GIA DIAMOND ESSENTIALS FINAL 2026
REVISION NOTES AND STRUCTURED
GEMOLOGY OVERVIEW GUIDE
◉ Thermal shock. Answer: Damages caused by sudden, extreme
temperature changes
◉ Toughness. Answer: How well a gemstone resists breaking and
chipping
◉ Value factors. Answer: Features used to judge the quality and
value of all gemstones
◉ Carbon. Answer: The mineral diamonds are primarily composed
of
◉ Crown, pavilion, and girdle. Answer: The three major parts of a
diamond
◉ A ton of rock. Answer: What a mine must process to recover a half
carat of diamond
,◉ Brilliant cut. Answer: Cutting style with triangular or kite-shaped
facets that radiate from the center toward the girdle
◉ Blemishes. Answer: Clarity characteristics confined to the surface
of a polished diamond
◉ Nearly colourless to a very light yellow, light brown, or light grey.
Answer: Most diamonds used in jewellery
◉ Diamond. Answer: Most durable gemstone. Also expensive due to
rarity and how costly it is to mine
◉ Baguette. Answer: A small, four-sided step cut that's rectangular,
square, or tapered
◉ Branded cut. Answer: Cutting style that's developed, named and
promoted by a specific manufacturer
◉ Brightness. Answer: The effect of all the diamond's internal and
external reflections of white light
◉ Clarity characteristics. Answer: The collective term for inclusions
and blemishes
, ◉ Apparent clarity. Answer: A term used to describe the effects of
treatments on the visual appeal of a gemstone
◉ Binocular microscope. Answer: A tabletop magnifier with two
eyepieces
◉ Bruting. Answer: Forming the basic face-up outline of a round or
rounded-shape diamond to prepare it for faceting
◉ Feather. Answer: A collective term for diamond cleavages and
fractures
◉ Fracture filling. Answer: Treatment that involves injecting a
molten glass substance into a diamond's surface-reaching feathers
or laser drill-holes, affecting it's apparent clarity
◉ Laser drilling. Answer: Treatment that involves using a
concentrated beam of laser light to reach a diamond's dark
inclusions and to disguise or eliminate them
◉ Loupe. Answer: A small, portable magnifying lens used for
examining gemstones
REVISION NOTES AND STRUCTURED
GEMOLOGY OVERVIEW GUIDE
◉ Thermal shock. Answer: Damages caused by sudden, extreme
temperature changes
◉ Toughness. Answer: How well a gemstone resists breaking and
chipping
◉ Value factors. Answer: Features used to judge the quality and
value of all gemstones
◉ Carbon. Answer: The mineral diamonds are primarily composed
of
◉ Crown, pavilion, and girdle. Answer: The three major parts of a
diamond
◉ A ton of rock. Answer: What a mine must process to recover a half
carat of diamond
,◉ Brilliant cut. Answer: Cutting style with triangular or kite-shaped
facets that radiate from the center toward the girdle
◉ Blemishes. Answer: Clarity characteristics confined to the surface
of a polished diamond
◉ Nearly colourless to a very light yellow, light brown, or light grey.
Answer: Most diamonds used in jewellery
◉ Diamond. Answer: Most durable gemstone. Also expensive due to
rarity and how costly it is to mine
◉ Baguette. Answer: A small, four-sided step cut that's rectangular,
square, or tapered
◉ Branded cut. Answer: Cutting style that's developed, named and
promoted by a specific manufacturer
◉ Brightness. Answer: The effect of all the diamond's internal and
external reflections of white light
◉ Clarity characteristics. Answer: The collective term for inclusions
and blemishes
, ◉ Apparent clarity. Answer: A term used to describe the effects of
treatments on the visual appeal of a gemstone
◉ Binocular microscope. Answer: A tabletop magnifier with two
eyepieces
◉ Bruting. Answer: Forming the basic face-up outline of a round or
rounded-shape diamond to prepare it for faceting
◉ Feather. Answer: A collective term for diamond cleavages and
fractures
◉ Fracture filling. Answer: Treatment that involves injecting a
molten glass substance into a diamond's surface-reaching feathers
or laser drill-holes, affecting it's apparent clarity
◉ Laser drilling. Answer: Treatment that involves using a
concentrated beam of laser light to reach a diamond's dark
inclusions and to disguise or eliminate them
◉ Loupe. Answer: A small, portable magnifying lens used for
examining gemstones
