treated gem

treated gem, genuine gem material whose colour has been artificially enhanced or produced to increase the value of the stone; staining, heat treatment, and irradiation are among the treatments used.

Relatively porous material may be stained or dyed to change its colour. Agate may be stained a variety of colours by soaking it in different solutions and, in some cases, by subsequent heat treatment: reds are produced by heat or ferrous nitrate and heat; lemon yellow, by hydrochloric acid and heat; greens, by chromium or nickel salts; blue, by ferric ferrocyanide followed with ferrous sulfate or by Prussian blue; and brown, by sugar followed with sulfuric acid. Jasper, stained blue, has been used to simulate lapis lazuli, and turquoise, opal, and alabaster are often coloured to enhance their beauty.

Heat treatment of gems to improve or change colour has been practiced for centuries. When heated, smoky quartz resembles citrine or topaz, some brownish or reddish zircon becomes bright blue or colourless, yellow topaz becomes pink, slightly coloured chalcedony becomes carnelian red, and some rubies or amethysts are more evenly coloured. The colour change often depends on the temperature to which the stone is heated, the atmospheric conditions in the vicinity, and the duration of heating or cooling.

Irradiation of certain gemstones also causes colour changes. Some colourless diamonds become green, rose quartz becomes brown, and decolourized amethyst regains its purple hue. These colour changes are not always permanent, and the stone may become radioactive.