How To Clean Jade Ring

As Jewelry Shopping Guide editors, we write about things that we love and we think you'll like too. We often have affiliate partnerships, and may generate some revenue from these links at no cost to you.

Jade is one of the most sought after gemstones in the world with a very high demand around the globe. For some cultures, jade holds great cultural and historical significance. Because of this high demand and due to jade's relatively high price, many unscrupulous retailers may try to pass off fake jade as the real thing. It's important to ensure that you're buying the real deal to avoid getting ripped off.

Remember that there is no issue with buying fake or imitation jade. The issue is only if the jeweler is not upfront with you about the authenticity of the jade.

While the only foolproof way to ensure that your jade is authentic is to take it to a gemologist, there are some tests you can do which will help you gauge if it's likely to be fake.

Know Your Jade – Nephrite and Jadeite

First things first, you have to know that there are two types of jade that are sold on the market – nephrite and jadeite. Although both are called jade, there are many differences between the two which basically means that they are two separate gemstones.

A gorgeous jade pendant showing a beautiful vibrant green color. See it here.

Jadeite is rarer, denser, harder and more valuable than nephrite. It comes in a wider range of colors. Imperial jade, a type of vivid green jadeite, is the most valuable variety of jade on the market. Nephrite is typically green, yellow or white. It is more commonly found and as a result more affordable. Nephrite is tougher than jadeite due to its composition.

Most jade on the market today is nephrite and it can be difficult to come across high quality jadeite.

Is My Jade Fake?

There are many easy ways to check if your jade is authentic but note these aren't fail safe methods. They will, however, give you an initial idea about the stone.

Check for Flaws

While flaws in gemstones are typically considered a drawback, they can sometimes be a blessing in disguise. Flaws in jade reveal that the stone is likely authentic.

Hold the gemstone under a source of light and carefully inspect it. Look for impurities resembling thin vein-like fibers. If you see bubbles within the stone, it is likely that the stone is not genuine.

To examine the stone carefully, you can get yourself a jeweler's loupe like this one, which magnifies over 30 times which will help you to have a clearer look.

Take care though. If you're in a jade store and you start inspecting the gemstone carefully (with or without a jeweler's loupe), you may get on the wrong side of the retailer. However, it's never a good sign if the retailer doesn't like you checking their products. It could be that he is trying to hide something.

The Scratch Test

This test is one that many jade collector's swear by Authentic jade is very hard and tough and does not scratch easily. It is much harder than the metals used to create common objects. Steel has a hardness of 5 on the Mohs scale while jade ranks between 6 to 7. What this means is that jade is harder than the metal and should not be affected if scratched by it.

To perform the scratch test, take a metal object like a needle, a knife or a pair of scissors, and scratch the surface of the jade. What you're looking for is whether the metal leaves a mark on the jade. If, however, you see that the metal has left a clear scratch in the gemstone, you're jade is probably fake. Real jade cannot be scratched by steel.

When performing the scratch test on a mounted piece of jade, take care to utilize a part of the stone that is not readily visible, like the underside of a pendant. Never do this test in a store and even when doing it at home, take care that you do it in a way so as not to damage the setting of the jade.

The Temperature Test

Jade is naturally very cool to the touch, regardless of the temperature of its environment. Even if placed in a warm temperature, jade will maintain its coolness. It takes a fair bit of time to warm up and cools down very quickly.

A good way to check is to hold the jade in your hand and feel its temperature. It may warm up to the touch of your hand. Set it aside for several seconds and then take it back into your hand. If it is real jade, it would have cooled down very quickly.

However, the heat test is a tricky one as it depends on a number of factors and can be quite a subjective test.

The Sound Test

Real jade has a beautiful soft clinking sound, unlike the heavier chime of glass or the hollow sound of plastic. Jade is very dense and is often heavier than other gemstones of the same size. This test is more effective if you have a piece of genuine jade on hand. Tap the gemstone in question with a piece of real jade and listen to the sound it produces. You can also tap the gemstone with a piece of glass or something a metal object and listen. It should have a bell-like heavy clinking sound.

A Word of Warning

While there are many ways to check if your jade is real, these tests are not in any way conclusive. If anyone tells you that these above tests are fool proof, they're taking you for a ride.

The best way to know for sure is to subject the jade to tests like X-ray Diffraction and Refractive Index, but these are expensive and difficult to do and aren't practical when it comes to jewelry.

Please read our terms of use before applying these method on your jade.

Types Jade Treatments

Jade is commonly treated to enhance its color and clarity. Dyeing and heating are two common treatments used and it can be very difficult to tell if the jade has been treated.

Dyeing jade

Can be done in a variety of ways. Coating the jade with some sort of varnish is often done to enhance the overall look of the jade. This method can fill in any cracks or flaws, giving the gemstone a smooth and silky finish. It can be very difficult to tell that there the piece of jade has natural flaws once coating has been done. Chemicals can also be used to dye jade to a more desirable color. This beautiful pair of jade earrings set in yellow gold is made of dyed jade, as mentioned in the description of the gemstone.

Heating jade

This treatment is more common. It can change the color and tone of the gemstone, turning it either darker or lighter as required. Once heated, a jade gemstone cannot return to its natural appearance. This permanent treatment is very hard to spot.

Treated jade is not always a bad thing. An interesting point to note is that treated jade can sell for more than a natural piece of jade with an undesirable appearance.

Gemstones that Look like Jade

While jade is a highly valuable and beautiful gemstone, it's not unique in its appearance. There are several natural gemstones that look very similar to jade.

An aventurine ring. See it here.

One such gemstone is aventurine. It is so similar to jade that it's sometimes known as Indian or Australian jade. However, it is a variety of quartz and is not of the same mineral family as jade.

Greenstone, or Pounamu as it is known by the Maori of New Zealand, is actually nephrite jade but was given the name greenstone by early European explorers. The name continues to stick even though calling it nephrite would make things easier. Greenstone is found in a few different varieties in New Zealand.

Serpentine refers to a group of minerals that sometimes may look like jade. When polished, it has a waxy luster and may be attractive like jade, with similar green, brown and yellow hues. However, jade has a much better polish and smoothness than serpentine, which is noticeable on close observation.

Before You Buy

Because identifying real jade from fake is very difficult and often impossible to do conclusively, it is best to purchase from a reputable retailer that you can trust. The retailer should disclose to you any treatments or enhancements that the gemstone may have undergone and should have a fair price on their jade.

If you're purchasing a valuable piece of jade, most retailers will provide a certificate of authenticity. This means that an independent lab has examined, scanned and identified the jade and given it a grade from A to D. However, retailers often only do this for grade A jade and often don't cover the cost for the other grades.

Finally, there's nothing wrong with a fake or imitation jade gemstone as long as you know what you're getting. The problem is if the retailer doesn't disclose this information and is selling the fake jade at authentic prices.

A pair of gorgeously designed jade earrings from the Amazon Collection. See it here.

Amazon has a wide variety of jade jewelry on offer but finding the right piece for you means a little investigation. Keep an open line of communication with the retailer and ask all your questions prior to purchase. Check that there is a good returns policy just in case your jade isn't what you expected it to be.