I purchased heat treated chalcedony beads a couple of years ago and
used them in an 18K gold wire necklace. I recently took the
necklace on a trip abroad, carried them in my hand luggage. When I
arrived at my destination, I found that the beads had lost their
beautiful rich blue color and faded into a pale moonstone like
color. Someone mentioned to me that this might have happened when
they went through the airport xray machine.
I called up the retailer of these beads, Fire Mountain Gems, and
they indicated they were not famiiliar with this type of problem
and had no suggested solutions.
-
Does anyone have a similar experience with heat treated gemstones?
Was it really the result of the airport xray or something else? -
Is there any way to reverse the effect without removing the beads
from the gold necklace? And if so, is it something I could do on
my own? Or are there any gemologists who specialize in this kind
of repair?
I first joined the list in 1997 to pursue my jewelry making hobby.
It was the source of incredibly valuable I then moved
on to other things but now I’m back into it.
Thanks in advance for your help.
Best,
Rita