WHAT ABOUT DYE AND FAKES?
WHAT ABOUT DYE AND FAKES?
As with other precious stones, there have been many attempts to enhance (and even synthesize) jade. Most of these have been detectable by standard and accessible gemological methods until the late 1980's when a new process of treating jadeite came about. This method involves bleaching an already-promising but stained stone, and then impregnating it with a form of plastic. The result is called "B" jade. Currently, infrared spectroscopy is the only test for the detection of polymer in jadeite.
Red Jade can be heated to increase the redness, but the usual result is a dull brown, and translucence is lost. This process, by the way, is irreversible. Lavender can pose somewhat of a problem; it has a long history of being dyed in a form of "blueberry juice." In some cases, dyed lavender can be spotted right off (in fractured material, dye will accumulate in fissures); but it is not always possible to detect dyed lavender by eye alone. Most dyes fade with time and exposure to sunlight. We recommend buying from a reputable source from which one has recourse.
Common jade fakes include serpentine (also bowenite), carnelian, aventurine quartz, glass, grossularite, idocrase and soapstone. This is not a complete list. Bear in mind that materials known as new jade, Honan jade, Korean jade, metajade and Sinkiang jade are almost never actually jade. The term jade is synonymous with "precious" in Chinese and thus "korean jade" may be no more jade than a "golden sunset" contains gold. Again, know your dealer.
