How to determine the authenticity of stones in jewelry. How to distinguish natural semi-precious and precious stones from imitations. Quartz can be distinguished from glass by touching the stone and glass with the tip of the tongue. Quartz is much colder

08.04.2019

It's no secret that women love gems. Some men (maybe most), it must be said, also understand a lot about jewelry, trying to profitably invest in gold and diamonds or just to please their beloved.

When investing in diamonds, you should be careful: there are special investment diamonds, not jewelry diamonds.

The rules of the game are now dictated by the consumer, because the offer on jewelry market far exceeds demand. Jewelers are interested in every client, because jewelry is not an essential item, and the buyer needs to be interested in time, otherwise he can spend money on something else, more necessary.

The need to purchase a piece of jewelry with a precious stone arises on special occasions: for a wedding, anniversary, birthday and other holidays. Having studied, or, we usually move on to the following questions:

How to distinguish natural stone from synthetic?

How to distinguish a natural gem from a fake?

To answer the first question, we first do short review which minerals are most often sold on the jewelry market.

Comparison of natural and synthetic minerals

When purchasing a gemstone, you want to be sure that it is natural. However, many are willing to buy and wear synthetic counterparts, such as synthetic rubies or diamonds, and there is nothing wrong with that. Everyone has their own taste and preferences. The main thing is that under the guise of natural you are not sold synthetic, because this is fraud and deception of the buyer.

Self-respecting jewelry houses and brands do not mislead consumers and will not give out one stone after another. Small manufacturers or sellers can go for deception, who answer the questions: what gem is inserted into the product? and who is the manufacturer ?, they answer: “I don’t know”, and they begin to talk vaguely about the long journey from Iran through Australia, during which information about the manufacturer is irretrievably lost. On the tag of such sellers, the type of product (earrings, for example) and the price are modestly indicated. It may also be written by hand - "ruby", but, as can be understood from the above, you can write anything you like, and usually - the stone with which the external resemblance is the most.

Deception in the sale of synthetic stone can only be inflated prices. If a product with artificially grown chrysoberyl is sold for $ 10, then there is no fraud in this. Another thing is if for the same product they ask for 10 times more, 100 dollars, for example, giving out, thus, for a natural gem.

In jewelry stores, as a rule, it is not indicated which stone is natural or synthetic, especially if the products belong to the so-called "budget" niche. But the seller, of course, will easily confirm the origin of the stones from the laboratory and even competently make it clear why synthetic stones better than natural.

But a synthetically created diamond is even more expensive than its natural “relative”.

So, here is how the prices of natural and synthetic stones compare:

Synthetic and natural stones - differences in price

Stone	natural uncut	natural faceted	synthetic uncut, price for 1 carat	synthetic faceted, price for 1 carat
Ruby	$10 and up depending on quality	$75-915 - poor quality; 1455-4375 - good quality; 11250-23150 $ - excellent quality -	0,01-0,02 $	1-2 $
Sapphire	from 10 to 75 $ - poor quality from 75 to 150 $ - good quality from $ 150 and above - excellent quality	Cornflower blue - with heat treatment - from $ 300, without - from $ 1000 High quality large sapphires - up to $30,000	1-2 cents	3-5 $
Emerald	from $10 and up	350-375 $ - poor quality 620-2700 $ - good quality 5000-8500 $ - excellent quality	5-8 $	30-85 $
Diamond (Moissanite)	from 4 $	with characteristic 1/1 - $35,000	not on the market	70-150 $
Alexandrite	from 100$	1500 - 6000 $	6 $	20-30 $
Quartz (amethyst, citrine)	from $10 per kilogram!	depending on the type and processing - from 10 $	0,1 $	2-5 $
Opal	from 5 $ per piece	depending on the quality and type - from 10 $	-	3-5 $

The table compares the price of natural and synthetic stones

It can be concluded that natural gems have a very wide range of prices due to their individuality. Unlike them, synthetic ones - with ideal purity and color, are much more affordable (with the exception of moissonite).

How to distinguish a precious stone from a fake?

Much worse if instead of one natural stone, expensive by definition, the seller offers another, also natural, but at a price several times cheaper. Here, information about which stones are most often faked and what to look for when buying them can come to the rescue.

