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Gemstones, Minerals & Fossils
Gemstones and Minerals
Gemstone Identification Please
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<blockquote data-quote="user 4386" data-source="post: 571181" data-attributes="member: 4386"><p>If you have a commercial hardness testing kit this can distinguish (corundum 9, garnet 7.5 or less). Topaz will scratch garnet but not corundum (ruby).</p><p></p><p>Easy to distinguish under a polarising microscope (possibly even with polarising glasses but I have never tried). An approximate method is to "Pick up the stone you wish to test and hold it very close to your eye, toward a source of light, such as a light bulb or lamp. Never look at the sun. Look through the stone. You will see reflections from the light source. Tilt the stone at different angles and slowly roll it around. Watch the reflections in the stone as you do this. Continue to move the stone around until the reflections appear as a spectrum or rainbow. Note the number of rainbows that you see reflected in the stone. If you see two rainbows, or spectrums, that do not contain yellow or green bands, the stone most likely is a ruby. Rubies absorb colors in the green and yellow bands of the spectrum and so do not reflect these colors. If you see only one rainbow and it contains all the colors, the stone probably is a garnet. Garnets reflect only very thin bands of yellow and green".</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="user 4386, post: 571181, member: 4386"] If you have a commercial hardness testing kit this can distinguish (corundum 9, garnet 7.5 or less). Topaz will scratch garnet but not corundum (ruby). Easy to distinguish under a polarising microscope (possibly even with polarising glasses but I have never tried). An approximate method is to "Pick up the stone you wish to test and hold it very close to your eye, toward a source of light, such as a light bulb or lamp. Never look at the sun. Look through the stone. You will see reflections from the light source. Tilt the stone at different angles and slowly roll it around. Watch the reflections in the stone as you do this. Continue to move the stone around until the reflections appear as a spectrum or rainbow. Note the number of rainbows that you see reflected in the stone. If you see two rainbows, or spectrums, that do not contain yellow or green bands, the stone most likely is a ruby. Rubies absorb colors in the green and yellow bands of the spectrum and so do not reflect these colors. If you see only one rainbow and it contains all the colors, the stone probably is a garnet. Garnets reflect only very thin bands of yellow and green". [/QUOTE]
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Gemstones, Minerals & Fossils
Gemstones and Minerals
Gemstone Identification Please
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