DIAMOND EDUCATION
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BAGUETTE CUTS

Long and slender, the modest Baguette Cut diamond generally is overlooked, because of its frequent role as the supporting act. Often used as side stones to the centerpiece diamond in an item of jewelry, they are nonetheless the most widely available step-cut diamonds in the marketplace.

Baguettes most frequently are rectangular with length-to-width ratios of 5:1, and sometimes are even longer, although square baguettes are also available. A variation is the Tapered Baguette, which has long sides that angle inwards, and a less frequently seen alternative is the Brilliant Baguette, which includes triangular and kite shaped facets on the pavilion and step-cut facets on the crown.

According to GIA research, the rectangular step-cut is believed to have evolved from the hogback, which was an elongated table cut that dates back at least as far the mid-1700s, and was often used to make monograms and jeweled letters. The French jewelry house Cartier reintroduced the style in 1912, and it was widely used by jewelry designers of the Art Deco period, who liked its clean lines and geometric shape.

The term “baguette” in reference to diamonds is most probably less 100 years old. It is the diminutive of the French “bague,” which once meant “jewel” but today is more commonly used to denote a ring. Some claim the name was inspired by long loaf of bread popular in France.