So, the most common fakes are:

- it is most often faked. More than half of the gems passed off as turquoise are fakes. The materials used for counterfeiting are glass, plastic, and the cheap mineral howlite. In addition, fakes are made from turquoise powder or its small particles that stick together. It is quite difficult to distinguish such fakes at home from natural mineral. It is clear that at home you can scratch the stone from the back to make sure it is natural, and when choosing in a store, you are unlikely to be allowed to scratch the product and carry out other manipulations with it. Therefore, just be aware that natural turquoise is very difficult to find and it is better not to purchase it on the market or from hands.

- Corundum is usually issued for a ruby. A natural ruby is very expensive, besides, it is far from ideal in appearance - unclear, not particularly clean, not to mention modest in size. If you have a fine quality ruby in front of you affordable price- this is either a synthetic ruby, or a fake. Therefore, the main rule for determining the authenticity of a ruby is the correspondence between price and quality. So, a ring with a ruby that has the characteristics of color and purity of 3/3 and a size of half a carat will cost about $ 300.

There are only a few stones whose fakes are quite easy to distinguish.

Or rather, of course, so. Firstly, the legislation regulates the production and labeling of products with diamonds and, thus, the consumer in to a large extent protected. In addition, everyone knows the simple property of a diamond to scratch glass, as well as the play of rays in it - it is simply impossible to fake it, but to consider it in quality diamond multiple refraction of rays and an amazing play of light - very easy.

It is also easy to distinguish natural opal from its imitation - it has vague borders of patterns, unlike clear ones in a fake, and the patterns themselves never repeat with each other, you should carefully consider them. In addition, the main background of the natural opal remains unchanged, regardless of the pattern. There is another method that was invented many centuries ago (apparently, they were already engaged in fake stones) - you need to look through the opal in the sun, a natural stone will cast a glow of one shade, and a fake one - bright multi-color highlights.

Zircon - you can recognize it "by eye", without resorting to any manipulations at all. Natural zircon has a luster similar to diamond and at the same time resinous or oily. Shine plus color - and zircon is easily identified.

Jewelry with diamonds is the dream of many girls and women. However, before rushing to purchase such an expensive product, you should read the recommendations of experts on how to check a diamond for authenticity so as not to become a victim of fraud.

Many people are interested in the question of how to distinguish a diamond from a fake, it is especially relevant among those who already have such jewelry or are just about to make an expensive and pleasant purchase.

Methods for checking diamonds for authenticity

One of the easiest ways to make sure that you are the owner of real diamonds is to ask for a stone evaluation from professionals in jewelry business. However, if this is not possible, since jewelers cost a lot of money to appraise gemstones, you can try to do it yourself. You will be helped following tips how to distinguish a diamond at home from fakes:

real diamond will never be cut in silver or another inexpensive metal. Such an expensive stone in the manufacture of jewelry is combined with the same expensive precious metals- mainly gold and platinum.
Perfectly smooth and even diamond surface without any defects - sure sign that what is in front of you is not a precious stone known for its brilliance and brilliance, but a fake.
Real diamonds should not show through. If you managed to read lines from a newspaper or magazine through a stone, you have a fake in front of you.
Cut diamonds always shine and play with light. Against their background, other stones look pale and dull, even despite the high-quality cut. The diamond is endowed a high degree refraction, so in the light it should sparkle strongly. No other stone can be confused with the brilliance and play of a diamond.
Diamonds never fog up. By choosing this method self check diamonds for authenticity, it is enough to wipe the stone with a dry flannel cloth and breathe on it for a few seconds. Evaporation immediately forms on the surface of any fake, the diamond will remain dry and shiny.
Genuine diamonds are not visible in water due to their transparency. By lowering a stone or jewelry with it into a container of water, you can check which stone you own - a real gem or a fake.
You can use another way to distinguish real diamond from his forgery. Its essence boils down to the effect of ultraviolet radiation on the diamond. Under ultraviolet rays, this gem always glows blue. Moissanite will glow in other shades.
Diamonds take a very long time to heat up under the influence of heat. human body. If you don’t know how to determine the authenticity of a diamond at home, to make sure that you don’t have a fake in front of you, just hold it in your palm and hold it in it for a while. Before the stone heats up, the cold from the diamond will be felt in the hand for a long time.
It is known that diamonds do not scratch, so you can rub its surface with sandpaper. If there is no trace left on the stone, then it is really real.

