Origin of name
The name Paragon is the name given by the owners of the
diamond, the world renowned Graff Diamonds of London. The color, clarity,
cut and brilliance of this diamond are extraordinary, and worthy of
the name appropriately chosen for this unique diamond. Indeed the Paragon
Diamond is a "model of excellence" in the fascinating world of diamonds.
Characteristics of the
diamond
The Paragon diamond is a 137.82-carat, D-color, flawless
(IF) diamond with a unique 7-sided cut (kite).
The diamond is a type IIa diamond, being a D-color
diamond. These diamonds are Nitrogen free or contain undetectable quantities
of Nitrogen. They are said to be chemically pure. The crystals of these
diamonds are also free of any plastic deformations. They are said to be
structurally perfect. Being chemically pure and structurally perfect, these
diamonds are absolutely colorless and are known as top-color or D-color
diamonds.
The Paragon diamond is perhaps the 10th largest D-color
faceted diamond in the world. (Please refer to the list of D-color diamonds
under Premier Rose Diamond).
History
The early history of the diamond such as the
country of origin, mine of origin, the date of discovery, the circumstances
surrounding the discovery etc. are all unknown, but the present owners of
the diamond are the world renowned diamond and jewelry dealers and
manufacturers, the Graff Diamond Company of London. The diamond was cut and
polished by the same company in one of their ultra modern, state-of-the-art
diamond cutting factories.
The finished diamond has been set as a pendant in a
unique piece of jewelry, a necklace, also created by the Graff Diamond
Company, in one of their many workshops turning out handcrafted jewelry.
This extraordinary necklace, which is a jewelry masterpiece, also includes
several smaller diamonds of different colors such as fancy intense blue,
yellow and pink. The necklace has a total diamond carat weight of 190.27
carats.
House of Graff, a leader
in the international diamond industry
The Graff business empire was founded by Laurence Graff,
the "King of Diamonds", who is said to have had a passion for diamonds from
an early age. Graff is reported to have said on one occasion that diamonds
always excited him and were part and parcel of his life, and that he was
born to be amongst diamonds.
Graff is one of the leading diamond companies in the
world today, and the name of Graff symbolizes rarity, beauty, excellence and
above all the best quality and craftsmanship in jewels and jewelry. The
company is involved in all stages of the diamond industry, such as mining ,
cutting, polishing and the designing and manufacture of exquisite
handcrafted fine jewelry. The diamonds processed at the Graff workshops are
sourced from the leading diamond producing countries in the world today such
as Australia, Canada, Russia, South Africa and South America. The diamonds
are processed in a chain of workshops, situated at important diamond
trading centers around the world such as Antwerp, London, New York, and
Johannesburg. Besides this Graff also has a diamond processing center and a
jewelry manufacturing workshop in the Mauritius Island, in the Indian ocean,
employing over 80 local craftsmen.
In South Africa, Graff has a subsidiary company
known as the South African Diamond Corporation , which is engaged in mining
operations. They also have their largest diamond processing factory in
Johannesburg, which employs over 300 expert craftsmen. Large quantities of
diamond weighing thousands of carats are cut and polished in this factory
every year. Out of this enormous production only diamonds of exceptional
quality, beauty, and rarity, are selected and dispatched to their London
workshop, to be set in Graff's iconic jewelry. In London, Graff has the
largest in-house workshop for hand made fine jewelry in the world, employing
over 70 highly skilled craftsmen, who turn out magnificent jewelry for all
the Graff outlets worldwide.
Graff has two specialized processing centers for the
cutting and polishing of exceptionally large diamonds. They are situated at
Antwerp and New York. The Antwerp factory is manned by a well trained and
highly experienced team of 30 experts, and the New York factory by a team of
10 experts. These factories have processed most of the 36 world's notable
and famous diamonds that are listed in the Graff website, such as, the
Paragon, the Golden Star, the Star of America, the Safia, the Sarah, the
Graff vivid yellow, etc.
The House of Graff has also locations in Monte Carlo,
Geneva, Moscow, and Dubai. Laurence Graff, the founder of the Graff
International Business Empire, has set an unsurpassed standard of excellence
and innovation in the industry and it is said that more important gem
quality diamonds have passed through his hands than any other living dealer.
Some of the stones are centuries old and steeped in myth and history, while
others have just been discovered and brought to life in Graff's own
workshops.
