Artificial amethyst: what is it and how can it be distinguished from natural stone?

Amethyst is a type of natural quartz. It belongs to precious or semi-precious stones and has been known since ancient times. Transparent specimens are classified as precious, and opaque ones are classified as ornamental. Amethyst is even mentioned in biblical texts. Instances of this mineral adorn the crowns of both the British Empire and Russian tsars. The popularity of this mineral has not faded away in our time.

Modern jewelers use it in the manufacture of various jewelry: pendants, pendants, rings, bracelets, hairpins, etc. Despite the fact that amethyst is not at all a rare or especially expensive stone, they began to actively forge it.

In order to be able to determine the authenticity of a stone and distinguish a natural crystal from a fake, even at home, we will consider several features inherent in a real amethyst. The most important characteristic is color. The color range is predominantly in purple tones - from pale lilac to dark purple, almost black. Due to this color, the gem is often called a stone violet. The stone, as a rule, is translucent, uneven, dull in color.

The crystal has a sufficient degree of hardness - 7 on the Mohs scale, that is, it is problematic to scratch it, however, it itself can easily damage, for example, glass. Amethyst is characterized by glass, pearlescent luster, transparency, fragility, lack of cleavage.

Under the guise of a real gem, unscrupulous sellers can offer imitations of glass, plastic, other natural, but cheaper minerals. In addition, artificially grown crystals, including amethysts, are now appearing. Similar specimens are grown on the basis of quartz. That is, natural material is used. The rate of crystal creation in the laboratory is about 0.5 mm per day, that is a small crystal can be obtained in a month.

In terms of most characteristics, hydrothermal samples are in no way inferior to natural ones, in some respects they even surpass. Because artificial stones are perfect. These are not found in nature. One way to create artificial minerals is hydrothermal. Its essence lies in the crystallization of a substance from a hot water solution under high pressure.

Synthetic and hydrothermal crystals are not, in the full sense, a fake of natural stones. Rather, they relate to artificial analogs, this is a kind of alternative to natural materials. So, the main difference between synthetic crystals and hydrothermal crystals is the base. For hydrothermal ones, natural raw materials, crushed into small pieces, are taken. And for synthetic, not a crumb, a solution.

Since the basic physical characteristics and properties of the gem are preserved, synthetic and hydrothermal stones are widely used in jewelry. It is not so important for the craftsmen in what conditions the crystal was formed - in nature or in the laboratory, much more important is the color, density, structure.

Hydrothermal and synthetic stones are used not only for jewelry, but also in the military and space industries, even in medical devices. The seller is obliged to inform the buyer that the stone has undergone hydrothermal treatment. If a product is sold with a hydrothermal stone, then the description of the insert will be marked "GT", which informs that the gem is artificial.

Also, an imitation of a gem can be obtained by irradiating colorless quartz with cobalt, after which the crystal will change color to purple. The problem is that it will quickly disappear when heated or exposed to sunlight.

Plastic imitation is the easiest to identify. It is light compared to a stone, warm, easily damaged. Even an unprepared person can handle this.

Several methods are known to distinguish a real mineral from a synthetic or glass counterpart.

• Colour. The first step in a visual assessment of a stone is suggested to pay attention to purity and color. The color of a natural gem is never absolutely even and equally saturated over the entire surface. Also, there is no perfect transparency. Of course, such a pattern would look the most advantageous in any decoration. But the fact is that in nature such are extremely rare. This means that we have an artificially grown crystal.
• The next item is the hardness test. This test requires a knife or blade to try to scratch the stone. As mentioned earlier, amethyst is quite hard, so leaving a scratch on it is difficult. If this succeeded, then this is a fake. Likewise, natural minerals can be distinguished from glass and plastic. If the crystal is artificially grown, then it has the same hardness as the real one. Therefore, scratches will not appear on it.
• Thermal conductivity. One of the simplest methods. Most natural gems (amethyst is no exception) have poor thermal conductivity.If you hold it in your hand, then a real amethyst will be heated with difficulty. Fake is much faster. This experience works best when comparing two samples. If you know the origin of one of them, then the difference in heating time can be used to determine the imitation.
• Water. In this test for authenticity, the sample is immersed in water for a minute and the edges are observed. A real stone will make the edges look paler. This method is suitable for all imitation options, including artificially grown minerals - they retain a uniform color.
• Ultraviolet. When irradiated with ultraviolet light, amethyst of natural origin will discolor evenly, unlike synthetic ones. The latter are discolored with spots. Even if you compare the color of the crystal in bright sunlight and room light, the difference will be noticeable in natural stone.
• Magnifier. Using a microscope or magnifying glass, you can detect microcracks or inclusions of gas bubbles. Cultured specimens cannot have them. There are also jagged lines on the surface of artificial minerals - they appear when grown in laboratory conditions.

All of the verification methods listed above are suitable for home use. There are laboratory methods - X-ray or spectral analysis. They have a high cost, but guarantee the determination of the authenticity of the mineral with high accuracy.

For information on how to identify natural stone, see the next video.