4C is a universal method used to identify any diamond and refers to the initials “C” of the four main factors used in grading.
Carat
Color
Clarity
Cut
Carat
The weight of a diamond is measured in carats. One carat is equal to 0.2 grams. IDL uses high-precision electronic scales to measure the weight of diamonds.
Color
The color of a diamond is determined by comparing it with guide stones under 6500K diffused light, ranging from colorless to slightly yellow (D to Z). Since some diamonds react to UV light, there is also a grading scale for fluorescence, which is determined as zero, light, medium and high.
Clarity
All diamonds carry traces of their development history, which are tiny inclusions within the diamonds in the gemstone class. The clarity scale reflects the number, size and location of these traces when examined with a 10x magnification. Diamonds with no visible traces are of excellent quality. The best and rarest level of clarity is called Clear with a Magnification, which means that there are no visible traces in the diamond when examined with a 10x magnification.
Cut
The cut grade is an assessment of a diamond’s interaction with light. A poorly cut diamond does not interact with light as it should. A flawless cut is more about sparkle, brilliance and life. A diamond’s cut is divided into three grades: Proportion, Polish and Symmetry. Each of these grades is assessed by four parameters: Excellent, Very Good, Good and Fair.