Associate Editor Natalie Francisco shares 20 additional pieces that stood out to her at the Couture show.
Zvi Yehuda, Inventor and Lifelong Learner, Dies at 86
Yehuda’s knack for invention became apparent at an early age, and his career spanned seven decades.

He was 86.
According to a profile published in the November 2019 issue of Rapaport magazine, Yehuda got his start in the diamond industry in 1953 after his father hired someone to give a private lesson on diamond cleaving to a small group.
The lesson gave the then 16-year-old Yehuda an idea about recycling the diamond dust created in bruting process, and an inventor was born.
According to the story, he invented the first digital scales for diamonds at age 23 and, at 28, the first machine that used lasers to cut a diamond.
Later in his life, Yehuda had the idea for Sherlock Holmes, the company’s device for detecting lab-grown diamonds, the invention his son Dror Yehuda, president of New York-based Yehuda Diamond Co., described in his father’s eulogy as his “grand finale.”
Dror remembered taking a trip with his father to the United States in the early 1970s to meet with a professor in Los Angeles who was on the team that developed lab-grown diamonds at General Electric.
Zvi knew then the industry would need lab-grown diamond identification devices in the future and shared his knowledge from that trip with Dror when the time came to develop the Sherlock Holmes.
“With this invention, you have completed your tremendous contribution to the diamond industry,” Dror said in the eulogy.
Outside of work, Zvi is remembered as a generous man who loved to learn—he was always reading a book or doing research on the internet, Dror said—and valued his family and friends above all else.
He is survived by his wife, Meira Yehuda—the two started dating at age 15 and never separated—three sons, Roni Yehuda, Dror and Moshe Yehuda; one daughter, Yael Konigsberg; 12 grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren.
The Latest

Lori Tucker started at Williams Jewelers when she was 18 years old.

The “Marvel | Citizen Zenshin” watch is crafted in Super Titanium and has subtle nods to all four “Fantastic Four” superheroes on the dial.

The Seymour & Evelyn Holtzman Bench Scholarship from Jewelers of America returns for a second year.

The “XO Tacori” collection was designed to blend luxury and accessible pricing.


National Jeweler and Jewelers of America discuss the standout jewelry trends and biggest news to emerge from the shows this year.

Signatories to the “Luanda Accord” committed to allocating 1 percent of annual diamond revenue to the Natural Diamond Council.

The countdown is on for the JCK Las Vegas Show and JA is pulling out all the stops.

The winning designs captured the “Radiance” theme.

Nominations in the categories of Jewelry Design, Media Excellence, and Retail Innovation will be accepted through July 30.

The singer’s ring ticks off many bridal trends, with a thick band, half-bezel setting, and solitaire diamond.

The bracelet references vintage high jewelry and snake symbolism as a playful piece where a python’s head becomes a working belt buckle.

The heist happened in Lebec, California, in 2022 when a Brinks truck was transporting goods from one show in California to another.

The 10-carat fancy purple-pink diamond with potential links to Marie Antoinette headlined the white-glove jewelry auction this week.

The Starboard Cruises SVP discusses who is shopping for jewelry on ships, how much they’re spending, and why brands should get on board.

The historic signet ring exceeded its estimate at Noonans Mayfair’s jewelry auction this week.

To mark the milestone, the brand is introducing new non-bridal fine jewelry designs for the first time in two decades.

The gemstone is the third most valuable ruby to come out of the Montepuez mine, Gemfields said.

Founder and longtime CEO Ben Smithee will stay with the agency, transitioning into the role of founding partner and strategic advisor.

Associate Editor Natalie Francisco shares 20 of her favorite pieces from the jewelry collections that debuted at Couture.

If you want to attract good salespeople and generate a stream of “sleeping money” for your jewelry store, then you are going to have to pay.

The top lot was a colorless Graff diamond, followed by a Burmese ruby necklace by Marcus & Co.

Gizzi, who has been in the industry since 2001, is now Jewelers of America’s senior vice president of corporate affairs.

Luca de Meo, a 30-year veteran of the auto industry, will succeed longtime CEO François-Henri Pinault.

Following visits to Vegas and New York, Botswana’s minerals minister sat down with Michelle Graff to discuss the state of the diamond market.

The “Your Love Has the Perfect Ring” campaign showcases the strength of love and need for inclusivity and representation, the jeweler said.

The former De Beers executive is the jewelry house’s new director of high jewelry for the Americas.