Recently I was telling a group of people how rare and wondrous the Royal Asscher Cut is. One woman showed me her diamond and said, "I have a Royal Asscher."

To my amazement a gentleman said, "I just bought one for my girlfriend.” I said nothing and smiled at her square cut emerald cut (which are quite abundant).

The Royal Asscher cut has quite a history. In 2001 it received a patent and is a phenomenal square with very wide corners, steep crown, and 74 facets placed with precision for light reflection. 

The Asscher name is often used to represent square emerald cuts. This is extremely misleading. Although brilliant and beautiful, the square emerald cut only has 58 facets and is not guaranteed to consistently be well cut.

Furthermore, the term Asscher will never be disclosed on a GIA grading report; it will simply say square emerald cut. Be wary of trade names!