A pedigree holds importance in life. Think about it, if you have a dog and you want to show them they have to be AKC registered. Not CKC registered, but AKC. And, if you live in the United States if you have a degree from an Ivy League school, you are almost assured a top job; it’s your pedigree.
When you buy a diamond, it also has a pedigree. I am going to get into the actual pedigree’s of diamonds later, or what I like to call the Birth Certificate’s of your diamonds, but for now, let’s talk about the different places that produce a diamond pedigree.
Just like dog clubs and colleges, diamonds have associations or societies that grade diamonds. Why does this matter? Because according to the grade your diamond gets from each of these associations, or the diamond pedigree it has, this determines the worth of your diamond. The higher the pedigree, the more your rock is worth.
The Diamond Pedigree Firms In a Very Particular Order
The GIA is the Blue Blood of all the pedigree’s your diamond can have. In fact, the GIA has set the industry standard for determining the DNA of your diamond. If your diamond has a birth certificate from the GIA, you not only have a very healthy diamond, but one that will probably go to Harvard or Yale.
It will also live on the best street on the best block and in the best house. 🙂
What makes the GIA great is not just the standards that they have set, but the fact that they are non-profit. This means that no one runs them, which means that the jeweler you bought your diamond from can’t run them either. So, when the GIA says your diamond is what it is, you can bet your Grandma’s pearl necklace, that is exactly what it is.
The AGS runs a close second to the GIA in the diamond pedigree world. They are also non-profit, so you can expect that you are getting what you are told.
Here is where the differences lie between the GIA and the AGS:
Other than the initials, the AGS does not grade as harshly on color, but it does on Cut and Clarity.
So, if your diamond has a birth certificate from the AGS, you can be assured that 95% of the DNA is going to be spot on, but the color might be iffy. That is certainly not bad odds, and definitely still worth the pedigree.
Your diamond will go to Brown or University of Chicago and will still live in a nice house on a nice street in a very nice neighborhood.
The HRD is a European pedigree, so it can be a bit *ahem* pretentious. You may not have heard of them, and if not don’t worry you aren’t alone. They have claimed to be the GIA of Europe and frankly, their adoption rate in the United States hasn’t caught on very quickly.
There are two reasons for this:
- They are a for-profit entity, so they are actually being run by someone and can be paid to be told what to say.
- The second is that when it comes to the color grade, they usually are not as accurate as GIA or AGS
The last two, which are the IGI and the EGL are nothing to brag about, so if you do have those pedigrees, I wouldn’t be flaunting them around.
You are at community college and not even a diamond in the rough.
In fact, chances are that you are a diamond that is rougher than what IGI and EGL claim!
Each of these two institutions put out pedigrees that are from paid-for institutions. The EGL is basically an adoption franchise, so anyone can have one. Basically, you can be assured that if you have a birth certificate from either the EGL or the IGI that your baby is going to 2 to 3 grades lower than what you expect, which means you will save lots on a graduation gift in the long run! So…perhaps there is a bright side after all.
The Bottom Dollar Line
Here is the bottom line. If your diamond does not have a pedigree from any of these institutions, and not every diamond does have one, or if your diamond has one from one that you don’t like, but you think it could get a better grade from another institution, then pay the bottom dollar and send in your money to have a DNA test and get a new birth certificate.
