By Annemarie van Orsouw | 18th May 2018
This week our Swarovski expert, Annemarie van Orsouw, explains how to spot a genuine Swarovski by looking at logos, features and imperfections.
Greatness inspires counterfeits and unfortunately Swarovski crystal figurines, jewellery and other objects are no exception. There is a booming market for imitation Swarovski, but nobody wants to buy a fake. So how do you know if the Swarovski object you want to buy is genuine? Take a close look at your crystal object or piece of jewellery and look for the following factors.
Logo
All genuine Swarovski products from 1989 onward feature the laser-etched Swarovski Swan logo. Before this, pieces might have had a different logo and in some cases might be barely visible and very hard to detect. Even a logo can be copied however, so this shouldn’t be the only thing you check when determining whether the object is genuine or not.
You can find the following logos on almost all Swarovski jewellery and crystal products:
- - Edelweiss flower (1899 - 1988)
- - Square Silver Crystal SC (1976 - 1988)
- - sCs/SCS (Swarovski Crystal Society 1987 - present)
- - Swan (1989 - present)
Always check if the Swarovski logo is genuine
Junctures
Because of Swarovski's precision cutting technology, each crystal has its facet juncture pointing up, which means the facet junctures come together at exactly the same point, similar to diamond faceting. The junctures of imitations will not always meet up perfectly. Therefore by looking at the facet junctures you can spot whether your crystal object could be a genuine Swarovski or an imitator.
By looking at the facet junctures you can spot whether your crystal object could be a genuine Swarovski or an imitator
Bubbles, imperfections & shine
If you find any bubbles in a crystal claiming to be Swarovski, then you found an imitation. Lower-quality imitations will often contain imperfections which give them a lower-quality finish. When comparing Swarovski crystal to an imitation, the genuine Swarovski will out-sparkle the imitation because of its glass compound.
A genuine Swarovski will out-sparkle the imitation because of its glass compound
One final Swarovski secret
Contrary to the popular belief that every Swarovski crystal is different, each one is actually precisely uniform. Although the shape can differ, they all possess the same height, slope and width due to Swarovski's famous and unique cutting style. This is ensured by carefully calculating each direction of reflected light, which is then put into programs for complex machinery. The one-of-a-kind glass cutters are why Swarovski crystals have a certain brilliance that imitators just cannot seem to master. What’s more, all records are destroyed after creating a crystal, so as not to replicate a unique model for a collectible series.
__________
Hopefully this article will give you a little more confidence in assessing whether a Swarovski object is genuine and prevent you from purchasing a counterfeit. Create a free account to bid, buy and sell at our weekly auctions.
Discover more Swarovski jewellery | Swarovski crystal
You might also like these articles: