| Diamond
or Imitation
Anyone
can be fooled by imitations, even diamond experts. However,
by doing the following tests, you can reduce your chances
of being fooled.
See-through
Test Look at the stone face up. Can you see through it? If
you can, it's probably an imitation (In some cases a poor
cut or the presence of dirt or grease makes it possible to
see through a diamond). The see¬t through test can also
be done by placing a clean, round stone face down on newsprint
. If you can see the letters through the stone, it probably
is an imitation. For fancy shapes such as ovals and pears,
it's best to limit this test to the face-up view because often,
you can see through their pavilions.
If
you plan to examine stones in antique jewelry, you should
be aware that the diamonds may have a see-through effect due
to the different cut and the large culet.Tilt Test Tilt the
stone against a dark background. Can you see an obvious, dark,
fan-shaped area If you can, it's doubtful that it is a diamond.
This test is a variation of the see-through test, but it's
easier to do on mounted stones. It also works best on round
diamonds.
Rainbow Colors Test Move the stone under a light and note
how strong the flashes of rainbow colors are in comparison
to a diamond under the same light. If the rainbow colors (also
called dispersion or fire) are a lot more obvious than your
diamond, the stone may be synthetic rutile or strontium titanate.
If they're less obvious, the stone may be an imitation or
a diamond with a large table and a thin crown. This test is
most useful for distinguishing diamond from synthetic rutile
and strontium titanate, the two imitations which, like diamond,
can be cut to have no see-through effect.
CZ
(cubic zirconia) also displays more rainbow colors than diamond,
but sometimes it's hard for the untrained eye to see the difference.
It's particularly important to compare CZ and diamond under
the same light. The rainbow colors are easier to see in sunlight
and under incandescent light (from light bulbs) than under
fluorescent light.
The letters through
May
be curious
Diamonds
are noted
Most
diamond professionals
Create diamond imitations
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