A person interested in purchasing sugilite jewelry, loose stones, or cutting rough should be very familiar with the material. The conditions of the gem that they might encounter are listed below:

1) Natural sugilite: This is a naturally occurring material that consists entirely of natural sugilite. Attractive pieces of this material should sell for the highest prices, with an attractive, uniform color being an important element of value. This material is the choice of a person who wants to purchase a wonderful product of nature.

2) A natural mixture of sugilite and other minerals: This is a naturally occurring rock made up of sugilite and other minerals. These materials can be attractive and desirable. Their color, pattern and appearance are important elements of value, but these items will sell for a lower price than equally attractive items comprised entirely of natural sugilite.

3) A man-made composite of crushed sugilite and resin (block sugilite): This is a man-made material that might be especially attractive, with color enhancement done by people being likely. Attractive pieces of this material should sell for significantly lower prices than natural sugilite of similar color and appearance. Buy this if you like sugilite, if you like the appearance of the piece, and if you are satisfied with an item that is made from crushed sugilite bound together with resin, and probably color-enhanced by people. This is what you will likely receive if you are buying at the lower end of the sugilite price range. Some buyers absolutely do not want this material. They want naturally-formed sugilite. But, there is nothing wrong with buying this product if you like it and your seller discloses what you are buying. Unfortunately, some sellers label this material as “sugilite” and do not know or choose to disclose its true nature.

4) A natural material that is not sugilite, but has been dyed and treated to be a sugilite look-alike. The top of this article cites reports from the Gemological Institute of America about people making sugilite look-alikes by dying marble, serpentine and quartzite. There is nothing wrong with buying these as long as you know that you are not buying sugilite, and the seller is not telling you that the item is natural sugilite.

5) A man-made material that contains no sugilite: This is a man-made material produced with the goal of being a sugilite look-alike. It could be made from ceramic, plastic, glass, or another material. It is an imitation sugilite that should sell for a significantly lower price than similar-looking items from the categories above. There is nothing natural in this material, but if you like it there is nothing wrong with buying it. The problem occurs when the seller fails to disclose that it is a man-made imitation and is simply promoting it as “sugilite”.

Buy with caution. On the basis of “sight” alone, it can be difficult to impossible to tell the difference between sugilite, rocks containing abundant sugilite, block sugilite, and some of the dyed and imitation materials. Microscopy, spectroscopy, specific gravity determination, and refractive index testing can help separate sugilite from many of its look-alikes. If you are spending serious money on a sugilite item, you should have its identity confirmed by gemological laboratory.

Physical Properties of Sugilite
Chemical Classification	Silicate
Color	Gem-quality specimens are pink to reddish purple to purple. Impure specimens are often yellow, brown, purplish brown, grayish purple, or black.
Streak	White
Luster	Dull, waxy, vitreous
Diaphaneity	Usually translucent, sometimes opaque
Cleavage	Poor to indistinct, rarely observed. Usually occurs in massive granular aggregates.
Mohs Hardness	5.5 to 6.5
Specific Gravity	2.7 to 2.8, varying with impurities
Diagnostic Properties	Color, luster, specific gravity. Can be difficult to identify without advanced methods.
Chemical Composition	KNa2(Fe,Mn,Al)2Li3Si12O30
Crystal System	Hexagonal
Uses	Pieces with outstanding color are used as gemstones. Excellent specimens, especially specimens with well-formed crystals, are of interest to mineral collectors and may be more valuable than gem rough.