What are brown diamonds: how rare and valuable they are

An expert guide to Brown Diamonds – affordable, yet beautiful. 

The world of diamonds is infinitely diverse. And if it once seemed that nothing else existed except white diamonds, now everyone has paid attention to something much more unusual – different shades of fancy colored stones.

Finally, their beauty is appreciated, and the most famous collectors and gem lovers are chasing fancy color gems around the world.

However, Brown Diamonds remained in the shadows for a long time – they are not as rare as blue or pink ones, and not as bright as their siblings – yellow diamonds. Anyway, Brown stones definitely deserve attention: their elegant, sophisticated color adds a zest to any look.

What are Brown Diamonds? 

Brown Diamonds are natural fancy color diamonds of an unusual color shade – brown. Lately – in the 1980s – these stones were crushed to make abrasive granules. Then everything has changed: today they are used in high jewelry collections – and their brown color is finally considered attractive. 

Brown Diamonds get their color from nitrogen. The more nitrogen is present, the higher saturation and vividness of the stone. 

Brown Diamonds’ color chart

Brown Diamonds’ color is graded according to the scale from K to Z. Faint Brown diamonds are those from K to M. Very Light Brown diamonds are on the color chart from Q to R. Light Brown are those from S-T to Y-Z. 

Thus, Brown Diamonds vary from light champagne colors to deeper cognac and chocolate shades. 

There is an interesting fact concerning these elegant and sophisticated names that have been given to different shades of Brown Diamonds. They say, they were invented by marketers. It happened relatively recently, when some diamond mining companies decided to instill in the audience a love for brown stones. And what works better than persistent pleasant associations? Thus, the names such as  Brown Diamonds Chocolate, Cognac and Champagne were introduced. Some criticize this approach, considering it somewhat deceptive. However, in practice, such names reflect the real shades of Brown Diamonds.

Champagne diamonds are defined by a secondary yellowish tone. In other words, this stone has a brown yellow appearance. 

Cognac diamonds are the darkest brown gems. As a rule, they have an orangy secondary tone. 

Chocolate diamonds have quite a dark brown hue, which resembles a bar of chocolate. 

Many diamond mining companies have picked up this rebranding of Brown Diamonds – and expanded the list of names for these brown stones. Thus, for example, their shades began to be called clove, coffee, caramel, cappuccino, mocha, espresso, cinnamon and even tobacco. However, such a variety of names caused confusion in the marketplace. It was decided to keep only a few of the most popular names for Brown Diamonds.

Brown Diamond prices

Brown Diamonds had been perceived as industrial diamonds for many years. And although the times have changed, these stones are still quite affordable. 

Brown Diamonds are considered the most affordable of all colored diamonds. This is reflected in the price – it is possible to buy such a diamond without an impressive budget. However, for Brown Diamonds – like any other ones – the price increases as the vividness and purity of the shade increase. 

Comparing the prices of diamonds, you will notice that for the price of one white diamond, you can buy two Brown Diamonds of the same weight. As a rule, 1 carat of Brown Diamond starts from around $2,500 while the best ones cost approximately $4,000. 

Brown Diamonds’ mines

Brown Diamonds are the most common variety of fancy color diamonds. They are found in abundance all around the world. 

It is the Argyle mine in Australia that is responsible for global Brown Diamonds mining. It turned not so popular Brown Diamonds into must-have champagne gems, instantly giving them a classy and desirable image. The plan successfully worked – and Brown Diamonds (now referred to as cognac and chocolate diamonds) are seen as romantic color stones.

The most famous Brown Diamonds

Although popularity and honor have come to Brown Diamonds relatively recently, there are still several examples of highly praised brown stones in history.

The Golden Jubilee diamond

The most famous one is the Golden Jubilee Diamond. Weighting 545.67 ct, it is worth more than $12 million! It currently holds the record for the largest faceted diamond, beating even the Cullinan I. 

This stone was discovered in 1985 at the Premier Mine – tha mine where the Cullinan diamond came from. Initially it was called the Unnamed Brown. Being cut from the huge stone of 755.5 ct, it was unknown until 1990. It took two years to bring him to the state we are familiar with today. Its large surface and deep cracks required a special approach in cutting. So, De Beers considered this as an opportunity to test their new cutting technologies. 

After two years of meticulous work, the stone was finished, reduced in total from 755.50 ct to 545.65 ct. The diamond got its name in 1997 when it was presented to the King of Thailand on his 50th coronation anniversary. 

The Star of the South diamond

The Star of the South Brown Diamond is considered to be one of the largest diamonds ever found in Brazil – and the first Brazilian diamond which received international acclaim. 

It was found in 1853 by an African slave woman. This stone brought her freedom. Later it was cut into a cushion shaped diamond of 128.48 ct. For a long time, the Star of the South was considered to be “by far the largest diamond discovered by any woman anywhere”, but then the Incomparable diamond was found. 

The Golden Maharaja diamond

The other example of a prominent Brown Diamond is the Golden Maharaja Diamond. This gem weighs 65.57 ct and demonstrates a fancy dark orange brown color. 

This beautiful pear-shaped diamond was introduced for the first time at the Paris World Fair in 1937. Later the diamond was loaned to the American Museum of Natural History for 15 years. Finally, in 1991 the stone was sold for $1.3 million. 

On April 25th in 2006 it was offered for sale at Sotheby’s Magnificent Jewels, being estimated at $400,000 to $600,000. It eventually came to a sale price of more than $1.4 million. 

The Earth Star diamond

The Earth Star Diamond was cut from a rough stone of 248.9 ct. It was found in the Jagersfontein Mine. Surprisingly, this mine had never been known for producing large stones of this color before. What is more, this stone came from exceptionally deep volcanic rocks where such a stone simply could not exist. 

Later this diamond was cut into a pear shape weighing 111.59 ct – becoming the largest faceted brown diamond in the world at that time. 

The Earth Star diamond took part in the exhibition dedicated to the 100-year anniversary of the discovery of the Kimberly Mine. Finally, in 1983, it was bought for $900,000. 

The Great Chrysanthemum diamond

The Great Chrysanthemum Diamond was once listed as one of the largest Brown Diamonds in the world. In a rough state it weighed 198.28 ct.  Soon after its discovery, it was bought by Julius Cohen, a jewelry designer from New York. Today, it is a pear-shaped, Fancy Brown stone weighing 104.16 ct. 

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