How can you tell if a diamond is real or fake?

More reliable way how to determine the authenticity of a diamond is to use electronic tester, which allows you to distinguish a diamond from fakes, with the exception of moissanite, a high-quality diamond simulant. However, another method will help in this: the stone must be lowered into a liquid that has specific gravity below 3.17 is the specific gravity of moissanite. During this test, the diamond will sink to the bottom while the moissanite will float to the surface of the water.

Most often, under the guise of diamonds, moissanite is given out. In this case, it will be useful to know one more option, how to determine whether a diamond is real, and not a high-tech diamond simulant. To do this, you need to hold it under fire: a real diamond will not suffer, but moissanite will turn green, which will be impossible to get rid of. This method of determining the authenticity of a precious stone is suitable for those people who are not afraid to part with the jewelry, even if it is a fake.

Colored or fancy diamonds are especially valued because they have a high aesthetic appeal and are mined extremely rarely - no more than a few dozen stones a year. Based on this, they are more expensive than other types of diamonds, which is why they are counterfeited more often than colorless stones.

Differences between diamond and rock crystal

The popularity of rock crystal in jewelry is due to the fact that this stone is very similar to a diamond. There are still differences between a diamond and rock crystal.

To make sure that it is a diamond in front of you, and not rhinestone, you can do the following: sprinkle a few drops of water on the stone, take a needle and poke it into the drops. If the water did not spread over the surface of the stone, but retained its shape, then you were not deceived.

Rhinestone allows jewelers to use different kinds cutting, resulting in a stone acquires a dazzling brilliance. This property of crystal is used to imitate diamonds.

There is one more distinguishing feature jewelry with these different stones. It is known that as a frame for real diamond stones only expensive metal is used, mainly gold and platinum. Rock crystal is more often set in silver, sometimes in gold.

How to distinguish a real diamond from a glass fake: determining authenticity

Specialists in the world jewelry art reveal a few secrets on how to distinguish a diamond from glass and not give it away a large sum money for a cheap fake.

To make it easier to determine the authenticity of a diamond, it is better to purchase a magnifying glass, which is sold in any jewelry store. The fact is that a diamond is a mineral of natural origin, so it cannot be flawless. Inside the stone, you can see various inclusions, which will never be in a fake in the form of glass or other artificial material. True, artificial diamonds can also look perfect, so you should not rely on this only criterion for the authenticity of a diamond.

In this case, you should use additional methods how to distinguish a real diamond from a fake, namely from glass. If you pay attention to the edges of the stone, then the diamond will have sharp edges, while the fake ones will be rounded. Pay attention to how the stone is fixed: if it is unreliable, then it is not real.

And finally - bring a stone under Sun rays. The way diamonds shimmer and play with light is a unique process. First, a gray-white glow appears inside the stone, and rainbow rays form outside, which are reflected on other surfaces. Many people mistakenly believe that diamonds shine with all the colors of the rainbow, in fact this is not the case, it is the gray-white radiance that appears inside the stone, and if it is multi-colored, most likely it is artificial diamond or its fake. Crystal will never sparkle like a diamond, even with use. modern technologies when cutting it.

To distinguish a diamond from glass, you can use following method, which uses a newspaper or magazine. Take a stone and put it on top of the printed text, if letters are visible through it, then you have purchased a cheap fake, and not expensive diamond. This method of determining the authenticity of diamonds is possible only if they are perfectly cut.

Simple ways to distinguish a real diamond from a fake

You have become a happy owner precious jewelry, encrusted with real diamonds, but doubt the authenticity of the stones? You can check their authenticity using the following available and simple ways how to identify a diamond at home and distinguish it from a fake:

Take sandpaper and lightly scratch the surface of the stone. If it remains intact, without scratches and roughness, there can be no doubt about the authenticity of the diamond.
Breathe on the stone for a few seconds: a real diamond will never fog up because it has a high heat conductivity. Other stones, given out under the guise of diamonds, are sure to fog up.
If you have substandard emerald and sapphire at home, you can try to check the authenticity of the diamond with their help. Take two stones - an emerald or sapphire and a diamond, and scratch the diamond with them. The fact is that these minerals are quite hard rocks, and only a genuine diamond can damage them.
A real diamond will not be damaged by hydrochloric acid, it is Chemical substance have no effect on appearance and properties of the gemstone. And a fake or an artificial stone will lose its attractive appearance, as a result of which they will no longer imitate a diamond. On a fake hydrochloric acid leave white marks.
As a fake when creating precious jewelry zirconium can be used with diamond specimens. You can distinguish these two stones by using a diamond pencil. The sharp end of such a tool is pressed onto the surface of the stone, if there are scratches, then you have zirconium in front of you. You should not press hard on the stone, because even a real diamond can be damaged in this way.

How to distinguish diamonds from cubic zirkonia?

Counterfeits of diamonds existed as early as 1920. At that time, forms of spinel such as corundolite and radiant were used as fakes. Soon their list was replenished with such minerals as titanium, strontium, sapphire, rutile and some others. It is these minerals that led the market fake diamonds.

IN last years appeared a new group imitation diamonds that differ more high quality, so they are much more difficult to distinguish from genuine diamonds. The most common imitator is zirconium dioxide, or cubic zirconia, which can easily be confused with a diamond.

It was discovered in 1976 and has since been ranked second only to moissanite in the list of fake diamonds. Fianites in the jewelry market are sold in different colors and brightness. The most expensive are colorless cubic zirconias, because they are the most difficult to produce and they look more like diamonds.

Coefficient relative density a diamond is lower than a cubic zirkonia, this feature can be used in the process of checking a diamond for authenticity by using a special device that resembles a pen pen. A diamond is tested for authenticity under the influence of ultraviolet radiation, in which a fake stone turns green-yellow.

However, many are interested in how to recognize a real diamond without such a special device. Experts in the field of jewelry give some tips on how to check the authenticity of a diamond at home in order to distinguish them from fakes:

The most important difference between these two stones is their hardness. mined in natural conditions diamond will always be harder than cubic zirconia. To distinguish between these two minerals, you can run them on glass: a diamond will leave a noticeable mark behind. Based on this feature of a precious stone, you should know that only the same mineral can damage a diamond.
The use of fat of vegetable or animal origin will also help to verify the authenticity or fake of a precious stone. During the examination, vegetable oil or melted fat can be used. They need to moisten the brush and apply a few drops of the product to the surface of the stone. The oil on the surface of the cubic zirconia will break up into many small droplets, while on the diamond it will remain in its original form.

How to identify a real diamond at home?

Many believe that there are no minerals on earth that can sparkle brighter than diamonds. In fact, such a diamond simulant exists, it is a mineral called "moissanite". Experts in the world of jewelry art offer several options for how to identify a real diamond at home and distinguish it from moissanite.

Moissanite is brighter than a real diamond, so a diamond is more difficult to distinguish from it than from cubic zirconia. Chemically, this mineral is known as silicon carbide or carborundum. natural properties moissanite allow you to pass it off as a diamond even without special efforts jewelers, as well as the use the latest technologies and modern equipment.

Natural diamonds have a rough surface and black inclusions, which is not observed in stones. artificial origin.

How to determine the authenticity of a diamond in a ring or other jewelry

Don't know how to distinguish a diamond in a ring while shopping for a piece of jewelry? Pay attention to whether the stone is glued to the frame. The fact is that when working with diamonds, glue is practically not used. Rock crystal is often attached to jewelry in this way. There is one more affordable way how to identify a diamond in a ring: take a piece of jewelry in your hand, bring it closer to your face and carefully look deep into the stone. In real diamonds, the radiance will go deep inside, it will be impossible to see the bottom in such a stone.

There is another proven way to identify a diamond in a piece of jewelry when you need to distinguish it from cubic zirconia. To do this, take the jewelry in your hand and look through it at the light. A cut diamond, due to its optical properties, which are achieved after its cutting, does not transmit light, all that can be seen when looking into it is a bright luminous point. Fianint, on the contrary, has a high throughput.

How and where to check the authenticity of a diamond in a ring?

X-rays are another method for checking the authenticity of a diamond in a ring or other piece of jewelry. Diamonds are characterized by a "radio-transparent" molecular structure. This means that genuine diamonds will never show up on an x-ray. Glass, cubic zirconia, and rock crystal have very pronounced "radio-opaque" properties, so they become visible in x-rays.

