On this page
UnderstandWhat it is, what people ask, how far this page goes
Artificial products / Manufactured products · Artificial product type · Imitation; record actual material
Imitation Gem
A man-made product that only imitates a gem's appearance, with a different composition and structure. GB/T 16552-2017 clause 5.2.1 d) says "imitation gem" must not be used on its own as a name. This page compares how the major standards and institutions name it, what must be disclosed when selling it, whether it can be worn every day, how it is treated and identified, and which source each conclusion comes from.
Price, rarity and origin are outside the scope of this wiki.
What this page can answer
This page covers
- How Imitation Gem forms and what gives its colourFormation setting, process and timescale, each finding graded and sourced
- Imitation Gem in English, Chinese and Japanese; national standard namesNames in four languages, the GB/T standard name and the suggested listing name; and: Has any of GIA, FTC, CIBJO or Gem-A put a name for it on record here?
- Listing and disclosing Imitation GemThe listing name to use; what must be disclosed before sale
- Standard clauses that define Imitation GemWhich clause defines it, each cross-checked
What we cannot conclude
- Whether one particular bead is natural, treated or synthetic — only a laboratory report can settle that.
- Geographic origin, unless an origin report accompanies the item.
- Price, rarity or investment value: this wiki covers naming and disclosure only.
Material research: formation, causes and history
What authoritative sources say about how this material forms, what causes its colour and optical effects, where its name comes from and how people have used it. Each statement carries an evidence grade and its sources; it describes the material in general, not any specific piece.
How it forms
An imitation gem (simulant) is not a specific material but a product-structure category and naming template: in CIBJO's terms, an imitation copies how a natural material looks while lacking that material's chemistry, physical properties and structure. An imitation may be man-made (e.g. glass, cubic zirconia) or another natural material used as a substitute (e.g. hydrogrossular garnet for jadeite). This record therefore describes the relationship 'one thing used to pass as another' and its naming category, not a single mineral or material.
Scope: Applies to explaining the definition of imitation gems as a product category and naming template, how they are distinguished from synthetic gems, and the naming rules; it does not represent any single material.
Sources CIBJO Gemstone Book 2022 · GIA Introduction to Imitation Gems · G&G Fall 2015
Where it forms
Natural occurrence environment does not apply: an imitation is man-made, or selected to pass as another, and its existence depends on human imitation, not on nature.
Sources CIBJO Gemstone Book 2022 · GIA Introduction to Imitation Gems · G&G Fall 2015
Production/obtaining conditions: man-made imitations are fabricated (e.g. melted glass, grown cubic zirconia), while natural imitations are taken from a different natural material.
Sources CIBJO Gemstone Book 2022 · GIA Introduction to Imitation Gems · G&G Fall 2015
How it forms, step by step
Choose the target material to be imitated (e.g. diamond, jadeite, emerald) and its appearance features.
Sources CIBJO Gemstone Book 2022 · GIA Introduction to Imitation Gems · G&G Fall 2015
Make or obtain an imitating material that looks similar but differs in composition and structure (a man-made substance or another natural material).
Sources CIBJO Gemstone Book 2022 · GIA Introduction to Imitation Gems · G&G Fall 2015
Cut and polish into finished pieces so the face-up appearance approaches the target material.
Sources CIBJO Gemstone Book 2022 · GIA Introduction to Imitation Gems · G&G Fall 2015
Name/disclose it per CIBJO by its true material name or as 'imitation + target name'.
Sources CIBJO Gemstone Book 2022 · GIA Introduction to Imitation Gems · G&G Fall 2015
Link to appearance
An imitation resembles the imitated material in appearance, but by definition differs in chemical composition, crystal structure or physical properties; appearance similarity alone is not evidence of material equivalence (e.g. hydrogrossular garnet can closely resemble jadeite).
Sources CIBJO Gemstone Book 2022 · GIA Introduction to Imitation Gems · G&G Fall 2015
Timescale
The cited authorities give no timescale or specific date of origin for imitation gems.
