The facts
What paste actually is
Paste is classified as man-made glass, with the composition Amorphous silicate, usually with PbO. It crystallises in the amorphous system.
Colour comes from metal oxides added to the melt: Co for blue, Cr for green, Au or Se for red, Mn for violet, which is also what a laboratory looks at when it is asked whether a colour is natural.
Refractive index 1.50–1.70 depending on lead content. Specific gravity around 2.3–4.5. Cleavage: none; conchoidal fracture. Those three numbers separate it from most of what imitates it.
Where paste comes from
Paste is produced at Historically Jablonec nad Nisou, Czech Republic, Wattens, Tyrol, Austria and Gablonz glass industry, Bohemia.
The locality is part of the description, not a footnote — two stones of the same weight from two of these places are not the same stone.
How paste is treated
An imitation material with a long and respectable history of its own — eighteenth-century Georgian paste jewellery is collected in its own right. Identify it by gas bubbles, swirl marks, warm touch, rounded facet edges and single refraction. Never a natural stone, and must not be sold as one.
Treatment changes value, sometimes by a multiple, so it belongs in the description before the price and not after the sale.
What paste is confused with
In the trade paste is most often mistaken for, or substituted by, Every transparent gem it is made to imitate.
The separation is rarely a matter of opinion: refractive index 1.50–1.70 depending on lead content and specific gravity 2.3–4.5 settle most of it in a minute, and magnification settles the rest.
What paste is used for
Demand for paste comes from jewellery, mineral collecting and decorative objects, which is why one price per carat never covers it.
We quote each application in the unit that trade actually buys in, by the carat, by the specimen or by the piece.
Durability and care
Hardness 5–6; cleavage none; conchoidal fracture. That combination decides what it can safely be set into.
Below about 5.5 a stone will be scratched by ordinary household dust, which is largely quartz. That does not make it unusable — it makes it a pendant, an earring or an object rather than a ring worn every day.
Warm water, mild soap and a soft brush. Avoid ultrasonic cleaners on anything fracture-filled, stabilised, dyed or visibly included.
What paste costs
As a guide, paste trades around Cents per stone as new goods; antique paste jewellery 100–5,000 USD a piece.
That is a range, not a quote. Colour, size, clarity, cut and origin move the figure a long way inside it, and the only honest price is one given against a specific stone. Send us what you need and we will price it.
Questions
Is paste treated, and how?
An imitation material with a long and respectable history of its own — eighteenth-century Georgian paste jewellery is collected in its own right. Identify it by gas bubbles, swirl marks, warm touch, rounded facet edges and single refraction. Never a natural stone, and must not be sold as one.
Where does paste come from?
Historically Jablonec nad Nisou, Czech Republic, Wattens, Tyrol, Austria and Gablonz glass industry, Bohemia. Origin affects price, so we name the locality rather than the country on every quote.
Is paste hard enough to wear every day?
Not really. At 5–6 on the Mohs scale it is softer than the quartz dust in ordinary household dirt, so it scratches with wear. It suits pendants, earrings and objects better than a daily ring.
How much does paste cost?
Indicatively Cents per stone as new goods; antique paste jewellery 100–5,000 USD a piece. Colour, size, clarity and origin move the price a long way within that, so treat it as a range and ask for a quote against a specific stone.
What is paste confused with?
Most often Every transparent gem it is made to imitate. A refractive index of 1.50–1.70 depending on lead content and a specific gravity near 2.3–4.5 separate it quickly.
What is paste used for besides jewellery?
mineral collecting and decorative objects. Each of those trades buys it in a different form and a different unit.
Related stones
Looking for paste?
Tell us the size, the quality and what it is for. We source it, photograph it and quote it — with the locality named.
Ask about paste