Laboratory-made gem
Moissanite
Born in a meteorite, made in a laboratory
Moissanite is a laboratory-made gem, not a diamond. It has more fire than a diamond and nearly its hardness, at a fraction of the price.
- From
- Made in a laboratory · first found in a meteorite
- Hardness
- 9.25 · the hardest gem after diamond
- Chosen for
- Engagement rings · everyday rings · a bigger look on a smaller budget
Moissanite was first found in a meteorite. The French chemist Henri Moissan discovered tiny crystals of it in the Canyon Diablo meteorite, and in 1905 the mineral was named in his honour. In nature it occurs only in minute amounts, so every moissanite you see in jewellery has been grown in a laboratory.
It is not a diamond, and we never sell it as one. It is a gem in its own right: harder than any natural gem except diamond, and with more fire.
What it is
Moissanite is silicon carbide, grown as crystals in a laboratory and then cut and polished like any other gem. Colourless moissanite has been made for jewellery since the late 1990s. It measures 9.25 on the Mohs scale, second only to diamond, and it is very tough, so it is well suited to rings that are worn every day.
Moissanite or diamond?
- Fire. Moissanite splits light into flashes of colour more than twice as strongly as diamond does. In sunlight it shows more rainbow colour.
- Hardness. Diamond is 10, moissanite 9.25. Both are hard enough for everyday wear.
- Weight. Moissanite is lighter than diamond, so a moissanite of the same size weighs less.
- Price. Moissanite costs a fraction of the price of a diamond of the same size.
- Under a loupe. Moissanite is doubly refractive: through a magnifier the facet edges at the back of the stone look doubled. A diamond's do not.
Honesty
Many simple diamond testers measure how quickly a stone conducts heat, and they read moissanite as diamond. That is why we name every stone exactly. When you buy moissanite from us, your invoice says moissanite, and we will never describe it as a diamond or as a natural stone.
Our moissanite
We sell colourless moissanite, set in finished pieces, or chosen by you and made to order in our Swakopmund workshop. Ask to see a moissanite and a diamond side by side: the difference in fire is easiest to see in daylight.
Caring for your moissanite
Clean it in warm water with a little washing-up liquid and a soft brush; grease dulls any stone. Store pieces separately: moissanite can scratch softer gems, and diamond can scratch moissanite. Have the claws checked once a year.
At a glance
| What it is | Silicon carbide, grown in a laboratory |
|---|---|
| Hardness | 9.25 Mohs |
| Fire | More than twice that of diamond |
| Colour | Colourless (the only colour we sell) |
| Natural? | No. Natural moissanite exists only in tiny amounts |
| Care | Warm soapy water, soft brush. Store apart from other jewellery |