Macle. mccle. make. mackerel. No wonder few people know what this particular type of diamond is; even the experts disagree on its spelling. Through the many centuries and countries where macles have been used, spellings differ, and continue to do so today, between companies and sometimes even within them.
But they do agree on one thing: a macle is a form of rough diamond that is used to create jewelry that is unique, eye-catching and sophisticated.
“They’re for an inherently sophisticated client,” Sally Morrison, director of public relations for natural diamonds at the De Beers Group, said by phone from New York. “It is a quiet, understated luxury. People may not know what they are, but you do.”
And recently, more people are also familiar with them, she said.
“We’re seeing more designs that use rough diamonds in their natural state,” Ms Morrison said. “And I’ve seen more use in the consumer market of rough diamonds in their natural state. They have a shine and luster, but they are not brilliant as a cut and polished stone would be. They are part of a general trend to celebrate things as the Earth made them rather than after much human intervention.”
Macles have always been there. “They were probably first used in jewelry in India about 2,500 years ago, when diamonds were first discovered at Golconda,” said Andrew Coxon, president of the De Beers Institute of Diamonds in London’s St. James’s borough. in an email. Today, he said, macles “are found in every mine production around the world. They can be attractive to explore, especially if they’ve tumbled along a riverbed for millions of years, taking on a natural lustrous patina.”
What else sets macles apart? Greg Kwiat, the chief executive of Kwiat, a 115-year-old family business based in New York, knows all about it. “The term maccle describes a specific type of rough diamond. It has a flat, triangular shape,” he explained in an email. “They occur naturally in the earth and are different from the more classic octahedral shape of rough diamonds.”
According to Judy Colbert, research librarian at the Gemological Institute of America in Carlsbad, Calif., a macle is also an “broken diamond crystal.” It is composed of “two opposing parts, each with the same crystal shape. The two parts are oriented 60 or 180 degrees from each other, so the macle looks like an oblate triangle.”
“Macles are a challenge for diamond polishers,” she said in an email. “Macles are usually so shallow that they cannot produce round brilliants without significant weight loss. For these reasons, macles are usually used for pretty shapes like pears, triangles, and hearts.”
Macles are also a challenge for designers and jewelers. †Often a bezel setting is used as opposed to teeth, which are more commonly used for polished diamonds,” Elizabeth Gaines Zoutendyk, a GIA design and fabrication specialist, said in an email. †When pins are used, they should be bulkier and/or longer to ensure security. Both can mean an increase in the amount of metal needed to create the setting.
“Rather than being able to use off-the-shelf components made to standard sizes and often available in a pre-polished condition (reducing labor time), a facility would be hand-built, custom, for each individual stone (increasing working time).”
That’s the process used to create the two wide cuffs Nicole Kidman wore at the 2007 Academy Awards as an accessory to the long, sleek red column of a Balenciaga evening gown. On her wrists was what looked like a mosaic of misty triangular stones, or crystals, or maybe sea glass; glowing instead of sparkling.
The bracelets are made by L’Wren Scott in collaboration with the jewelers of William Goldberg.
Eve Goldberg, co-owner and creative director of the company founded by her father, the diamond merchant, William, who died in 2003, said he was known for his expertise in working with “uniquely shaped stones.”
“We were presented with the large collection of Maccles. We put them all on the table and just started playing with them,” Ms Goldberg said in an email. “They were flat on both sides and we are used to having a pointed culet on one side. It was fun moving them in the diamond path and seeing what design ideas could work. We worked on those fabulous cuffs because the stones just felt so good. My father always said that the diamonds talk to us and tell us what they want to become, and these diamonds told us to sit on one arm and they were!”
The customization often required when working with macles affects the price of a finished piece. “In general, uncut diamonds cost less than cut diamonds of comparable quality and size,” Ms Colbert said. “There are costs associated with the cutting process. Conversely, because uncut stones require a custom setting, this can result in an increased price for the jewelry.”
As with all diamonds, the price of the gemstone also varies with its quality. “When a beautiful large maccle is discovered in a beautiful color, it is preserved by De Beers to become a beautiful gem of its own from rough diamonds, for example as part of a high jewelry necklace,” said Mr. Coxon. “Such a maccle is as valuable as a cut diamond of the same size.”
Finally Mrs Zoutendyk said:† macle diamond jewelry can be “edgy, different, extraordinary, modern and sleek”.
And something that only the experts know.