In order to check diamonds with an X-ray, it is necessary to transfer the jewelry to a special laboratory for checking the authenticity of precious stones. The laboratory is not the only place where you can check the authenticity of a diamond, such services can still be provided by some jewelry stores, which employ qualified expert jewelers.

IN laboratory conditions To determine the authenticity of a diamond, the following methods and tools can be used:

Weighing on carat scales. One of the ways to determine the authenticity of a real diamond is to weigh it: the size of the stone must necessarily correspond to the weight in grams or carats. Experts note that cubic zirconias and zircons are 55% heavier than diamonds, so it will not be difficult to see a fake with the help of scales.

Quartz lamp. UV rays illuminate natural diamonds blue, yellow, pink or lilac color. If the stone glows bright white, it indicates a fake.

Methods such as determining the authenticity of a diamond in a ring allow those who want to acquire a precious piece of jewelry to avoid being deceived by unscrupulous sellers.

How to distinguish an artificial diamond in a ring from a natural one (with photo)

In the process of making precious jewelry, both real diamonds and these stones of artificial origin are used. Wherein artificial stones are sold at the price of natural diamonds.

Having jewelry with a precious stone, many girls and women are looking for ways to identify a real diamond. Can be done at home following tests and experiments to confirm the authenticity or fake of a diamond:

A real diamond tends to behave in a certain way in a greasy environment. To determine the authenticity of a gemstone, smear it lightly vegetable oil and apply to a smooth glass surface. A real diamond will stick to glass.
When choosing jewelry, do not be tempted to buy it at a better price. It should be understood that diamonds are the most expensive gems, so they cannot be cheap.
A real diamond must be set in a piece of jewelry with an “open back» so that the gem can be easily viewed from behind. In this case, the rear surface should not have a smooth mirror finish.
Genuine diamonds have a rough surface and black inclusions, which is not observed in stones created in artificial conditions.
Another way to distinguish an artificial diamond from a natural one is to use a magnet. Sometimes, when determining the authenticity of diamonds, jewelers also use a magnet. The fact is that it attracts 90% of artificially grown stones.
The use of a magnifying glass a good option how to distinguish an artificial diamond from a genuine gemstone. Magnifier. All the irregularities small cracks, foreign inclusions, air bubbles and other defects are inherent only in stones of natural origin. Many of them can be seen only during the inspection under a magnifying glass.

In jewelry stores, diamonds can also be replaced with fakes in the form of stones such as synthetic rutile, white sapphire, yttrium aluminum garnet. If, after familiarizing yourself with all these methods for determining the authenticity of a cut diamond, you still do not know how to distinguish a natural diamond from a fake or doubt their effectiveness and reliability, when buying a product, check all certificates and certificates attached to it. Diamonds of high quality production always have GIA and AGS certificates, which are their real passport.

Ways to distinguish a real diamond are shown in these photos:

How to distinguish a black diamond from other stones?

Jewelry with black diamonds has always been valued above colorless gems. Such minerals are considered quite rare and expensive, so fakes are often sold instead. Under the guise of a black diamond, sapphire, moissanite, spinel can be sold.

How to distinguish a black diamond from other stones? You will need a 20x magnifying glass for this. The one who examines the stone takes it in his hand and peers into the structure under a magnifying glass. If cubic zirconia was used instead of an expensive black diamond, double faces will be visible, which is completely unusual for diamonds.

How to determine the value of a diamond: the main criteria

Price is one of important criteria to determine the authenticity of the stone. True, you should know that even ordinary glass, passed off as a precious stone, can have a high cost.

How to determine the cost of a diamond, and on the basis of what main criteria is the price of these natural expensive stones formed? The value of diamonds is determined based on criteria such as their color, clarity, carats and cut.

The final price is formed by the gem's certification, which is issued by the GIA (Gemological Institute of America), EGL (European Gemological Laboratory), IGI (International Gemological Institute). There are similar centers in Russia.

Everything available methods how to identify a diamond at home, in the video below. They will help you independently evaluate the diamond and establish its authenticity. However, for more accurate and reliable results However, a laboratory study should be carried out.

What is this stone?

