Synthetic
Artificially made substance that has the same appearance, physical properties and chemical compound as its natural counterpart mineral. Some synthetic stones have no counterpart in nature they are synthetic gemstones except if they used as an imitation for a natural stone. Many gemstones have been produced synthetically, but only a few of them are used as cut gems. To distinguish a synthetic stone from a natural stone a microscope is usually used. Sometimes the term imitation gemstone is used when a natural gemstone imitates another natural gemstone such as phenakite, or periclase.