Sources CIBJO Gemstone Book 2022 · GIA Introduction to Imitation Gems · G&G Fall 2015
Other research findings
In CIBJO's terms, an imitation is a man-made product that copies how a natural material looks while lacking that material's chemistry, physical properties and structure.
Evidence grade AScope: A terminology definition of the imitation category; not any specific item.
Sources CIBJO Gemstone Book 2022
CIBJO states that 'simulant' means imitations.
Evidence grade AScope: A terminology equivalence, used for naming only.
Sources CIBJO Gemstone Book 2022
GIA notes that within the jewellery trade the word 'simulant' denotes substances that resemble a different gem and serve as its replacement, yet whose chemistry, crystal lattice and optical or physical behaviour are quite unlike the original; a simulant may be naturally occurring or man-made.
Evidence grade AScope: Describes the property difference between imitations and their targets; it does not restrict the material type.
Sources GIA Introduction to Imitation Gems
Under CIBJO an artificial uncrystallised product must be described by the material name or as 'imitation + imitated material name', with equal emphasis and prominence.
Evidence grade AScope: A naming/disclosure rule; not about physical properties.
Sources CIBJO Gemstone Book 2022
An imitation can be another natural material: GIA identified hydrogrossular garnet passed off as jadeite (rarely seen in bangle form).
Evidence grade AScope: An individual examined example showing the category can include natural materials, not all imitations.
Sources G&G Fall 2015
Limits of this research
- Research status: Only partial material-specific findings found; gaps are stated as gaps
- An imitation gem is a product-structure category/naming template, not a specific material: this record describes no single material's origin.
- The cited authorities give no historical starting point or timescale for imitation practice.
- Imitated targets are numerous, and the material of any specific imitation must be determined per piece.
Methodology
- Origin determination and its limits
- Quality grading and value factors
- How gemmology became a technical discipline
Evidence grades
- A
- Standards bodies, government geological surveys, peer-reviewed research and museum records
- B
- Institutional educational material
- C
- Specialist databases or cautious readings
A statement is never graded above its strongest source.
This section is LumaLark's own factual restatement of public authoritative sources, credited item by item; it contains no verbatim excerpts, images or third-party logos.
DecideListing name, disclosure, care and treatments
- Suggested listing name
- Imitation [material imitated] ([actual material])
GB/T 16552—2017 5.2.1 d) · CIBJO Gemstone Book 2022 5.43
This page cannot answer
Natural? · Origin · Price
A lab report settles these; this wiki covers naming and disclosure.
Related:What this page can answer
Answer at a glance
"Imitation Gem" is a market name rather than a mineral species name; before using it, verify: Not a mineral: man-made or non-mineral material.
Evidence
- GB/T · 5.2.1 d)
What this means for you
Before buying, check the recommended listing name "Imitation [material imitated] ([actual material])" and any disclosed treatments on this page, and ask the seller for a grading report if in doubt.
Known uncertainty
- This entry's exact material identity is not fully settled.
- See “Disclosure and cautions” above
- Last reviewed
- 2026-09-01
Trade-name ruling
- Not a mineral: man-made or non-mineral material.
- Suggested listing name
- Imitation [material imitated] ([actual material])
VerifyNames, standards, technical facts, clauses and sources
Names
Names in four languagesImitation Gem has Simplified and Traditional Chinese names, the English name Imitation Gem and a Japanese name. Recommended listing nameThe suggested listing name takes the form imitation [material imitated] ([actual material]). Trade and mineralogical namesThe mineralogical name refers to a product that imitates the appearance of a gem material but differs in composition or structure. Institution usageOn authority wording, the CIBJO text on file has no wording for Imitation Gem (checked); GIA, FTC and Gem-A wording is unchecked; bodies without a recorded wording show the entry's own English name, which does not represent their position. Japanese namesThe entry has its own Japanese name, and the wording of Japan's GSJ formal name for this name is not yet verified by this site. Chinese standard nameOn Chinese standard naming, this name is not listed in the original, and the basic name must be determined by testing (GB/T 16552—2017).
