With fewer than seven weeks to go to the opening of the 2023 CIBJO Congress in Jaipur, India, on 3rd October, 2023, the fourth of the pre-congress Special Reports has been released. Prepared by the CIBJO Diamond Commission, headed by Udi Sheintal, the report looks at how changes in industry standards and nomenclature are affected by developing geopolitical situations, technological developments and shifting consumer sentiment.
The Special Report addresses recent claims that technologies have developed that are able to accurately identify the exact location at which rough diamond has been mined. “As a matter of principle, the CIBJO Diamond Commission welcomes all efforts to advance research and development in the industry, but insists that any claim be supported by verifiable evidence and that results be repeatable,” Sheintal stated.
But, he continues, “we can only state with confidence is what is known at present,” noting a May 2023 study by the Gemological Institute of America that declared that to date there has not been published any scientifically robust study verifying independent provenance determination of a random individual diamond.
The Special Report provides an update into work being done within the framework of the International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) on the prospective International Standard 6893, which covers quality control of diamonds of 0.25 carats and less. CIBJO’s Diamond Commission Vice President Jean-Pierre Chalain is the convenor of the working group overseeing the ISO project.
The Special Report concludes with a tribute to three stalwarts who recently passed away – Roland Naftule, Harry Levy, and Gabi Tolkowsky.