What are Bellataire diamonds?

Introduction: The primary objective of this blog is to address diamond buyers' typical concerns about Bellataire diamonds. Questions and comments are welcome.

Bellataire® diamonds are extremely rare, ultra-pure, natural diamonds that have been restored to their intrinsic color by a proprietary process developed by General Electric Company (GE). Bellataire-brand diamonds are exceptional quality, mostly “D” through “H” in color, seldom lower in clarity than “VS2”, and cut to the most demanding standards in the diamond industry.

Bellataire diamonds are completely natural diamonds. Nothing is added to the natural diamond crystal nor anything removed from it in the process of transforming a rough diamond to a polished gem. Bellataire diamonds are never laser-enhanced, irradiated, fracture-filled, or altered in any way that would compromise their all-natural content.

Bellataire diamonds are extremely rare Type II a diamonds that were originally crystallized without color and were destined to become extraordinary gems. During their journey to the surface of the Earth through volcanic pipes, though, these crystals were subjected to intense heat, tremendous pressure, and explosive turbulence. These conditions caused some molecular misalignment in these crystals, resulting in a brownish color and internal stress. This process simply provides comparable conditions of heat and pressure, allowing these crystals to spontaneously relieve themselves of their molecular stress and return to their proper alignment and their original colorless state. It is this process of restoration that leads to the description of Bellataire diamonds as “The Diamond Nature Intended”.

The Bellataire process is permanent. It also results in a diamond more chemically stable than any other. When subjected to increasingly high temperatures in laboratory tests, the color of Bellataire diamonds have been shown to deteriorate last of all diamond types. Explaining this exceptional stability in Bellataire diamonds are their absence of nitrogen impurities and their absence of internal stress. The Gem Trade Lab of the GIA, arguably the most respected gemological laboratory in the world, will not issue Grading Reports on treated diamonds. Every Bellataire diamond is accompanied by a full GIA Report. Treated diamonds usually have one or more of the following characteristics: a change that is not permanent, special care needed for maintenance, and /or applied material that is not intrinsic to the natural diamond. Bellataire diamonds have none of these characteristics. In fact, the process that restores Bellataire diamonds to their original state in many ways alters rough diamonds less than the processes of cleaving, laser-shaping, polishing, and acid boiling, among others, that are accepted activities necessary for transforming rough to polished.

The application of technology to the diamond manufacturing process has had a long history. Accepted technologies alter the original, natural, rough diamond crystal in many significant ways, changing its number of pieces, color, shape, size, and internal purity. As the most recent technology to be employed, HPHT simply restores misaligned crystal to its intrinsic color, impacting the diamond’s natural state far less than the technologies that have preceded it. In fact, HPHT processing can be seen as actually restoring a diamond to its most essential natural condition. HPHT is simply one new process joining the many long-established processes that have allowed progress to be made and technology to maximize the beauty and minimize the cost of gem-quality diamonds.