American Gem Society (AGS) held celebrations of the long-term success of its key initiatives – its Diamond Grading Standards and of the AGS Laboratories. The Diamond Grading Standards Manual was launched in 1966 for its membership and this year marks the 50th anniversary of the Standards.

The Standards revolutionized the methodology used to grade diamonds as it was the first published manual that included a grading system for all 4Cs, including Cut. It took 10 years of planning and research by a committee of retailers, diamond cutters and world-renowned gemologists to launch the Manual. This published Manual supported the AGS mission of consumer protection and informed the fine jewelry consumer of certain aspects of diamond quality and value. AGS Jewelers could use the Standards at the sales counter and thus gave a means to clearly communicate the qualities of a diamond, and build a more trusting relationship with their customer.

“The Manual also made it easier for consumers to understand a diamond’s grade because it included the AGS 0 to 10 grading scale.” said Jason Quick, Laboratory Director of AGS Laboratories.“Today, the Standards remain a proud part of AGS’s history. They have evolved over the years, and were advanced with the ground-breaking AGS Light Performance Cut Grade. Fifty years later, jewelers can better explain diamond beauty in ways that the jewelry buyer can easily understand.”

The second milestone celebrated by AGS was the 20th anniversary of the AGS Laboratories. In 1996, AGS leadership set up the facility recognizing a need in the jewelry industry for a diamond-grading laboratory that shared its mission of consumer protection and provided the AGS Cut Grade. Today, AGS Laboratories is the only non-profit diamond grading laboratory with that mission. It has developed a repute for providing diamond grading reports that offer consistency and accuracy based on science, and provide the jeweler and the consumer peace of mind about a diamond purchase.