Bernd Munsteiner
German, 1943
Bernd Munsteiner, the "Father of the Fantasy Cut," innovative concave cuts on the backs of gemstones to create spectacular light-shows on their fronts. Munsteiner focuses only on the cutting and the design, never on the carat weight. Munsteiner’s most famous work is the Dom Pedro – Ondas Maritimas, a 10,363 ct aquamarine gemstone, so exquisite that the Smithsonian said it is “one of the few objects in the world that can hold its own in a display case just 30 feet from the Hope Diamond.” Munsteiner was born in Mörschied, Germany in 1943 near Idar-Oberstein, the renowned area for gem cutting and carving, following in his father and grandfather’s footsteps.
