 200 milligrams. As the relative weight of a diamond increases, so does it’s per carat cost. It is for this reason that a 1-carat (ct) diamond may cost 5 times more than a half-carat diamond. What carat diamond should you buy? It is usually a matter of personal taste. For engagement rings, many people seek diamonds that are approximately 1ct in weight. Obviously budget plays a large part in the decision. See also the discussion about budget.
The Diamond Size Grid