We ask ourselves this question all the time when we notice some interesting special stone among the pebbles, when we walk along the seashore, we find a beautiful one. a crystal in a mountainous area, or suddenly we notice pieces in the pit of a dump, sparkling with gold or silver tint, we stumble over a border, or we examine a beautiful piece of jewelry. We always want to know: what kind of mineral, what kind of precious stone shimmers so beautifully?

All minerals, with the exception of native mercury, are solid. Mineral chewing water, no matter how tasty it is and no matter how many minerals are indicated in its composition on the label, is liquid, which means that it is not a mineral.

Everything produced by man, from glass in a window to quartz in a watch, is also not a mineral. A mineral necessarily has a natural origin. But with the definition of the concept of “crystal”, the situation is a little different.

It is precisely because of the regular atomic arrangement that the faces of the crystals are smooth. Almost all minerals are crystals, even if outwardly they are not very similar to them. There is a very small number of minerals in which atoms are not arranged in a regular form of a crystal lattice. Such minerals are called amorphous. The most common example is opal, which, unlike quartz with a virtually similar structure, is not capable of forming crystals.

Gems - These are beautiful, hard minerals that are cut in order to decorate them with jewelry. In order to fall into the category of precious stones, a mineral must meet and respond to several criteria: it must be amazingly beautiful, that is, satisfy aesthetic requirements. This means that it must have a beautiful color, and in a faceted state it must shine and shine as strongly as possible. The latter is the most important, since, for example, a diamond in its usual form is absolutely ugly, colorless and not attractive.

stones describe as large geological bodies, consisting of many formations of one or more varieties of minerals. For example, marble consists only of grains of such a mineral as calcite or calcareous spar, but granite contains 3 types of minerals: the first is orthoclase (feldspar), the second is quartzite, and the third number is mica.

properties of minerals

In order to identify a mineral, one must know its properties well. Each type of mineral has a number of properties, the combination of which becomes unique to that mineral. Thus, in order to accurately determine the mineral, you need to check as many of its properties as possible. Figuring out properties such as hardness or color of the line is quite simple, since this can be done either without tools at all, or with the help of tools that are sold in stores.

In the case of determining some other properties, such as chemical composition, rather complex equipment and special education are required, and, of course, as you understand, an ordinary person cannot do this.

color lines

To determine the color of a feature of a mineral that is being studied, it is carried out on an unglazed and, accordingly, slightly rough surface of a porcelain biscuit. The color of the remaining feature is characteristic of this type of mineral. For example, fluorite can be colorless, green, yellow, brown, blue, pink, even purple, and its trait color will always be white.

Hardness

All minerals are classified according to the degree of hardness, since this property is characteristic of any mineral. If you use the Mohs hardness scale, then it is quite easy to determine the hardness. This scale represents ten minerals, the hardness of which is increasing, that is, each subsequent mineral scratches the previous one.

1. The first is Talc

2. Gypsum is in second place

3. Third comes Calcite

4.Fourth Fluorite

6. Then orthoclase and feldspar

7.Quartz seventh

8. Then Topaz

9. Corundum comes next to last

10. Closes the hardest diamond

The determination of hardness is carried out in this way. First, a mineral with medium hardness is taken, for example, apatite (hardness is 5), and it is checked that it leaves lion scratched on the specimen under test. If it is, then the next softer mineral is taken. And so on until reference the mineral will no longer scratch the test sample. If at the same time to scratch the reference stones with the test subjects, it means that we have minerals in front of us, the hardness of which is the same. This is already a good result.

If the sample under study cannot be scratched immediately with the chosen stone of medium hardness, then a harder standard is taken on a scale. Thus, it is easy to determine the hardness of any mineral on the Mohs scale. Always scratch with a sharp edge on a flat and fresh surface. After each attempt, you should lightly rub the left mark and carefully examine it with a fool to make sure that the mineral is scratched.

Important ! With each reference specimen, it is necessary to check in the opposite direction. Only in this way can you accurately verify the result.

Viscosity

The behavior of a mineral when scratched or bent is called toughness. Most minerals are brittle, that is, when scratched, for example, with a steel needle, dust easily flies off the stone. If this does not happen, then we are dealing with a soft mineral, for example, galena. If, when scratching, dust is not formed at all, as, for example, when cutting butter knife, then such a mineral is called cutting or cutting. These include argentite and gold. In addition, gold can still be cut into thin plates. Such minerals are also called malleable and malleable.

