This is our Detailed explanation of Gemstone enhancements and treatments. In this section we are going to read about Surface Modification.

Apart from oiling and dyeing, a wide variety of surface modification with wax, ink, surface coating such as paints and varnishes, and interference filters, foil backs, mirror backs, inscribing, selective decorations, as well as synthetic overgrowth are done in the market.

Surface-modified stones include the surface painted or diffused like in sapphires to create the blue color on the outside of the surface, thus when polished will loose its color.

There is also a spot surface modification using paint on Tanzanites to improve the tone of the blue color where the gemstones are colored at the tip of the cuttings to get the color.

Main types of treatments that I recommend you to continue reading are:

Heat Treatment

Irradiation Treatment

Chemical Treatment

Surface Modification

Composite Gemstone

Synthetic Overgrowth

These are some of the treatments that are done most commonly in the trade.