A carved ornament used on furniture of the mid-18th century, especially on the knees of cabriole chair legs The name comes from that given to rounded, uncut gem stones; the furniture ornament resembles one of these, usually oval-shaped and surrounded by scrolled, leafy carving
A gemstone shape resembling a dome Onyx is commonly cut in a cabochon shape, as are star sapphires
A domed gemstone Highly polished curved surface without faceting A R T Precious & Collectible Jewelry
Any precious stone cut in a convex shape, polished but not faceted This is one of the oldest and simplest cuts It's often used on opaque and translucent stones, such as opals, or stones with unusual optical properties, such as chrysoberyl cat's-eyes
A stone with a rounded surface, rather than with facets This style is commonly used with opaque to translucent stones such as opal, moonstone, jade and turquoise Less expensive transparent stones such as amethyst and garnet, are also sometimes fashioned as cabochons A garnet cabochon is also referred to as a carbuncle