Marquise Cut Diamonds

Marquise cuts have our favorite origin story- hands down! In 1745, French King Louis XV was super enamored with one of his mistresses, Jean Antoinette Poisson, aka Madame de Pompadour. He wanted to capture her beauty forever and keep a talisman of it to have and hold. He ordered the official court jeweler to create a stone reminiscent of her “pretty mouth”. While this sounds like a weird request, the resulting stone was the first version of marquise cut diamonds and so we accept this fascination with her lips.

Marquise cuts are considered modified brilliants and are similar to oval cuts but with more obvious and sharpened points at the end. The word “marquise” comes from the position in court between a count and a duke, hinting back to its royal inception, but this cut is also sometimes referred to as navette, boat, or eye shaped. They have a large crown so the surface area contributes to saving optimal carat weight during the cutting process.

They look beautiful set north- south slenderizing the finger, or east- west for a more eccentric look. Marquise cuts may have been inspired by a smile, but they are keeping us smiling today.