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The term ‘Carat’ was derived from the Carob seed. Such seeds were used in scale balances of ancient markets due to their remarkable consistence in both weight and size.
It is important that the Carat is not confused with ‘Karat’, the term used to describe the purity of gold. A blatant difference is that the Carat is a measure of weight and not a percentage like the Karat.
One carat (ct.) is equal to 200 milligrams (1/5 gram). To enlighten a more illustrative context, a 5ct. diamond would be considered as enormous and undoubtedly extremely expensive, yet still it only weighs just one gram. Additionally, jewelers further evaluate a diamond’s carat weight using a sensitive metric scale that measures in points. It attributes 100 points to one carat. Consequently, a ¼ carat diamond may also be referred to as a 25 point diamond.
Of the four features that govern the worth of a diamond, the carat weight of the stone is perhaps the most important or valued. Diamonds over one carat in size are progressively becoming a rarity and hence, generally speaking the larger the diamond, the higher the price despite potential conditions within the other features, clarity, cut and colour. This is however not to say that the others are not of importance, as it is a combination of a reasonable standard in all that constitutes a fine diamond.
