The 5 Cs

As with diamonds, the Tanzanite Foundation grades these rare dazzlers according to what we call the 5 C’s:  Colour, Clarity, Cut, Carat and Confidence.  The higher the combination of these characteristics, the rarer and more valuable the stone.  After all, the desire to own something unique and rare has always been a decisive criterion for assessing the value of special gemstones. 
 

Colour
Colour refers to the blue in Tanzanite and its degree of violet saturation.  The depth of colour ranges from Vivid to Pale, with a “B” or “v” prededing to indicate a predominance of blue or violet hues.  The deeper the colour, the more precious the stone.

Note: in the rare circumstance that intensity of color exceeds the Exceptional grade, it will be graded Exceptional.
 

The depth of colour ranges from Vivid to Pale with a "B" or "V" preceeding to indicate predominance of blue or violet hue's.
 

Clarity
Clarity refers to any natural flaws of inclusions in a Tanzanite.  Tanzanite ranges from Internally Flawless to Heavily Included.  The more flawless the stone, the more valuable it is.


Cut
Cut refers to the shape, facets and proportion of a Tanzanite.  A ’fine’ cut ensures that the stone’s facets reflect light to create maximum brilliance.  The more precise the craftman’s cutting, the more valuable the Tanzanite.   
 

Carat
Carat is the term used to measure a Tanzanite’s weight.  One carat has 100 points and weighs 1/5 of a gram.  Two seemingly identical stones will have different carat weights if they vary in depth.


Confidence
Buy only from a reputable jeweler. Confidence is your assurance that your Tanzanite is natural, has been accurately graded and has followed an ethical route to market.  Don’t buy Tanzanite if you are not sure of it’s authenticity, value and provenance.