A synthetic gemstone shares a natural stone's physical, chemical and optical qualities, but it is created in a laboratory. It's kind of like making a high tech batch of cookies we know the ingredients and we know how long to cook them. There are synthetic versions of nearly all popular gemstones and many versions have been available for a long time. Older synthetics were fairly simple for gemologists to detect, because they were often too perfect. Some modern synthetic gemstones look more natural and are more difficult to identify, but an experienced jeweler or gemologist can usually classify them.

Jewelry that includes quality synthetic gems can be just as beautiful as jewelry made with natural stones. Good synthetics aren't always inexpensive, but should cost much less than natural stones of similar quality.

Since synthetic gemstones have the same composition as their natural counterparts, they could technically be called genuine, but that would be considered deceptive labeling if the stone's origins are not disclosed. Question the ethics of anyone who knowingly omits origin information, and the expertise of anyone who cannot provide it.