BUYING A DIAMOND.

Shannon News, 21 July 1925, Page 4

BUYING A DIAMOND.

STONE WORTH £45,000

CUTTER’S CARE OF HIS EYES

Mr. de Haan, a well-known diamond cutter, went to London recently, and remained in semi-darkness for a whole day in order to keep his eyes in perfect condition preparatory to buying a raw diamond for £45,000. He left his hotel as soon as the deal was completed, and told an interviewer the story of the .transaction.

“There are no cutters of large diamonds in England,” said Mr. de Haan. “There are only three or four cutterbuyers of very large stones in the world. We come to London every time there is a shipment from the Transvaal and pick out the best stones, but this work is so difficult that we have to keep in semi-darkness for many hours before.

“The actual sale only takes a few minutes, but even when we have passed a stone as being flawless there is a very grave risk that we may discover some flaw in it later. I have sent, the £45,000 diamond back' to Paris, where I shall spend three weeks examining it every day in new light before deciding how to cut it. Of course it would be Impossible to sell such a huge stone even when cut to any one person. “Diamonds are being worn in France a hundred times as much today as three years ago. There is a regular boom for them, and I am hardly able to buy sufficient to cope with the demand. Of course, the prices are very high. The diamond has, however, quite taken the place of the pearl for the time being.” Mr. de Haan considers that English retail jewellers no longer count in the world’s market.

“English jewellers complain that they are lacking in business," he said. "But they are old-fashioned. When Englishmen want to buy old jewellery they go to Paris or Amsterdam, where jewellers are making fortunes. The only reason I can suggest for the brisk jewellery trade in Paris and the dead state of affairs in England is that English jewellers do not study conditions sufficiently.” Mr. de Haan said that it would take him several months to cut this monster diamond up. “A single slip may mean thousands of pounds loss,” he explained. “That is the reason why there are so few diamond cutters In the world.

“America and England buy all their diamonds cut from Amsterdam or Paris, for the gift of an expert diamond cutter is handed down from father to son for Tong generations, and cannot be acquired under years of painful experience. Few people also are willing to run the risks entailed in the buying of monster stones.”