An exclusive collection of quality diamonds, hand selected by us using the highest standards set by the American Gem Society (AGS).
Every year, we inspect and study thousands of diamonds in our search to find only the best for our own in-house brand of diamond, the Maurer Star Diamonds. We are able to hand select the diamonds we want to sell in our store, which makes our diamonds much more affordable than other "branded" AGS diamonds on the market today - there is no middleman!
The Maurer Star Diamonds are an exclusive collection of round diamonds that we searched for, found, and hand-selected during our diamond buying trips around the world. To be in this collection, a diamond must receive an American Gem Society (AGS) cut grade of zero, one, two, three, or four (AGS 0-4)...which are the best possible cut grades, representing the very best in diamond cutting. Without exaggeration, this means that when it comes to Maurer Star Diamonds, you’re literally looking at the finest cut diamonds in the world.
Here at Vanscoy, Maurer & Bash Diamond Jewelers, we have directly imported diamonds from Antwerp, Belgium, for over 35 years. Around 95% of our diamonds come from Fischler Diamonds, with offices in Antwerp, New York, Hong Kong, and Santiago. Fischler is a specialty diamond cutting firm that are experts in creating the finest cut diamonds available. They do not sell to the chain stores and work exclusively with high-end, independent retailers. Fischler only selects the finest jewelry stores that adhere to the highest standards of excellence. We are proud of our 35+ year history with Fischler, whose founder played a role in establishing the Kimberly Process in the diamond industry.
While we hand-select many of our diamonds and have them in-store, we also work with couples to find the diamond that fits their preferences. If we do not have a diamond that fits your budget, shape, or color in store, we can personally call Fischler diamonds and have a selection of diamonds for you in the store within a few days. Due to demand, it may sometimes take longer for certain types of diamonds to get here from Antwerp, but we will always keep you updated on availability and time frames.
We aren't the only ones hand-selecting our diamonds; Fischler Diamonds will first select rough diamonds from a parcel as they come into Antwerp. The rest of the diamonds in the parcel are often sold in bulk to big box jewelry stores. By the time we're choosing our diamonds, they've already been specially chosen by Fischler Diamonds for their natural beauty and then cut by experts in the business. The diamonds you find in our store are only the best of the best, for prices you won't be able to beat since we directly import them and skip the middleman.
Maurer Star Diamonds
When you come to choose your diamond, you’ll select it based on the factors that mean the most to you. Maybe it's size, shape, or cost. But if you’re motivated primarily by the symbolism behind giving the absolute best of the best to your partner, then you want to prioritize the cut grade of the diamond.
For generations, the diamond industry has known that the cut grade is the most important factor in a diamond’s beauty. Color and clarity are important characteristics to consider, but unless those are absolutely terrible, nobody will even notice them. What you, and everyone else, will notice about a diamond, other than its size, is how much fire and sparkle it has. Color and clarity have almost no influence on that; it all comes from the cut. What you see when a diamond sparkles from across the room is how well it was cut. Plain and simple, it is the engineering of the diamond (the cut) that makes all the difference in the world. And that is what we are very strict about here at Vanscoy, Maurer & Bash – how the diamond is cut.
Maurer Star Diamonds are literally the best cut diamonds in the world. All Maurer Star Diamonds have received an AGS cut grade of 0 to 4, (the AGS scale goes from 0 to 10, with 0 being the very best, the Ideal cut). There are 11 steps on the AGS cut grade scale, with only 5 on the GIA scale, which most jewelry stores use. More steps on the grading scale means that AGS can sort out the smallest differences in order to truly find the most ideal diamonds.
While each of the round diamonds in our exclusive Maurer Star collection vary by color, clarity, and carat weight, the AGS 0-4 cut grades are what they all have in common. Each is perfectly cut to reflect the most brilliant explosion of light that everyone wants in their diamond.
It was the AGS, in 2005, that became the very first diamond grading laboratory to bring clear standards to the quality of a diamond’s cut. The AGS did this by basing their cut grading on both three-dimensional modeling and on the actual appearance of the diamond. Other laboratories have since followed suit with systems of their own, but we have always been a believer that the AGS system is the most thorough and trustworthy.
Vanscoy, Maurer & Bash is recognized as an AGS store and one of the select few in Lancaster County and central Pennsylvania. In order to achieve and retain this title, we must meet strict criteria and show that we accept only the highest in diamond quality. If you have any questions about our Maurer Star Diamonds, our history, or what it means to be an AGS store, feel free to stop in or call or text us at 717-299-4283.
