How to view the hearts patterns in Hearts and Arrows diamonds
“I’m not entirely ready to pull the trigger, so you can respond via blog post if you’d like because I’m sure that other people might wonder the same thing, but how can I show my girlfriend the hearts pattern in something like this 1.394 carat, I-color, SI-2 clarity, Brian Gavin Signature Hearts and Arrows round diamond? Is it something that can be seen with the naked eye? Why are some hearts and arrows patterns red, others are blue, and others are purple? Does this have any effect upon how the diamond looks? And what are the smudge marks that I see in the heart located at five o’clock?”
Components of a Hearts and Arrows scope:
People often think that Brian Gavin Signature Hearts and Arrows diamonds are red, because we use a red filter to diffuse and color the light that reflects off of the diamond, however our diamonds face-up white in color when being viewed under normal circumstances. The hearts and arrows scope pictured to the left features a red filament that filters the light and causes the diamond to look red, but some scopes contain filters that are blue, gold, red, or purple. Research has shown that the color red provides the harshest and most accurate assessment of a hearts and arrows pattern, so we use red.
The way that a hearts and arrows scope works is by filtering the light that enters the side of the diamond, by way of the red filter in this example. Then the white disk that is located in the middle of the scope reflects off of the facets of the diamond, turning certain sections white, and this is what you see as a white pattern of hearts and arrows.
A 3x-magnifying lens is located in the middle of the white disk that is positioned in the middle of the hearts and arrows viewer, the magnifying lens makes it possible for us to view the hearts pattern clearly; and it also makes it possible to see some of the inclusions within the diamond, which is why inclusions are sometimes visible within the hearts pattern, such as the smudge mark that you refer to in the heart that is pictured in the relative five o’clock position of this 1.394 carat, I-color, SI-2 clarity, Brian Gavin Signature Hearts and Arrows round diamond.
How to use a Hearts and Arrows Scope:
Learning how to use a hearts and arrows scope is relatively easy, to view the hearts pattern you simply place the diamond down on the base of the scope, so that the table facet is centered in the middle of the base, then position the scope over the base, and look through the hole located in the middle of the white base located at the top of the scope; you will be able to see a pattern of eight hearts, as pictured above at the beginning of this article.
The other side of the hearts and arrows scope base has a small indentation in it, which is designed to hold the culet of the diamond in-place, so that the diamond may be viewed with the table side facing upwards, this will enable you to view the arrows pattern if you center the scope over the base, and then look down through the hole in the center of the top white disk.
Note that patterns of hearts and arrows are only visible in diamonds which are unmounted, and that not all round ideal cut diamonds, or those graded as GIA Excellent or AGS Ideal-0 will exhibit crisp and complete patterns of hearts and arrows diamonds, which is why we provide photographs of every Brian Gavin Signature Hearts and Arrows diamond, it is the only way to accurately judge the degree of optical precision.
