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Amethyst, the February Birthstone. Did you know that Amethyst is a variety of quartz and is one of the most popular of the colored stones. It is also the birthstone for February. It is a transparent purple available in shades from light to dark purple. It is relatively hard, fairly brilliant, and overall a good, versatile, wearable stone, available in plentiful supply even in very large sizes. Therefore, a moderate price is attached to such stones. Higher prices are charged for the dark and larger stone.
Once believed to bring peace of mind to the wearer from getting drunk, and if the circle of the sun or moon was engraved thereon, amethyst was believed to prevent death from poison. Almost all stones have some type of antedote from years ago, and I must say I have to chuckle over many of them! So, if you believe in this and want to guard against drunkednness and to instill a sober and serious mind Amethyst is your stone. For me, I just think it is a beautiful stone and can take a lot of abuse. It is a 7 (1-10) on the hardness scale.
Citrine derived from the French word for lemon is the most affordable of all the earth-toned gemstones and is the alternate birthstone for November. The ancients revered me as a gift of the sun and a powerful antidote to the viper's venom.
Ametrine is when Mother Nature combines the colors of Amethyst and Citrine into a single, exciting gemstone.
Amethyst is found in geodes. Mostly found in Brazil. If from Russia, it has a reddish tinge; Canadian amethyst is violet. Other locations amethyst is found include Sri Lanka, India, Uruguay, Madagascar, the USA, Germany, Australia, Namibia, and Zambia. Citrine is Amethyst that is heat treated to change the color to yellow.
Poor quality material is often tumbled to make beads. If the color is pale it is sometimes set in a closed setting or has foil placed behind it to enhance the color.
If you purchase an amethyst and in a few months it becomes pale, return it to the jeweler as it was not heated properly.
Hope you learned a little bit about a beautiful stone that is abundlantly found, takes abuse, and rather reasonable. It can be cut into many shapes as well as used for rings, earrings, pendants, bracelets, as well as wherever a stone is needed. |