Lodewyk van Bercken (also known in French as ''Louis de Berquem'') was a mid- to late-15th century

Flemish Flemish may refer to: * Flemish, adjective for Flanders, Belgium * Flemish region, one of the three regions of Belgium *Flemish Community, one of the three constitutionally defined language communities of Belgium * Flemish dialects, a Dutch dialec ...

jeweller and diamond cutter, renowned in the industry for inventing the

scaif A scaif is a polishing wheel infused with a mixture of olive oil and diamond dust used in the diamond cutting industry. It was invented in the late 15th century by Lodewyk van Bercken in Antwerp. With the scaif, it became possible to both polish ...

. The device revolutionized the diamond cutting industry and contributed to increased popularity of diamonds.

About

Van Bercken was born in

Bruges Bruges ( , ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the province of West Flanders, in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is in the northwest of the country, and is the sixth most populous city in the country. The area of the whole city amoun ...

. He is credited with inventing the

, a polishing wheel infused with a mixture of olive oil and diamond dust. With the scaif, it became possible to polish all the facets of the diamond symmetrically at angles that best reflected the light.

Charles the Bold

Charles the Bold Charles Martin (10 November 1433 – 5 January 1477), called the Bold, was the last duke of Burgundy from the House of Valois-Burgundy, ruling from 1467 to 1477. He was the only surviving legitimate son of Philip the Good and his third wife, ...

Duke of Burgundy Duke of Burgundy () was a title used by the rulers of the Duchy of Burgundy, from its establishment in 843 to its annexation by the Crown lands of France, French crown in 1477, and later by members of the House of Habsburg, including Holy Roman E ...

became the

patron Patronage is the support, encouragement, privilege, or financial aid that an organization or individual bestows on another. In the history of art, art patronage refers to the support that princes, popes, and other wealthy and influential people ...

of van Bercken and in the 1470s commissioned him to cut a 137 carat (27.4 g) stone that later became known as the

Florentine Diamond The Florentine Diamond is a lost diamond of Indian origin. It is light yellow in colour with very slight green overtones. It is cut in the form of an irregular (although very intricate) nine-sided 126-facet double rose cut, with a weight of 137.2 ...

. Van Bercken experimented with three diamonds belonging to Charles the Bold. One stone was the

Beau Sancy The Beau Sancy is a diamond originally mined in India, which is cut in a modified pear double Diamond cutting, rose-cut shape. Since appearing in Europe in the 16th century, the ''Beau Sancy'' has been owned by a number of European royal house ...

, another became the property of Pope Sixtus V, and the third was given by Charles to Louis XI. Later Charles the Bold also sent one of his favorite jewels to be recut, which is now known as the

Sancy The Sancy, a pale yellow diamond of , was once reputed to have belonged to the Mughals of antiquity, but it is more likely of Indian origin owing to its cut, which is unusual by Western standards. The stone has been owned by a number of important ...

Diamond.

Legacy

Diamonds became popular as ornaments in jewelry in the 1400s and the different techniques and styles of diamond cuts were gradually developed over many years. Lodewyk van Bercken was a Flemish diamond polisher who invented the scaif. This ingenious polishing wheel enabled him to quickly cut facets into diamonds with precision. The scaif transformed the diamond trade. It opened the doors to the creation of complex

diamond cut A diamond cut is a style or design guide used when shaping a diamond for polishing such as the Brilliant (diamond cut), brilliant cut. Cut refers to shape (Pear cut, pear, oval), and also the symmetry, proportioning and polish of a diamond. The ...

s which otherwise would have never been possible. The scaif is still used today as an essential tool for the diamond industry in order to create facets on diamonds. In 1475, Lodewyk van Bercken invented the world's first

briolette A briolette is a style of gemstone cut (gems), cut. It is an elongated, mostly symmetrical along the main axel, pear shape covered with angular facets usually with a pointed end and no Girdle (gemstone), girdle. It is often drilled to hang as ...

cut diamond. He introduced the concept of absolute symmetry in the placement of facets on the stone. His meticulous and precisely studied advancements resulted in the first pear shaped briolette cut, a revolutionary breakthrough on shape, design and cutting excellence. A bronze statue in commemoration of Lodewyk Van Bercken's contributions to the diamond industry, can be seen at the beginning of Meir Street in

Antwerp Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...

, Belgium. The statue depicts Lodewyk Van Bercken holding a diamond in his hand with a baby angel floating above. Meir Street is one of the major shopping arteries in Antwerp Belgium, equivalent to New York's 5th Avenue, located a few blocks from Antwerp's famous Diamond District.

References

External links

Diamond cutting. Thank you Lodewyk van Bercken
by Jeffrey Blancq. 21 April 2006 {{DEFAULTSORT:Berken, Lodewyk van 15th-century inventors Burgundian Netherlands businesspeople Businesspeople from Bruges Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown Place of death unknown Belgian jewellers Medieval artisans