Other minerals, on the contrary, are elastic, such as mica, it can be bent, but after that it returns to its original position. Flexible minerals, such as gypsum, bend easily, but the bend does not return to its original position, as they harden in a new position.

Color

At first, it may seem that the color of the mineral should be the most an important factor for definition, but, unfortunately, it sucks and not so. There are, of course, minerals whose color is very characteristic, such as green malachite or blue azurite, but most minerals have not just one color, but many different colors. various shades. For example, quartz comes in colorless, brown, pink, purple, yellow, and black, while diamond comes in yellow, white, green, blue, brown, and black.

It happens that some minerals in contact with air are covered with a layer of a different color. This layer is called tarnish. For example, a completely fresh bornite chip has a pink color with a metallic sheen, however, in just a few hours it oxidizes and becomes covered with a layer that shimmers reddish, bluish and greenish flowers. It follows that the color of the mineral should always be checked on a freshly chipped surface.

Shine

Each raw mineral has a certain brilliance, characteristic of this instance. However, this brilliance is difficult to measure. It can only be described in comparison with objects from our everyday life.

glass shine matches the brilliance of plain glass in the windows. It occurs most often.

metallic luster matches the brilliance of polished metal. For example, like aluminum foil.

Silky shine can be compared to the brilliance of soft room light on natural silk.

Resin glitter is the sheen of resin that we can see during road construction.

Oily sheen like the sheen of grease stains on paper.

diamond glitter - it is a radiant brilliance, like from a cut diamond or from glass made of lead crystal.

Pearly shine comparable to the brilliance of the inner side of the shell leaf, a whitish shimmer with multi-colored tints of color.

Density

Density, or specific gravity, is the weight of a mineral per unit volume, which is measured in grams per cubic centimeter. Measuring density is not so easy, it requires high-precision instruments. Despite this, density can also be used as one of the features for determination. By simply weighing it on your hand, you can determine whether a mineral is light (density below 2), normal (density around 2.5), heavy (density above 3.5) or very heavy (6 and above). Better yet, take a piece of similar size with a density known to you in your other hand and compare.

To the question of how to determine a gem from a fake, asked by the author IVAN DULIN the best answer is SOME RECOMMENDATIONS THAT WILL HELP YOU DIFFERENTIATE A NATURAL GEMSTONE FROM IMITATION.
Aquamarine.
All glass imitations feel warmer to the touch, unlike real stone. If the stone is not set in the frame, holding it with tweezers (so as not to heat it from the hands), touch it with the tip of the tongue - the stone should be cold.
Diamond.
When examining a diamond with the naked eye or with a 10x magnifying glass, one must take into account that it is processed in such a way that almost all the light entering the stone through the crown is completely reflected from its back faces, as from a series of mirrors. Therefore, if you look at the light through a cut diamond, only a luminous point in the stone will be visible. In addition, if you look through a diamond that is in a ring put on a finger, then it is impossible to see the finger through it.
Diamond leaves a scratch on the surface of the glass, as well as on the polished surface of other stones. When a faceted diamond is pressed firmly against the surface of the sample, one can notice that the diamond "clings" to it, leaving a visible scratch that does not disappear if rubbed with a wet finger. For such a test, the least noticeable place is chosen.
To distinguish diamond from spinel and synthetic sapphire, the stones are immersed in a colorless liquid with a refractive index close to that of spinel and sapphire (methylene iodide or mono-bromide monoftlen). Spinel and sapphire simply won't show up in liquid, and diamond will shine brightly. A similar but less distinct effect of the "disappearance" of a fake diamond is given by plain water and glycerin. In the same way, simpler and cheaper fakes for a diamond are isolated - lead-rich crystal glass.
Garnets are precious stones that have the power of magnetic attraction.
Some other stones are also determined by magnetism. To do this, a stone (preliminarily weighed) is placed on a high cork (to separate from the metal pan of the scales), which is placed on the bowl. After the scales are balanced, a small horseshoe-shaped magnet is slowly brought to the stone until it almost touches the surface of the stone. If the mineral has a noticeable magnetism, then the balance will be disturbed when the magnet is 10-12 mm from the stone. write down minimum weight which is "held" by a magnet. The difference between them by the true weight will characterize the attraction of the stone to the magnet.
Emerald.
The characteristic features of synthetic stones are twisted veils.
Quartz can be distinguished from glass by touching the stone and glass with the tip of the tongue. Quartz is much colder.
Ruby.
First of all, it must be remembered that pure, densely colored large ones are extremely rare in nature. This fact alone calls into question the natural origin of a large ruby.
Sapphire.
If a stone is immersed in a liquid with a certain refractive index, the following color distribution can be observed in it: in a synthetic stone there are always curved, differently colored stripes, in a natural one - the stripes are straight and parallel to one or more faces.
Topaz.
It is exceptionally easy to polish and can sometimes be identified by touch by its characteristic "slipperiness". Synthetic corundum in various shades Pink colour used to simulate pink topaz. However, it looks too good to be real.
Crystal.
Real rhinestone is always cool to the touch
Zircon.
No stone, with the exception of opal and diamond, can be identified as easily as zircon. With the naked eye or with a simple magnifying glass. Its special brilliance, somewhat reminiscent of diamond and at the same time oily or resinous, combined with a characteristic colors often allow you to recognize the stone at a glance. Using a magnifying glass, it is possible, when observing through upper part stone to see the worn edges of the faces.

