Introduction: Colored Diamonds

The colorless diamond color scale ranks from letter D to Z. However, near the area where the colorless diamond scale ends, the fancy color diamond scale begins. Diamonds in the X-Y-Z range of the colorless scale contain very noticeable yellow or brown traces. This is the beginning of the Fancy Yellow and Fancy Brown color scale.

Fancy Yellow diamonds (also known as Canary diamonds) and Fancy Brown diamonds (known as Cognac or Champagne diamonds) are the only colored diamonds that arise from the scale of colorless.

The first 4 stones on the left are V-X-Y-Z, continuing with Fancy Light Yellow, Fancy Yellow, Fancy Intense Yellow, Fancy Vivid Yellow and Fancy Deep Yellow.

Color origin:

The unique colors in diamonds are caused by different minerals that become part of its constituent elements. Depending on the origin of the stones, where they are from, there is a higher probability that certain minerals are present and therefore increases the probability that specific colors will also appear.

Unlike Yellow diamonds, in which the color comes from large amounts of Nitrogen; or the Blue that is caused by Boron; or Violet or Purple from large amounts of Nitrogen; or Greens who have been exposed to atomic radiation or radioactivity; the cause in Pink diamonds is still a mystery.

Types of classifications:

Type I: they are the most common; they represent 98% of all natural diamonds and contain detectable traces of Nitrogen.

Type Ia: they contain groups of Nitrogen atoms in the entire crystal structure of the stone. They tend to emit a yellowish hue.

Type Ib: these diamonds also contain Nitrogen atoms, but unlike Type Ia, the atoms are not in groups but are isolated. These stones are 0.1% of the total and can emit tones: deep yellow, orange, brown and even green.

Type IIa: they are very rare and valuable diamonds. They do not contain Nitrogen atoms in their crystalline structure. “White” stones of this type are exceptionally colorless, and Fancy stones can come in Brown, Purple, or Pink. They are 1% to 2% of all diamonds.

Type IIb: they contain traces of Boron in their structure and, as a result, they often emit a gray or blue hue. They make up only 0.1% of all diamonds. They are very exceptional pieces.