- GSJ (Japan) formal name
- 模造宝石／イミテーション (not yet checked for this body — the entry's own Japanese name is shown)
- GB/T naming counterpart (this name is not in the standard)
- basic name to be determined by testing (GB/T 16552—2017 §5.2.1 d))
- Mineralogical name
- Product that imitates the appearance of a gem material without sharing its composition or structure
Four-language names
- 简体中文
- 仿制宝石
- 繁體中文
- 仿製寶石
- English
- Imitation Gem
- 日本語
- 模造宝石／イミテーション
See also: Misleading and prohibited trade names · Supplementary name index
Classification
- Origin
- Artificial products / Manufactured products
- Material domain
- Artificial products / Manufactured products
- Browsing family
- Imitation gem products
- Identity tier
- Artificial product type
- Mineral chemical class
- Mixed / composition-dependent
- Construction or treatment status
- Imitation; record actual material
What it is and how it's identified
The material facts for Imitation Gem are registered from the 2022 edition of the CIBJO Blue Book: an imitation gem is an artificial product that imitates the appearance of a natural material but does not have its chemical composition, physical properties or structure. The register notes that the definition comes from a CIBJO organisational handbook and is a trade definition, not a national standard, and that the Chinese page gives a full translation of the original. In the same original, the entry for imitations only points to this definition and has no definition of its own. By this definition, an Imitation Gem is an artificial product whose chemical composition, physical properties or structure differ from those of the natural material it imitates.
Registered material facts
Each row carries its own source and check date and can be cited on its own; “—” means the cited source gives no value, not “none”.
Definition
Imitation Gem: artificial products (5.3) that imitate the appearance of natural materials without having their chemical composition or their physical properties or their structure.
CIBJO Gemstone Book 2022
- Qualification
CIBJO trade definition from an institutional manual, not a national standard. The English text quotes the full definition at §5.43 of the Official Gemstone Book 2022.
Source & check 2026-09-25
- Source
- CIBJO Blue Book — Official Gemstone Book (Coloured Stone Commission 2022) (CIBJO): §5.43, p.24 (locator checked 2026-09-25)
- Fact checked on
- 2026-09-25
Each row's “Source & check” expands to the full source; the date beside it is the fact check date.
Related CIBJO terms
Entries in the source that only point to another clause: Simulant (§5.74, p.27) → §5.43 Imitations
Definitions are quoted verbatim from the cited CIBJO Blue Book; […] marks an excerpt, and the full definition is at the cited clause.
Clause-level definitions
The term registered in the clause-level definitions for Imitation Gem is Imitation Gem, with the corresponding clause in GB/T 16552-2017 Annex A, defined as a product that imitates the appearance of a gem material but does not have its composition or structure. The cross-check result is that it is listed directly in GB/T, and no identically titled standalone entry was found in CIBJO.
This table scrolls sideways on narrow screens.
| Term | Clause | Definition | Cross-check |
|---|---|---|---|
| Imitation Gem | GB/T 16552-2017 Annex A | Product that imitates the appearance of a gem material without sharing its composition or structure | Listed directly by GB/T; CIBJO carries no standalone entry under the same name. |
Evidence and sources
Authority basis and clause sources
Sources
- CIBJO – The World Jewellery Confederation. Gemmological Laboratories Book (Blue Book), Gemmological Commission 2024-1.
- CIBJO – The World Jewellery Confederation. The Gemstone Book (Blue Book), 2022.
- SAMR / SAC (China). GB/T 16552—2017 Gems — Nomenclature.
- Federal Trade Commission (United States). In the Loupe: Advertising Diamond, Gemstones and Pearls.
Further reading
Related entries and topic cluster
Parent entry and related pages on this site. Rows marked “Planned” are suggested new content and have no link yet.
This table scrolls sideways on narrow screens.
| Page | Content | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Browsing family | Imitation gem products | Live |
| Related articles | To be added (placeholder) | Planned |
Who maintains this page
The material facts in the Imitation Gem entry are maintained by the LumaLark wiki and matched one by one to the standard clauses or institutional sources they cite: every fact carries its source (with a clause or page locator) and a check date, so it can be traced back to the original; clause-level definitions also carry a cross-check result. The entry exists so that buyers and sellers can check naming, disclosure and material facts item by item.