Natural gemstones are expensive and are often replaced by fakes, synthetic gemstones, or masqueraded as expensive stones cheap. One of the scientific ways to determine the authenticity natural stones is to use the properties of luminescence - the glow of a stone in the light of an ultraviolet lamp. This diagnostic method is good because it can be used "on the go", since UV lamps (flashlights, pens, testers) weigh and cost little, and they can be carried with you.

For reliability, I will show you an experience with changing the color of the glow of some stones, in the first photo at the beginning of the post you see: a thread river pearls, a ring with a blue sapphire, a navratna ring with 9 stones (), we are interested in a tiny cloudy gray fragment of a diamond, next to it is a pearl, in the middle is a dark, ornamental, not gem quality ruby. For the test, I use a pen with an ultraviolet light, it is in the background.

I must say right away that it makes sense to check with ultraviolet only those stones in which luminescence is present and pronounced, but not all stones have it.
I am aware of the presence of luminescence in the following precious and semi-precious stones:
Diamond - luminescence: different, colorless - blue, brown - green, also yellow.
Corundum - luminescence: red for ruby, y blue sapphire- purple or absent; yellow, orange for yellow corundum.
Emerald, aquamarine - there is no luminescence, alexandrite (also a beryl group) has a weak dark red.
Topaz - luminescence brown, lilac-yellow
Grenades do not luminesce;
Mother-of-pearl grown in sea water, does not luminesce, while in freshwater pearls it glows brightly.

My pen with a UV diode is portable and low-power, since I am not illuminating 1 stone, but the entire test group, that is, I am moving the light bulb away from the object of study, the glow in the photo is weak. When you shine on 1 stone, if there is luminescence, the stone simply lights up. Yes, and it is also difficult to focus the camera in macro mode and shine at the same time. But what you see, I think, will be enough to understand that this method of UV diagnostics works.

And now the actual test result - a photo of pearls and other stones in ultraviolet rays with the lights off.

The photo shows that the dark red ruby has turned crimson, that is, a dark ruby in the dark with UV light looks brighter than under a regular light bulb! The pearl turned bluish, a grain of gray diamond turned pale blue, but this is not visible in the photo, but my sapphire does not give luminescence, this method is not suitable for it.

Anything can be used as a source of ultraviolet - UV pens, more powerful flashlights with several UV diodes, tanning lamps, currency testers, UV nail dryers and any similar products .... I buy UV pens, since they are compact and convenient in that you can put invisible marks if necessary, sometimes it comes in handy.

This pen-flashlight with an ultraviolet diode was bought by me on aliexpress in August for $ 1, now it costs $ 0.49 in general. A rather small but powerful UV flashlight with 9 LEDs can be bought on Ali for 3.5-4 dollars, agree that the price of the tester is simply ridiculous for checking the authenticity of gems :) In general, on aliexpress great amount UV lamps for any purpose and cheaper than in Russia.

So check the stones before buying and do not be fooled, do not buy fakes!

I would be glad if my article helps you in diagnosing and I am grateful if you share the results of your experiments and tests, and just your opinion about my post ....