Famous and Inspiring Diamond Cutters

Marcel Tolkowsky was Kaplan's cousin. He observed Kaplan's work from a young age. A mathematician, he perfected Kaplan's method of cutting diamonds and created a formula for producing "ideal cut diamonds." Marcel's ideal cut diamonds were known to exhibit 58 facets, 33 on the crown and 25 on the pavilion. When Kaplan's business was at its peak, and they could not find enough skilled laborers in the U.S., they brought in workers from Puerto Rico. This formula was developed to teach them how to cut diamonds the Kaplan way. The round brilliant diamond cut made famous by Marcel is said to have revolutionized the industry, paving the way for machine-cut diamonds that relied on his formula. Marcel completed a Ph.D. thesis on how various cuts maximize diamond reflection. He perfected the art of cutting diamonds to such an extent that there was a formula suitable for every type of diamond. He was a long-time member of the Diamond Dealers Club of America and the Diamond Trading and Precious Stones Association.

Kaplan is best known for creating 13 pieces from the Jonker diamond. Lazare Kaplan was born in Russia and raised in Belgium. He entered his family business at the age of 13, becoming an apprentice in his uncle's factory, which was then famous for cutting diamonds. By 20, he had mastered the art of creating excellent cuts from irregular diamonds. He started his own business and quickly gained fame, catering to several royals. His life took a significant turn when Germany captured Belgium. Fortunately, Kaplan and his family were in the U.S. at that time. Kaplan was forced to rebuild his life in Manhattan, and he regained his former glory in a short period.

His greatest skills were his imagination, a relentless mind that never ceased experimenting, and excellent persuasion abilities, often convincing diamond owners to compromise on the extra lost carats for the sake of great design. He became quite famous for his "Oval Elegance" cut. Kaplan's business prospered in the U.S. until the 1929 stock market crash. He was left to rebuild his life from scratch for the second time. He borrowed $300 from his son Leo's savings and resumed his business. He rose to unmatched fame when he was commissioned to cut the Jonker diamond. Kaplan narrowly avoided a major cut that could have ruined the diamond. He cut the large Jonker diamond into stunning pieces suitable for setting in jewelry.

Joseph Asscher became famous for cutting the Cullinan diamond. The Cullinan diamond, the largest diamond in the world, was cut into several parts that decorate the crown jewels of the English aristocracy. Legend says Asscher attempted to cut the Cullinan before a vast mob, but he failed in the attempt as the blade broke. Later, he created amazing cleavages when he worked in solitude with just the notary monitoring him. Joseph and his brother Abraham founded the Asscher Diamond Company together. They created their famous "Asscher Cut" in 1902. Like most great European businessmen who lived in the first five decades of this century, the Asscher family was torn apart during World War II. Only ten of the family members survived, and they strived hard to recreate the company in an industry with visibly no future. Today, the "Royal Asscher Diamond Company" is one of the greatest names in the industry. The Asscher cut reveals layers of narrower steps and great depth that remain matchless in the diamond industry.

The nephew of Marcel Talokowsky, Gabriel S. Gabi, shortly known as Gabi Talkowsky, was born in 1939. Gabi Tolkowsky is known for cutting the famous Centenary Diamond. He became an advisor in the De Beers group. He was assigned to cut the Golden Jubilee Diamond, which was presented to the King of Thailand. Gabi became very famous for creating flower-cut diamonds, which are simple yet quite elegant. The crown jewel of Gabi's cuts is the Gabrielle diamonds. Renowned as the world's first triple-brilliant cut diamond, this round cut consists of 105 facets, sparkling from all angles and taking the diamond cut to a new level. His work rightly earned him the name "father of the modern round brilliant diamond cut." The De Beers group registered several patents for the exclusive designs he created for them. 

Brian Gavin, who hails from South Africa, is a fifth-generation diamond cutter. He created the perfect hearts and arrows diamond cut in 1997. Brian's father, Ben Gavin, was a master diamond cutter, too. Brian started learning the trade from a very young age. Brian is known to work with his diamonds for hours at a time. In addition to creating the perfect hearts and arrow cuts, he developed a grading system to analyze the heart and diamond cuts made by other artists. His grading system has been widely adopted in the diamond industry since 2004 and is considered the standard for heart and arrow cuts. This cut brings out the shine and fiery nature of round cut diamonds like no other cut invented previously. It has become a great alternative to the traditional hearts-on-fire diamond cut. It is now the most preferred cut for diamond marriage rings and studs.

Learn more about his company and read our review on Brain Gavin Diamonds.

Contribution by F. Barends, The Hague/Holland, October 2015.

Between 1813 and 1845, the Amsterdam diamond industry changed from a house industry to a factory industry. Next to the firm of Coster in 1845, all other producers joined the "Diamant Slijperij Maatschappij," a company with two factories (of about 400 mills each), where participants could hire a mill (in 1896, there were about 6,500 mills in Amsterdam). After a while, and certainly during the Cape period (1871 - 1876), new companies were formed. Names such as Boas, Bottenheim, Friedmann & Co., and others became famous in this early period. Around 1875, Jacques Samuel Metz (1847 – 1901) and his brother-in-law Levy Barent Citroen entered the business of cleaving and cutting diamonds. In 1881, they built a new, highly sophisticated factory at Rapenburgerstraat 53-61 in Amsterdam (168 mills). Many of the large stones found before 1900 were cleaved and cut in this factory. Of course, it is unknown what was found worldwide and who processed them. But in this factory, the largest stones of those years were cut: the Imperial (1884, also named the Victoria, the Jacob, or the Great White, cut 184.5 carats), the Jubilee (1896, also named the – President Reyts, cut 245.35 carats), a rough 400-carat yellow stone (probably the De Beers, cut 234.5 carats), and stones of 138, 109.25, 133, 273 carats, and many more. Het Weekblad van de ANDB (the weekly of the Dutch Diamond Workers Association) remarked in 1907, on the 70th birthday of the cutter, "some more or less, it does not matter, because it is clear that this cutter will be the only person who cut such a huge amount of large stones." The name of the cutter who did all this work was Moses Barend Barends (1837 – 1911). After he stopped working (around 1900) and after the death of Jacq. Metz (1901), the firm still existed for some years but never flourished again. After this period, the Assher firm rose from hiring a part of the Bottenheim factory to becoming owners of a large and modern factory, where many of their period's important stones were processed. Inevitably, much of the Amsterdam diamond activities were moved to Antwerp, probably because of a (for the producers) better labor climate. Around 1920, Antwerp outnumbered Amsterdam in the number of diamond workers and mills.