Briolette
A briolette is a fully faceted, usually pendant-drilled teardrop or elongated-oval shape with no flat table, no girdle and no pavilion in the modern sense — the entire surface is covered in continuous, wrapping triangular facets.
| Drilled | Typically pendant-drilled through the point for suspension |
|---|---|
| Outline | Teardrop or elongated oval |
| Faceting | Fully faceted on all sides — no table, no flat pavilion |
| Facet style | Triangular, wrapping continuously around the stone |
| Typical use | Pendants, drop earrings, necklace beads |
| Availability | Rare — mostly special-order, not standard marketplace inventory |
What defines the cut
A briolette has no flat table and no distinct crown/pavilion boundary the way almost every other cut in this library does — the whole stone, top to bottom, is covered in triangular facets that wrap continuously around a teardrop or elongated-oval body. It is typically drilled through the point so it can be suspended, which is also why briolettes are associated with pendants, drop earrings and beaded necklace strands rather than ring centre stones.
History
The origins of the briolette are genuinely debated rather than settled. One line of evidence points to India: the "Briolette of India" is described as the oldest diamond on record and the earliest documented briolette, dated to the time of the Crusades (roughly 1122-1200). A separate attribution credits the cut to Louis van Berquem, a 15th-century Flemish diamantaire often described as a father of modern diamond cutting, with early briolettes evolving from the double rose cut — rose-cut facets on both what would become the crown and pavilion, originally separated by a girdle that the briolette then does away with. One of the earliest written descriptions comes from the 17th-century French gem merchant Jean-Baptiste Tavernier, who documented diamonds "cut with facets on all sides."
Buying considerations
- Because a briolette has no table, judge its light performance from actual photos or video rather than from carat weight or outline alone — the effect depends entirely on facet placement and stone proportions.
- Confirm the drilling: a briolette intended for suspension needs a clean, centred drill hole through the point, not an afterthought hole that could weaken the stone.
- Availability is genuinely limited — most briolettes are cut to order rather than held as standard stock.
Jewellery suitability
Briolettes are drop/pendant stones by design, not centre stones for rings — they appear historically in some of the most significant royal jewellery collections, including a diamond necklace Napoleon presented to Empress Marie Louise containing ten briolette-shaped stones, and pieces in the Austrian, Romanov and French royal collections.
Terminology
"Briolette" describes the fully-faceted, tableless, drilled teardrop form specifically — it is a distinct cut from a pear shape, which has a conventional flat table and crown/pavilion structure (see the comparison page for the direct distinction).
Frequently asked questions
- Is a briolette the same as a pear-shaped diamond?
- No. A pear cut has a flat table and a conventional crown/pavilion structure like most brilliant cuts. A briolette has no table at all — it is faceted continuously on every surface and is normally drilled through the point for suspension, which a pear cut is not.
- Can a briolette be used as a ring centre stone?
- It is unusual, though not unheard of, because the shape and drilling are designed for suspension. Briolettes are almost always set in pendants, drop earrings, or strung as necklace beads.
- Where does the briolette cut actually come from?
- Sources disagree. One account traces it to India as early as the Crusades period (c. 1122-1200); another credits 15th-century Flemish cutter Louis van Berquem with developing it from the double rose cut. Both are genuinely documented; there is no single settled origin.
Compared with
Related cuts
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