Don’t be put off by the foreword and acknowledgments and even the first chapter when you dip into American Cut: The First 100 Years. The author, Al Gilbertson, G.G., meanders along a crooked path, taking numerous side trips before he finally arrives at the heart of the matter: how the cut that came to be known as the ideal brilliant evolved. There is a story in here that was worth telling — it is the very essence of the diamond industry as we know it today. Gilbertson has done a heroic job of research, but he has nearly buried himself, and his readers, under a great deal of extraneous information that is distracting and sometimes not very interesting.
The role of Marcel Tolkowsky, often referred to as the father of the modern 58-facet diamond cut, was the jumping off point for Gilbertson. The book grew out of his discovery that in Tolkowsky’s written work, “There was no solid discussion that explained why certain facets were placed where, and no real explanation of their angles.” He goes on to say, “I soon realized that, even though the jewelry industry relied heavily on Tolkowsky’s theories, few jewelry professionals had ever actually read his book.”
Gilbertson then goes back in time to the roots of what he calls the “American Cut,” placing Tolkowsky in the context of the developments taking place during that period. Gilbertson has no ax to grind. He wants to clear the air, establish the truth and help his readers — the diamond trade — understand how the modern cut evolved. However, in giving every bit of research exactly the same weight, he makes it very difficult for those readers to sort out the principal players from those in minor roles.
Much of the remarkable detail came from two bound volumes of business letters from Henry Morse that were donated to the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) library by J. & S.S. De Young, Inc.
Gilbertson begins with the “Old World Roots of the American Cut,” at least half of which is text taken from an 1874 source about Coster’s Diamond Cutting Works in Amsterdam. Here, as throughout the book, the reproduction of illustrations and engravings is superb, and worth the price of the book.
The author addresses the origins of the term “brilliant,” giving examples of its use, dating back to 1564 in France. But he adds the puzzling sentence, “Brilliant describes the difference between rose cut, table cut and other faceting styles.” This seems to contradict the later description that “…the brilliant form — whether square or round — had 58 facets.”
BRINGING HISTORY TO LIFE
Gilbertson is at his best when he presents material from a certain period and then shows how it was debated and discussed at that time. Here, his research shines, and lets us eavesdrop on the ideas being debated. The quotes and illustrations make these sections very lively and allow the reader to step back in time as a witness from the future. The author seems to have been present at the very beginning, quoting an assayer in Spain in 1572. It is a pleasure to see a tool used around 1750, along with line drawings from that time, illustrating the facets of a cut diamond.
For those who want to get right to the heart of the matter, the beginning of the story that actually illustrates the title of this book can be found in Chapter 2. The title of the chapter, “Mechanization, Ingenuity and Henry Dutton Morse,” sucks the drama out of the story. The star of the book is Henry Morse. He, more than any other figure in this history, is responsible for today’s standards in diamond polishing.
Morse’s adventures in the diamond cutting world, his theories and his efforts to create the best stones in America — rather than in Europe — are detailed. It is thrilling to come upon the name of Simon De Young, of Boston, and realize that we have met the ancestor of today’s J. & S.S. De Young. Much of this section of the book deals with Morse’s battles with his imported Dutch cutters, who are portrayed as completely resistant to the changes Morse is proposing.
Given the stunning amount of detail in the book, one can only wish Gilbertson had added just a little bit more in one section of this chapter. When Morse meets an importer named Benjamin Pray, the author gives us the throwaway comment that “Pray was already involved in the import of various African goods when he heard about the discovery of diamond fields there; he checked with his sources and determined it was a worthwhile venture.” Millions of words have been written elsewhere about South Africa and the discovery of diamonds, but this is a remarkable connection and just cries out for a little more.
Morse was not just a dedicated cutter and perfectionist. He seems to have been at the heart of the entire industry of the time. A sidebar listing his clients reads like a “Who’s Who” of retailers, including names that would be familiar to anyone in the business today: Bailey, Banks & Biddle; Black, Starr and Frost; J.E. Caldwell; Krementz; Shreve, Crump & Low and Tiffany & Co.
There is a delightful description of Tiffany and De Beers sharing a booth at the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair. Here, the archives of the Jewelers’ Circular and Horological Review, later to become Jewelers’ Circular-Weekly and eventually today’s JCK, provide the remarkable details. An article describes the antics of a Zulu, supposedly standing 6 feet 7 inches high — Zulus are of average height — who was there to draw visitors to the Cape of Good Hope exhibit in the Mines and Mining building. There, they could view a working model of a diamond mine’s processing plant. At the Tiffany booth itself, visitors could view the cutting and polishing process.
THE GIA’S ROLEThe early role of the GIA is described in the book in detail. Although a GIA employee, and member of the team that developed the cut grading system introduced in 2006, Gilbertson doesn’t flinch from reporting on Robert Shipley’s lack of diamond cutting knowledge and its importance in the look of the diamonds he was selling. Shipley, to his credit, starts all over again and by 1931 is instrumental in the founding of the GIA.
Near the end of the book, Gilbertson seems to lose his way and by Chapter 6, he is devoting his energies to describing the role of N.W. Ayer in advertising diamonds to the public around World War II. This is followed by a discussion of the 4Cs and the introduction of the diamond grading system by the GIA in 1953
Given the dramatic and manifold diamond cuts that have marked the period since 1960, it is unfortunate that Gilbertson simply mashes it all together in an “Epilogue” entitled “Bringing it to the Present.” A wholly extraneous section on “How to choose the best” diamond, addressed to the consumer, has no place in a book clearly written for the diamond trade.
This reviewer would like to see Gilbertson do a second volume on American cut, addressing the developments of the last 50 years in diamond cutting, the role GIA has played in setting standards and the multiplicity of diamond cuts.
Complaints aside, however, this is a stunningly researched book, complete with copious — and often fascinating — footnotes, a bibliography that could provide fodder for a master’s thesis, and a full index.
Article from the Rapaport Magazine - February 2008. To subscribe click here.