Gemstone Identifier

Gemstone Identifier — identify a stone from a photo

No photo at hand? Read one of these sample stones:

Your photo is read once in memory and never stored. Only the written report is kept, and only when you unlock it.

Macro photograph of a faceted transparent stone lit from the side — sample photo

Upload one photo of a stone and read what it shows: colour, transparency, inclusions, cut, luster and breaks, the families it could belong to with a confidence score, what a photograph cannot settle, and what to have measured in person. Free preview of every report

What the report picks out of a photo

Drag the handle. Left is the photo as uploaded, right is what the reading marks in it.

Close-up of a small round faceted amber-coloured transparent stone on a white background — sample photoThe same photo with the body colour, the facet junctions and the surface luster markedPhotoReport
Read the sample report for this photo
Sample report, written by hand

Small round faceted stone, warm amber body colour

Confidence 46%

A loose round brilliant, transparent, warm amber through the crown, with crisp facet junctions. Colour and cut alone fit several families, so this reading stops at a short list.

What the photograph shows

The body colour is a warm amber-brown, slightly stronger towards the centre of the table than at the girdle. Light passes through the stone: the background reads faintly under the pavilion.

Facet junctions meet as clean lines rather than rounded bands, and the crown facets are of even size. Surface luster is bright and glassy. The stone is small — a few millimetres across — and no internal feature resolves at this scale.

ColourWarm amber-brown, slightly stronger at the centre
TransparencyTransparent
CutRound brilliant, even crown facets
LusterBright, glassy
Internal featuresNone resolved at this scale
Surface conditionNo chips along the visible girdle

Possible identification

A warm brown-amber transparent stone with a clean brilliant cut is one of the most crowded corners of the visible evidence: several families produce exactly this appearance at this size, and none of them is separated by colour alone.

The centre-weighted colour hints at depth of colour rather than zoning, which is a weak point in favour of a single-material stone. A higher-magnification frame showing internal features, or any doubling of the facet edges seen through the table, would move this reading most.

Most likely familyQuartz family, citrine-type yellow to brown
Strongest supporting featureEven warm transparency with a clean brilliant cut
Weakest linkSeveral families share this appearance at this size

Loose or set, and what that changes

The stone is loose and photographed face up on a plain background, so the girdle outline and the whole crown are readable. The pavilion faces the surface and is not.

One stone in the frame, and nothing in the reading is averaged across several.

Loose or setLoose
What is hiddenPavilion and the back of the stone
Stones visibleOne

Imitation indicators, present or absent

Junctions are crisp rather than rounded and no swirl lines or rounded voids appear in the body. Both count against moulded glass, as far as one frame at this magnification can carry them.

At this scale a small bubble would not resolve at all, so its absence here is weak evidence rather than a finding.

Indicators presentNone
Indicators absentRounded junctions, swirl lines, mould seams
Not readableBubbles below this magnification

Possible identification

  1. Quartz family, citrine-type yellow to brown46%

    Warm transparent body with a clean brilliant cut.

  2. Topaz family34%

    Fits the same visible evidence; nothing in the frame separates it.

  3. Garnet family, orange to brown28%

    Possible on colour; luster would usually read a little higher.

Also considered

  1. Undetermined30%

    A short list is as far as one low-magnification frame reaches.

  2. Glass or moulded imitation12%

    Crisp junctions argue against it, without ruling it out.

Photo quality

78%
  • Single angle
  • No scale reference
  • Pavilion not visible

What a photo cannot settle

  • Refractive index, specific gravity and every other instrument reading
  • Whether the stone is one material throughout or an assembled piece
  • Anything about how the stone came to look the way it does

How to have it checked

  1. Photograph the same stone from the side on a plain background, so the profile and girdle are readable.
  2. Look through a 10x loupe for internal features and for rounded bubbles, and note what you see.
  3. Take it to a qualified gemmologist for a refractive index and specific gravity reading.

Caveats

  • One frame, one angle: the pavilion was never seen.
  • The stone is small enough that inclusions would need real magnification.
  • No scale reference in the frame.

The clues first, the conclusion second

Every report starts with what is actually in the frame: body colour and how evenly it sits, transparency, the internal features the camera resolved, the cut and the state of its facet edges, surface luster, chips and breaks. The possible families come after that evidence, each with a confidence score and the one observation that would change the answer.

The same photo with the body colour, the facet junctions and the surface luster marked

It tells you what a photograph cannot settle

A photo carries appearance, not measurements. The report names what is out of reach from a picture — the readings a gemmologist takes with instruments in hand — and lists the non-destructive checks worth doing next. No scratching, no heat, no chemicals: nothing that could damage the stone.

The same photo with the visible crown, the rim covering the girdle and the metal reflections marked

Set stones and hard photographs are read as such

A setting hides the girdle, the pavilion and often the true body colour, and metal reflects into the stone. The report says which clues the setting took away and lowers its own confidence to match, instead of writing the same certainty it would for a loose stone in daylight.

A second angle of the same stone, with the profile and facet pattern marked — sample photo

From your photo to the report

  1. Close-up of a small round faceted amber-coloured transparent stone on a white background — sample photo
    Your photo
  2. The same photo with the body colour, the facet junctions and the surface luster marked
    Clues marked
  3. Small round faceted stone, warm amber body colour
    ColourWarm amber-brown, slightly stronger at the centre
    TransparencyTransparent
    CutRound brilliant, even crown facets
    Families that fit
  4. Small round faceted stone, warm amber body colour
    • What the photograph shows
    • Possible identification
    • Loose or set, and what that changes
    • Imitation indicators, present or absent
    Full report

Read your stone

Free preview in seconds: the photo-quality verdict, the limits, and the clues. The analysis unlocks on demand.

Your photo is read once in memory and never stored. Only the written report is kept, and only when you unlock it.

Questions

Can a gemstone really be identified from a picture?

A photograph narrows it down. Colour, transparency, cut, luster and visible inclusions rule families in and out, and a careful reading of them gets you to a short list with a confidence score. It does not get you to a single answer: stones that look alike in a photo are separated by measurements — refractive index, specific gravity, spectroscopy — that need the stone in hand. The report is written around that line and says which side of it each statement falls on.

What does the free preview include?

The honest half: how usable your photograph is and what is wrong with it, what this report cannot settle, the caveats on it, and the section describing the visible clues. Unlocking adds the possible identification with its reasoning, the alternatives that were set aside, the loose-or-set context, the imitation indicators and the list of checks to do next.

What makes a good photo of a stone?

Daylight or a single soft lamp, a plain neutral background, no filter, and as close as your camera will still focus. Fill the frame with the stone, keep the whole outline inside it, and wipe the surface first. If the stone is set, take the second angle from the side so the report can see the profile the setting hides.

Can it tell whether my stone is glass?

It reports indicators, not a verdict. Rounded facet junctions, swirl lines, rounded gas bubbles, a soft luster and mould seams are visible in a photograph and the report says which of them are present, which are absent and which the picture cannot show. What settles it is an instrument reading taken in person.

Will it tell me what my stone is worth?

No. This tool does not price stones and does not appraise them, and no part of the report is a valuation. What it can do is describe what is visible and point you to someone qualified to take the measurements a valuation would rest on.

Is this a certificate?

No. It is a written reading of a photograph, produced by software, with a confidence score and its limits stated on its face. A laboratory report is a different thing, made with instruments and a person accountable for the result.

What happens to my photo?

It is held in memory for the single request that reads it and is never written to disk or storage. Only the written report is kept, and only when you unlock it.

Can I send two photos of the same stone?

Yes, and it helps when the first frame leaves something unread — a setting in the way, glare across the table, a colour you cannot trust. Add a second angle after the first reading and both frames are read together. One good photo is still a complete run.