AGS Celebrates 2 Milestones

(IDEX Online News) – The American Gem Society (AGS) recently celebrated the 50^th Anniversary of its Diamond Grading Standards and the 20^th Anniversary of AGS Laboratories.

The AGS Diamond Grading Standards Manual was originally implemented to protect the fine jewelry consumer by clarifying certain aspects of diamond quality and value. It was a tool that was the result of 10 years planning and research by a committee of retailers, diamond cutters and gemologists, for jewelers to use at the sales counter and enable them to clearly communicate to consumers the qualities of a particular diamond.

“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 Laboratory Director of AGS Laboratories Jason Quick. “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 AGS Laboratories were founded in 1996, and were a response to the need for a jewelry industry diamond grading laboratory, with the goal of consumer protection – and it remains the only non-profit grading laboratory.