transparency

These photos show both the transparency and very dark colors of a gem-quality painite crystal. 0.7 x 0.3 x 0.2 cm, Ongaing, near Mogok, Myanmar.…

People have prized opals and their play of colors for millennia. Pliny the Elder described opals as “made up of the glories of the most precious…

Selenite (colorless gypsum crystal) with incredible transparency. 20.0 x 10.0 x 10.0 cm. Naica, Chihuahua, Mexico. © Rob Lavinsky, www.iRocks.com.…

During the Middle Ages, some people believed dragons had eyes made of garnets. These translucent garnets are still attached to the graphite schist…

Sometimes during a crystal’s formation, a new layer grows over a transparent crystal. When the growth of the original crystal resumes, it’s…

The pinkish red core of this watermelon tourmaline accentuates the carved flower against the sepals carved from the pale green rind. The stone’s…

The strongest market for jade — both jadeite and nephrite varieties — is China. The bi, the donut-shaped Chinese symbol for eternity, is a popular…

Lavender jade rarely has high transparency and good texture like this dyed specimen. Photo courtesy of liveauctioneers.com and Hindman.

Our table comparing the properties of jade lookalikes with natural jade will help gemologists distinguish authentic jade from simulants.