Gem cutting in India

The idea to cut gemstones in facets according to their crystalline structures, as for example the brilliant cut which gives the diamond an exceptional brilliance, is based on technical developments and natural sciences and used to be foreign to Indians. In Europe, the search for adequate cutting techniques began early. Even very hard stones were made "compliant". Around 1475 Ludwig von Berquem recognized the anisotropic properties of diamonds. The discovery that the hardest material on earth shows slight differences in hardness depending on the direction of the cut was the starting point for the development of the diamond cutting techniques. Before that the stone could only be split.

The Indians in contrast preferred to keep the natural form of the stones. A natural, perfectly formed diamond octahedron was not allowed to be cut. It was considered holy. Other gemstones were cut as little as possible to irregular forms. The design of the jewelry had to adapt to the form of the stone. As little as possible of the holy material of the gem was to be removed.

The reverence of the Indians for gems is deeply ingrained in the belief in the magic of the stones and the celestial bodies. Gemstone powder is even administered as medicine to sick people. If there was an impurity in certain stones, it had to be removed according to Hindu belief. The Mohammedans were not as strict in their conceptions. They loved cut, richly decorated jewels. Agates and jades were cut with Holy Surah from the Koran and floral decorations. Emeralds, jades, rubies and turquoises were arranged in opulent flowers. As of the 18th century similar cuts and arrangements can be found in the jewelry of rich Hindus but the stylistic origins for these pieces lie in the Islamic world.

A very popular form was the cabochon cut. Even rubies were preferably cut in rounded shapes. European cutting techniques of gemstones were already known in India in the 17th century. On the one hand, cut gemstones were imported from Europe; on the other hand European cutters were employed at Indian courts. Also Indian craftsmen studied European cutting techniques.

The different versions of the rose cut (hindi: polki) for diamonds became famous. It may have been an Indian development of former European cutting techniques. The emperors Dschahangir and Schah Dschahan were great patrons of this art. The "technically perfect" form of a stone such as the brilliant only gained more popularity towards the end of the 19th century.

An atrocity indicating how little Europeans respected the Indian traditions and nature's treasures was committed to the precious diamond koh-i-nur "Mountain of Light": in order to adapt it to better fit the British crown, one third of its substance were cut - an unimaginable deed in the old India.

Today this is different. A huge number of gemstones are cut in any arbitrary shape with laser technology – also India has gone a long way from the once Holy.

Translation of an excerpt from the book: "FLOWERS OF PARADISE"
Royal Jewelry of North India by Hans Weihreter
Akademische Druck- u. Verlagsanstalt Graz, 1997