Know Your Crystal Before You Buy
Whether you are buying crystal glasses, crystal stemware or crystal figurines, it is important to know the quality level of the crystal. This is especially true if you intend to purchase lead crystal product which is the highest quality of crystal.
Knowing just a little bit about crystal will help you to make a wise purchasing decision and prevent you from paying a higher price for lower quality product. Without getting deeply into the technical aspects of crystal manufacturing, here
are some of the basics to help you.
The main difference between glass and crystal is the lead content. Both glass and crystal are composed of sodium, but crystal also has silicone and metallic oxides added to give it a lead content of at least 10 to 24%. The addition of these materials makes the crystal heavier and changes the light refraction index of the item. The result is a brighter and cleaner piece. Since lead crystal is not as brittle as standard glass, craftsmen can make deeper and more complicated cuts in the crystal.
For glass to be called “lead crystal,” the glass must meet three criteria defined by rigorous rates and percentages.
There are four types of lead crystal,:
Full Lead Crystal which has 30% or higher lead content, a density rating of 3.00 and a refractory index of 1.545 or greater (how crystal refracts light)
Lead Crystal which has a 24% lead content or higher, a density of 2.45 and a refractory index of 1.545 or higher refractory index.
Crystal glass also referred to as Crystalline which has only 10% lead content, a
2.45 density and a refractory index of 1.520