How to Tell if Orange Calcite is Real or Fake

Orange calcite is a beautiful crystal with many healing properties. It’s one of the best crystals for creativity, for example, as at stimulates the Sacral Chakra to help overcome creative blockages. It’s also closely linked with sexuality and inner confidence.

Unfortunately for us crystal healers, there are many fake gems in the world. A fake calcite crystal won’t cause any harm – but it won’t provide orange calcite’s healing benefits either!

In this article, I’ll discuss some of the ways you can identify a real (or fake) orange calcite crystal.

How Common is Fake Orange Calcite?

The good news is that synthetic orange calcite isn’t common.

Calcite is one of the most abundant crystals in the world, as it occurs in all types of rock. In fact, orange calcite is found in large quantities on nearly every continent. With so much supply of calcite, there isn’t much need to produce fake gems.

However, even though deliberate fakes are rare, it’s possible for other types of crystal to be mistakenly labelled as calcite.

As calcite is the primary component of limestone and marble, for example, it can be confused with other gems found in similar locations. For the specific case of orange calcite, you should watch out for stones like:

• Halite – This crystal can look very similar to orange calcite, making it difficult to tell them apart by eye.
• Stilbite – This stone can have an orange colour and is often found with calcite.
• Celestine – This crystal looks similar to calcite and has roughly the same hardness.
• Fluorite – Orange fluorite is found in similar locations to calcite and may be confused with this crystal.

Method 1: Physical Appearance and Characteristics

It’s sometimes possible to identify orange calcite just by looking at it, but this isn’t a guaranteed method.

There are many crystals with similar structures to calcite. As calcite can also range greatly in both colour and appearance, you can’t rely on a visible inspection alone.

Even so, you can make a good guess about whether calcite is real be inspecting it. Here are the key features of orange calcite to look for:

• Calcite has a rhombohedral structure. You won’t see any 90 degree angles between cleave planes on a real calcite crystal.
• Calcite often has waxy surface and feel.
• Calcite rates as 3 on the Mohs Hardness Scale, which means it will be scratched by harder crystals.
• Orange calcite often contains streaks of white, which aren’t seen on crystals with a similar colour (such as citrine.)

Additionally, an interesting property of orange calcite is that it glows under a UV light. You can use a blacklight to test for this.

Tip: Calcite is naturally colourless or white, but it can become a variety of different colours due to impurities. Hematite inclusions give orange calcite its distinctive colour.

Method 2: Find a Reputable Orange Calcite Retailer

Often the easiest way to tell if an orange calcite crystal is real is to buy your stones from a trustworthy retailer.

Reputable crystal stores should be able to tell you where a stone came from and correctly identify it for you. These retailers rely on their reputation for being accurate and trustworthy, plus they are likely to be experts at identifying crystals (even when they look similar.)

Method 3: Use Refraction to Identify Orange Calcite

Real calcite has a property called “double refraction.” Many other crystals don’t have this property, so we can use it to identify genuine orange calcite.

When looking at something through transparent calcite, you’ll see a double image due to this refraction. Using this method is more difficult with orange calcite, as the crystal may be opaque, but it may still be possible.

Here’s how to use this method:

1. In a well-lit room, place a book or magazine on a table.
2. Put the orange calcite onto a section of written text.
3. Look through the calcite. Are the words doubled or split in two?

If the words are not split into two, then the crystal is likely to be fake orange calcite.

Method 4: Use Vinegar to Identify Orange Calcite

One of the best ways to test for a real orange calcite is with a drop of hydrochloric acid. Calcite will fizz for several seconds when it comes into contact with the acid, so this reaction proves the stone is real.

Of course, most crystal healers (myself included) don’t have hydrochloric acid in the house!

Fortunately, you can also use vinegar to perform the same test. This is much safer and easier, as vinegar is a weaker acid, although the reaction won’t be quite as strong. Look for a bubbling rather than fizzing.

Don’t use too much vinegar though. A single drop is plenty, otherwise you may damage your crystal.

Tip: This fizzing occurs as the acid releases carbon dioxide from the calcite crystal.

How to Identify Fake Orange Calcite

If you think you have a fake orange calcite crystal, then there are a few ways to confirm it. These include:

• Fake orange calcite won’t react with vinegar.
• Fake orange calcite may have a cubic or pyramid structure that contains right angles.
• Fake orange calcite is often much harder than real calcite and won’t be easy to scratch.
• Fake orange calcite won’t show double refraction when held up in front of a book.
• Fake orange calcite won’t glow under a UV light.

It’s also worth noting that real orange calcite will fade in sunlight and may be damaged by water. These aren’t properties you’ll want to test though!

Summary

Orange calcite is rarely synthetic, as it’s such a common stone that’s found around the world. Other crystals are often mislabelled as calcite, however, so it’s important to know how to identify a genuine crystal.

The best way to check whether orange calcite is real is to use a drop of vinegar. If the surface of the calcite bubbles for a few seconds, then it’s real.

You can also check for other properties of calcite, such as double refraction, glowing under a UV light, and a rhombohedral crystal structure that doesn’t contain right angles.

Do you have any questions about how to tell if orange calcite is real? Please let me know in the comments section below. You may also want to read my guide to checking whether rose quartz is real.