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Diamonds have been discovered in all colours of the rainbow spectrum however in this context, we are referring to the amount by which the diamond’s body colour deviates from the clearest/whitest possible colour.
Entirely colourless diamonds are supremely rare and precious. A diamond acts as a prism that separates light into a spectrum of colours and reflecting it as vivacious flashes, called fire. With colourless diamonds, all the colours of the rainbow are reflected back to your eye. Relative to this, the less colour there is in a diamond, the more colourful these flashes of fire shall be.
During formation of the diamond out of primarily carbon, certain other chemicals may have been incorporated into the atomic structure, causing variances in colour. The result is an added tinge in transparency, usually a degree of brown or a yellow colour. The trace elements responsible are evidently extremely small as they are measured in parts per million (ppm).
A non-commercial called the Gemological Institue of America has created a universal, standard chart which grades diamonds according to their deviation in colour from pure white/clear. When comparing diamonds as regards colour, most consumers are incapable of distinguishing the gemstones, unless they are at least two or three colour grades apart. To rate the colour accurately, the exercise needs to be performed by a specialist under ideal laboratory conditions.
Below is an illustration of how diamond colour is graded according to the GIA chart.
(D-F) Colourless - Diamond is absolutely transparent. No hint of colour to the eye in colour grading or when mounted in setting.
(G-J) Slight Colour - Little colour tint apparent during grading. Stone appears colourless when mounted in setting.
(K-M) Faint Yellow - Yellow/grayish colour tint is obvious during grading. Tint in colour is apparent when mounted in setting.
(N-Z) Light Yellow - Obvious yellow/grayish colour.
(Z+) Fancy - Bright, bold colour- usually blue, pink or yellow.
It is relatively simplistic to assume that in relation to colour, the worth of the diamond decreases as it moves down the grades from D. This is true to an extent although fancy rings can be hugely expense due to their absolute rarity. They can be considered as occurring from accidents of nature and highly treasured in many shades of blue, green, amber, red, or even pink.
