Unboxing Diamond Imitators | Moissanite, Danburite, and More!

Our hosts Rebecca and Christopher review, inspect and guess for diamonds, diamond synthetics and diamond simulants in this gemstone unboxing special. Diamond imitators featured include moissanite, danburite, cubic zirconia, yttrium aluminum garnet (YAG), zircon, topaz and lab-white sapphire.

Moissanite is unboxed first and has double the dispersion and refraction of diamond. Danburite has no dispersion and is very transparent compared to diamond. Cubic zirconia follows next with a similar luster and single refraction to diamond but heavier weight. Yttrium aluminum garnet is lab-grown with no fire and is commonly used for lasers. Next is zircon which has a high luster, weak fire and double refraction. Topaz is unboxed next and shows a luster too low for diamond or corundum, and natural lab white sapphire is displayed with luster high enough for corundum but not diamond.

Lastly, a lab-grown diamond and mined diamond are displayed. These two types of diamond are visually, physically and chemically the same, except lab-grown diamond is created in a lab while mined diamond is from the earth.