Asscher cut and square emerald cut diamond rings

An Asscher Cut diamond is a modified version of the Emerald Cut. It is a square, or almost square, has a small table, deep pavilion and large step facets. Asscher cuts have high levels of symmettry, giving the impression of great depth. They are cut to resemble an octagon, and were very popular in the Art Deco period, which emphasised geometric design and symmetry. They draw the eye in, in a manner that is entrancing and hypnotic.

The cut was developed by Joseph Asscher, who was commissioned by the royal family to cut the world's largest diamond, the Cullinan diamond.

Sometimes the term Asscher is used to describe any square emerald cut, but if you compare the photographs above and below, you will notice the wide beveled corners of the Asscher cut, compared to the narrower corners of the square emerald cut.

The top photograph shows a 3 carat D colour Asscher cut diamond ring, from our Dublin jewellery shop. (The diamond is a VS clarity, though some dust shows up in the photograph, which was taken with a microscope!). The bottom photograph shows a 2 carat F colour emerald cut diamond ring. Both are set in platinum, and both have diamond shoulders. The Asscher cut, however, is much more octahedral, whereas the emerald cut is primarily square.

The Asscher dates from about 1920, and was remounted in the 1960s.

Asscher cuts were very rare until 2001, when the Royal Asscher Company relaunched the cut. It received a significant boost in popularity and awareness when Sarah Jessica Parker's character in Sex and the City wore one. In real life, Kate Hudson and Reese Witherspoon both own Asscher cut diamond rings.

Elizabeth Taylor said of Asscher Cuts:

"When I look into it, the deep Asscher cuts — which are so complete and so ravishing — are like steps that lead into eternity and beyond. My ring gives me the strangest feeling for beauty. With its sparks of red and white and blue and purple, and on and on, it sort of hums with its own beatific life. (it says) I want to share my chemistry— my magic — with you."