Talk about glass jade

Those of us who love jade know that glass-type jade is considered a high-end product. However, many people do not like this type of jade that looks like glass. They think that it does not look like jade when worn, but rather looks like crystal or even a "glass ball". Some people even joked that it is better to buy a string of good quality glass beads than to buy such jade, which has a similar effect.

At a press conference a few years ago, Jiang Wen's wife Zhou Yun wore a colorless glass jade bracelet. Because the color of the bracelet was so low-key, it was ignored by many people, who thought that Zhou Yun lived too simply and didn't own any decent jewelry. But actually! Hai Xin wanted to say, a bracelet of hers is worth a house to us!

△The bracelet Zhou Yun is wearing on her wrist is made of glass

Do ordinary glass beads really have the same effect as glass jadeite? If you really think so, I can only say that you don’t understand our glass types yet! Today Hai Xin will tell you what the difference is between glass beads and glass jadeite?

Glass beads

Glass egg noodles

What is glass jade?

If you want to know what glass-type jade is, you can actually understand it just by looking at the name - jade that looks like glass is glass-type.

However, this explanation can only facilitate our understanding. The real glass jade has its own strict standards. Only when it meets these two standards can it be called glass jade:

(1) Transparency: If the transparency is not high and it looks turbid, then it is definitely not qualified to be called glass-type. As the name of glass-type jade suggests, the transparency must be high. The transparency of the best glass-type is almost comparable to real glass, but the texture and gloss are much more beautiful than glass!

(2) Clarity: Jadeite is a natural jade and is bound to have various flaws. The lower the grade of the jadeite, the worse the clarity. To achieve glass-grade clarity, the clarity itself must be high. If there are too many impurities such as cotton, then even if the transparency is high and transparent, it cannot be considered glass-grade.

The difference between glass jade and glass

Although glass type jade does look like glass, if you really buy glass as glass type, you will suffer a great loss. In fact, if you look carefully, the two are quite easy to distinguish.

(1) Fluorescence: The biggest difference between real jade and glass lies in its texture. The surface of natural glass jade has a special fluorescence, commonly known as "fluorescence", which looks like it is covered with a layer of slightly blue moonlight; while the surface of glass has nothing but reflections.

△ Jadeite fluorescence

(2) Clarity: Although the inside of glass-type jade is very clean, it is not as clean as glass. In all likelihood, it is glass. As the saying goes, "no cotton, no jade." If the inside is too clean, you must pay more attention.

In addition to glass, there is another substance that is extremely similar to glass jade. I believe jade lovers have guessed what Hai Xin is going to say. Yes, it’s water foam! Today, let’s also talk about how to distinguish between water-type jade and glass-type jade.

The difference between glass jade and water jade

1. Specific gravity

The optical density of jadeite is 3.33, while that of shimmering jade is 2.48~2.65. Jadeite is much heavier than shimmering jade. When you weigh it directly in your hand, the jadeite is obviously heavy; while the water bubble jade feels light and thin, without any sense of heaviness.

(Weigh the water foam with your hand)

2. Hardness

Jade has a higher hardness than water bubble jade, and can be polished to a bright shine. However, water bubble jade will not be very bright no matter how it is polished. It is related to its hardness! Water foam is easily broken, and some water foam can peel off the minerals when stuck to double-sided tape.

Glass Jade

3. Gloss

Jade has a glassy luster and is rigid enough to appear dazzling and bright. However, the luster of water foam is relatively weak, its rigidity is weak, it is soft and powerless, and lacks strength.

4. Refractive index

The value of jadeite is 1.66, while that of shimmering jade is (1.53 ~1.54), which is much lower than that of jadeite. Because of the huge difference in refractive index, the transmitted luster and refracted luster of jadeite are much stronger than that of water bubble. The hardness and density of some water bubbles are relatively higher, and their transmitted gloss and refracted gloss are slightly closer to jadeite.

5. Listen to the timbre

The hardness and density of jade are much higher than those of water foam. When both are tapped lightly, the sound of jade appears crisp and pleasant, tough, hard, crisp, and has strong penetrating power. The knocking sound of water bubbles is dull and even weak. It feels pale and thin, and its penetrating power is relatively weak.

6. Internal features

White cotton can be seen inside the jade, and tiny white bubbles can be seen inside the water foam. They are arranged in parallel strings of small bubbles, which to the naked eye look like crystalline textures formed when crystals crystallize. Only when observed under magnification are they revealed to be gaps in the shape of small bubbles. Normally, the gaps will be filled with impurities to form tiny floating flowers, and the shape is due to the small flowers filling the gaps. This phenomenon is not seen in jade.