Real Jade Vs Fake Jade

A mixture of natural jadeite jade (A jade), genuine nephrite jade, and jade simulants photo courtesy of Jewels of the Trade

Jade Simulants

One of the biggest problems that jade customers face today is the prevalence of fake jade on the market. Dyed green quartz, aventurine, serpentine, and even glass often pose as The Stone of Heaven, duping unsuspecting buyers into overpaying for low-value product.

To understand what is fake jade though, first we must understand what is real jade.

What is Jade?

There are two gemstones gemologically considered to be "jade" in the USA: Nephrite jade (sometimes sold online as Hetian jade, which we explain here) and jadeite jade (also called fei cui.)

 Nephrite Jade

Jadeite Jade (fei cui)
  • The jade of Ancient China, revered for >8,000 years in Asia.
  • Valued highly as "pounamu" by the Maori people of New Zealand.
  • The Stone of Kings, traded and revered by Mesoamerican cultures from 2500BC to 2500AD. 
  • Jadeite jade (fei cui) was formally introduced to the Chinese market during the Qing dynasty.
  • The toughest gemstone in the world, being up to 48x harder to break than a diamond.
  • Extremely tough, though not quite as tough as nephrite, jadeite jade (fei cui) can be up to 24x harder to break than a diamond.
  • Not quite as hard (resistant to scratching) as jadeite jade, nephrite jade is around a 6 on the Moh's scale with some exceptions (the range may be more like 5.5 to 7, but it's hard to say for sure.)
  • Ranked 6.5 to 7 on the Moh's Scale of Mineral Hardness, most jadeite jade is as hard as quartz, making it suitable for everyday wear.

 

Nephrite is not a mineral, but rather the gemstone name for micro-to-massive-microcrystalline actinolite-tremolite, an amphibole. Read here to learn why Mason-Kay doesn't call all nephrite jade "Hetian jade."

Jadeite is a mineral, but the gemstone known as jadeite jade (also called fei cui and pyroxene jade) is a polycrystalline aggregate comprised primarily of jadeite, omphacite, kosmochlor, or a combination of any of these.

These geology words are not important for the jade customer, but rather show that jade is defined as all other gemstones are: by its chemical composition and crystal structure. It’s not jade because of its color or because of where it comes from, it is jade because of its chemistry.

 

Common Simulants of Jade

Now that we've established that jade is either nephrite jade or jadeite jade, we can talk about non-jade stones. When a non-jade poses as jade, we call this a simulant.

Dyed Green Quartz

Dyed green quartz may be the most common simulant of natural jadeite jade, and might be as or more common on the market than treated jade.

It is difficult to identify with the naked eye, as quartz and jadeite jade share these attributes: Glassy luster, similar thermal conductivity, and sonority.

The best way to distinguish between quartz and jade is with gemological testing. A trained gemologist can use a refractometer to properly differentiate these stones. Quartz' RI (refractive index) is 1.54, whereas jadeite jade's RI is usually around 1.66.

If your local jeweler doesn't offer gemological testing, you can send your piece to Mason-Kay. Learn more about jade testing services here.

Learn more about quartz as a jade simulant:

Identify Real Vs Fake Jade (video)

Jade Simulants (video)

Can You Identify Jade with a Presidium Gem Tester? (video) (The short answer is no...)

Serpentine

Serpentine is a common simulant of nephrite jade, but is occasionally seen as a jadeite jade simulant in jade statues.

It is typically much softer than the two jades, with it's hardness being 2.5 to 5.5 (jadeite jade hardness 6.5-7, nephrite jade hardness usually 6-6.5).

Serpentine and nephrite jade can form together in what we call contact zones, meaning that a single boulder can have both. This is partly why distinguishing them can be quite difficult, because serpentine is often being sold as nephrite jade by the mine.

While serpentine's appearance often gives it away, the best way to be sure that your jade isn't serpentine is with refractive index testing, a service your local jewelry store likely offers.

Serpentine's RI (refractive index) is 1.56, whereas jadeite jade's RI is usually around 1.66. Nephrite jade's RI is usually around 1.60 to 1.632.

If your local jeweler doesn't offer gemological testing, you can send your piece to Mason-Kay. Learn more about jade testing services here.

Learn more about serpentine as a jade simulant:

Identify Rough Jade (video)

Identify Real Vs Fake Jade (video)

Jade Simulants (video)

Can You Identify Jade with a Presidium Gem Tester? (video) (The short answer is no...)

Aventurine (Quartz)

You might be able to identify aventurine quartz by it's appearance. Platelets of chromium mica characterizes this form of quartz. Aventurine appears crystalline with vitreous luster. It is often cut into beads and jewelry, but material is usually spotty.

Aventurine's RI is 1.54, whereas jadeite jade's RI is usually around 1.66. Nephrite jade's RI is usually around 1.60 to 1.632.

If your local jeweler doesn't offer gemological testing, you can send your piece to Mason-Kay. Learn more about jade testing services here.

Learn more about aventurine quartz as a jade simulant:

Identify Real Vs Fake Jade (video)

Jade Simulants (video)

Can You Identify Jade with a Presidium Gem Tester? (video) (The short answer is no...)

Soapstone

Also known as steatite, or talc. This is much softer than jade, and is easily scratched with a knife- blade. It is only used for figurines.

If your local jeweler doesn't offer gemological testing, you can send your piece to Mason-Kay. Learn more about jade testing services here.

Chalcedony (Quartz)

It is difficult to identify with the naked eye, as quartz and jadeite jade share these attributes: Glassy luster, similar thermal conductivity, and sonority.

The best way to distinguish between quartz and jade is with gemological testing. A trained gemologist can use a refractometer to properly differentiate these stones. Quartz' RI (refractive index) is 1.54, whereas jadeite jade's RI is usually around 1.66.

If your local jeweler doesn't offer gemological testing, you can send your piece to Mason-Kay. Learn more about jade testing services here.

Learn more about quartz as a jade simulant:

Identify Real Vs Fake Jade (video)

Jade Simulants (video)

Can You Identify Jade with a Presidium Gem Tester? (video) (The short answer is no...)

Chrysoprase (Quartz)

It is difficult to identify with the naked eye, as quartz and jadeite jade share these attributes: Glassy luster, similar thermal conductivity, and sonority.

The best way to distinguish between quartz and jade is with gemological testing. A trained gemologist can use a refractometer to properly differentiate these stones. Quartz' RI (refractive index) is 1.54, whereas jadeite jade's RI is usually around 1.66.

If your local jeweler doesn't offer gemological testing, you can send your piece to Mason-Kay. Learn more about jade testing services here.

Learn more about quartz as a jade simulant:

Identify Real Vs Fake Jade (video)

Jade Simulants (video)

Can You Identify Jade with a Presidium Gem Tester? (video) (The short answer is no...)

Glass

Long used as a jade simulant, glass is almost always discernible by gas bubbles in its interior, (a 10x loupe is sufficient). So-called "Peking glass" looks like jade until examined closely. A Japanese product developed in the 1970's called 'meta-jade' is also glass, but has dendrite-like inclusions.

If your local jeweler doesn't offer gemological testing, you can send your piece to Mason-Kay. Learn more about jade testing services here.

What about 'B jade?'

Funny enough, 'B jade' is still technically jade. So even though it's mostly plastic, it's considered treated jade and not a simulant.

The short answer is this: If your stone turns out to be jade, it's still extremely important to know whether it's natural or treated. The value difference between the two is massive.

Learn more about treated jades here:

Natural Jade Vs Treated Jade (article)

3 Reasons to Not Buy Treated Jade (article)

Jade Treatments and Simulants (video)

Jade Simulant FAQs

How do I know if my jade is real?

It's best to build a frame of reference for what real jade (natural jadeite jade or genuine nephrite jade) looks like. Then, when you see bubblegum pink dyed quartz - you'll definitely know it's not jade.

However, many simulants look exactly like jade. In cases where the stone does look like real jade, you'll almost always have to have it tested.

Your local jeweler (or your friends here at Mason-Kay) can distinguish between jade and it's simulants using refractive index testing.

However, simulants aren't the only concern you should have. If your stone tests as jadeite jade, the next step is to determine whether it's natural (untreated) or treated.

Most gemologists can not detect treatment in a jade stone. For these situations, you can send your piece to Mason-Kay. Learn more about jade testing services here.

If my stone turns out to be a simulant, does it still have value?

In the case of simulants, some actually do have value. For instance, chrysoprase can easily fetch high prices (though not normally higher than jade.) However, dyed green quartz has little to no value.

In the case of jade that turns out to be treated, unfortunately that has a very negative impact on value. 'B jade' has polymer impregnation, and is worth only ~5% the value of it's natural jade counterpart. As for dyed jade, 'C' jade and 'B+C' jade, a single stone is only worth around $20-$50 at the most.

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