What is a moissanite?
Moissanite was first discovered in 1893 in a crater formed by a meteorite impact. It was the French scientist Henri Moissan who made the discovery, and he initially thought he had found diamonds, but then discovered that the crystals were composed of silicon carbide and not carbon. It is the fact that it was first found in a meteorite crater that has led to moissanite being described as ‘born from the stars’.
Natural moissanites are extremely rare, and the moissanites available on the market are lab-grown stones. Moissanites are manufactured using similar methods to lab-grown diamonds and are very similar to diamonds in both appearance and properties. The hardness (scratch resistance) of gemstones is measured according to the Mohs hardness scale, where diamond is rated 10, which is the highest value. Moissanite comes next at 9.25, but it is important to note that diamonds are still more than twice as hard. However, moissanite is harder than all other gemstones, such as rubies and sapphires, and can undoubtedly be worn every day. In terms of appearance, the most obvious difference is that moissanite can exhibit a certain rainbow effect when it sparkles under certain conditions.
Gold of Sweden is an authorised retailer of Forever One Moissanites from Charles & Colvard, the world's leading and most reputable manufacturer of moissanite. All Gold of Sweden rings with diamonds from 0.20 Ct can be made with moissanite if you wish. If it is a side stone ring, you can choose whether you want to combine the moissanite (centre stone) with lab-grown or natural diamonds as side stones. To complete your purchase, add the ring (without the selected centre stone) to your shopping basket together with your desired stone from our wide range of loose moissanites. If you would like a different shape or size for your stone, e.g. for a ring of your own design, please contact us for more information and a price quote.
