#WHITE AGATE BOOKENDS HOW TO#

One layer can absorb dye better the other will not accept it at all. The formation process of agate layers lets density and chemical composition vary from layer to layer. The final test to distinguish a Real Agate from a Fake is to look for places of dye concentration. Sometimes you can even see them with a naked eye and the bubbles might even be on the surface, leaving a hollow, round pit. Using magnifying glass or loupe you will be able to spot bubbles or swirls, which cannot occur in a real agate. Fake agate will be damaged, real agate will not show you any sign of interaction.įake agate represented by the artificial glass can look like a real one, however, try to watch inside the stone attentively.

Fake agate is too soft and you can try to make a little scratch with a knife.

In most cases, it cannot, but if it is, put your stone on the newspaper or book and try to distinguish any letter.

The second step is to use a flashlight and watch if the light goes through.

Made of plastic Fake agate will look dull because plastic is a too soft material and cannot accept fine polish.

The first step is careful observation.

#WHITE AGATE BOOKENDS HOW TO#

How to Identify Fake Agate?įake agate represented by plastic can be easily identified by some optical observation and after the hardness test. If no light shines through and the stone is opaque it is an indicator of fake agate, probably made of jasper or plastic.įake agate made of plastic can look dull and a lot of scratches can be spotted on the surface.Īnother type of fake agate will possess small round gas bubbles inside the body of the stone. Unnatural vibrant neon colors like bright pink, neon blue, turquoise, emerald green, vivid blue, and uniform black are typical for fake agate mage of dyed chalcedony.įake agates usually do not transmit light. We will consider low-quality agate and chalcedony, the appearance of which has been enhanced by the dying process, as Fake agate.Īnother two groups are colorful semi-opaque glass and look-alike plastic.įake agate usually looks extremely bright. Real agate is also translucent, which means, that layers will let the light go through the body of the stone.įirst of all, Fake agate can be represented by different types of material.Because of the relatively high density of real agate, you will feel a substantial weight, when it is the Real agate is in your hand.

Even a knife will not leave any scratch on real agate. It’s quite high, which means that real agate cannot be scratched easily. As real agate is composed of tiny quartz crystals, agate has the same quarts hardness – 7.The Real agate will have gentle natural colors: white, grayish-white, beige, milky-brown, light-yellow, gentle orange, from light to dark brown, reddish-brown, and sometimes light blue.Here is a shortlist for you to identify a Real agate: These bands are different in color because of slight changes in the chemical composition inside the agate minerals, triggered by changes in the mineral formation environment. Gemologists characterize Real agate by the stone’s multicolored bands, which can either form concentric circles or horizontal layers. Real Agate occurs in a variety of colors, more often in white, milky-brown, light-yellow, gentle orange, from light to dark brown, reddish-brown. Its chemical formula is the same as quartz (SiO 2), however, while quartz is a monocrystal, agate is composed of tiny quartz crystals, different colors of which give rise to a magnificent pattern inside the Real agate stone. Real agate is a translucent (semi-opaque) variety of microcrystalline quartz. I f you are interested in checking out the most beautiful real agates you can find them by or here ().

White agate bookends