CrownThe crown: the upper part of the stone, over the girdle. It carries 33 facets.
GirdleThe narrow band round the widest part of the stone. It lies between the crown and the pavilion.
PavilionThe pavilion: the lower part, below the girdle. Its facets reflect light back up through the top.
TableThe table: the largest facet, the flat eight-sided top of the crown.
CuletThe point at the bottom. Sometimes polished into a tiny flat facet, sometimes left as a point.
The top: 4 3
Star facetsThe star facets: eight small triangles touching the edges of the table.
Kite facetsEight four-sided facets that reach from the table to the girdle. Also called bezel facets.
Upper girdle facetsSixteen small triangles along the edge of the crown.
The bottom: 3 2
Pavilion main facetsEight long facets running from the culet out to the girdle.
Lower girdle facetsSixteen thin triangles along the edge of the pavilion.
How this list was compiled: Read 2026-09-27. (1) Wikipedia, Diamond cut, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diamond_cut : the modern round brilliant has 58 facets (57 without the culet): 33 on the crown (the top half, over the girdle) and 25 on the pavilion (lower half, under the girdle); the table is the largest central facet of the crown; the girdle may be frosted, faceted or polished smooth, and girdle facets are not counted; light reflected from the pavilion facets gives brilliance, and the crown acts as a prism, giving fire; the American Standard proportions (Tolkowsky, 1919) give a crown height of about 16% and a pavilion depth of about 43% of the width. (2) Wikimedia Commons, Diamond facets.svg, the figure in that article, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Diamond_facets.svg : the facet names and counts: 1 table, 8 star, 8 kite, 16 upper girdle (crown); 8 pavilion main, 16 lower girdle, 1 culet (optional) (pavilion). Licence: own work
The drawing: Drawn for this site by script, 2026-09-27. Own work, nothing traced. Licence: own work
How it works
These are the parts of a diamond cut as a round brilliant, the usual shape: first side-on, then from above, then from below. Start with the 5 main parts.
Read the full guide
Side-on
The girdle is the thin band round the widest part. Above it is the crown, with the flat table on top. Below it is the pavilion, tapering down to the culet.
The facets
A round brilliant has 58 facets, or 57 without the culet: 33 on the crown (the table, 8 star, 8 kite and 16 upper girdle facets) and 25 on the pavilion (8 main, 16 lower girdle and the culet).
Turn the stone over to see the pavilion: eight long main facets meet at the culet in the middle.
Questions and answers
What is the pavilion of a diamond?
The lower part of a cut diamond, below the girdle, tapering to the culet. Its facets reflect light back up through the top, which gives the stone its brightness.
What is the table of a diamond?
The largest facet: the flat eight-sided top of the crown, in the middle of the stone.
How many facets does a round diamond have?
A round brilliant has 58 facets, or 57 if the culet is not counted: 33 on the crown and 25 on the pavilion. Facets cut on the girdle are not counted.