Birthstone Jewelry, its meaning and significance according to month

Stones have been worn by both women and men since prehistoric times. Just as in the jewelry of modern times, beautiful stones, rare and colorful, are most often the dominant feature of a piece with a metallic setting for ornamentation. The stones used in the crafting of fine jewelry are generally divided into two c

For every calendar month, there is a specific gemstone that serves as a birthstone for individuals born during that month. It is widely believed that these gems are lucky. Not only are birthstones considered to be good fortune, but they also have specific meanings that are often said to reflect a personality trait of the holders. The birthstones listed below are believed to be the stones of choice, by many.

Birthstones

January -Capricorn

Garnet - Garnet is the birthstone for the month of January & the anniversary gemstone for the second year of marriage. All species of garnet have been used as gemstones. Garnet displays the greatest variety of color of any mineral, occurring in every color except blue.

February - Aquarius

Amethyst - Amethyst is the birthstone for the month of February & the anniversary gemstone for the 6th year of marriage. Amethyst is a purple color gemstone. The legend of the origin of amethyst comes from Greek myths. Amethyst is a variety of quartz which occurs in transparent light to dark purple. The darker more intense colors are more valuable than the lighter smoky or lavender color.

March - Pisces

Aquamarine - Aquamarine is the birthstone for the month of March & the anniversary gemstone for the 19th year of marriage. Aquamarine is the birthstone for the month of March & the anniversary gemstone for the 19th year of marriage. Aquamarine has been believed to endow the wearer with foresight, courage, and happiness. It is said to increase intelligence and make one youthful. As a healing stone, it is said to be effective as a treatment for anxiety and in the Middle Ages it was thought that aquamarine would reduce the effect of poisons.

April - Aries

Diamond - The Diamond is the birthstone of April and the anniversary gemstone for the 10th and 60th years of marriage. Diamonds were discovered in India in 500 B.C., and the name "diamond" comes from the Greek word "Adamas" which means unconquerable - suggesting the eternity of love. A diamond is the hardest substance known to humankind, and is made of a crystallized carbon that has unique powers of light reflection. Since diamonds are composed of a single element, they are the purest of all gemstones.

May - Taurus

Emerald - Emerald is the Modern and Traditional birthstone for May. It is also listed as a birthstone for the Zodiac signs for Taurus and Cancer, as the planetary stone for Taurus and the Talismanic stone for Gemini. Emerald is the only stone, besides Topaz, that is listed as in all of the ancient birthstone tables. This gem is suggested as an anniversary gift for the 20th and 35th anniversaries and as an alternate stone for the 55th wedding anniversary.

June - Gemini

Pearl - Pearl is the Modern June birthstone. It is also the birthstone for the Star Signs of Gemini and Cancer. The sparkling beauty of a strand of pearls has held the attention of brides for millennia. The ancient Greeks believed that wearing pearls would promote marital bliss and prevent newlywed women from crying. During the Crusades in the middle ages, pearls were the gift of choice for a knight to give to his lady.

July - Cancer

Ruby - Ruby is the birthstone of July & the anniversary gemstone for the 15th and 40th years of marriage. Ruby's day is Tuesday, its season summer, and its apostle St. Matthew. The scarlet-colored gem is July's birthstone under the sign of Cancer, is said to accord wearers wisdom, happiness and health, and to bring particularly good luck to gamblers and lovers.

August - Leo

Peridot - Peridot is the birthstone for the month of August & the anniversary gemstone for the 16th year of marriage. Peridot, the volcanic gem, is the best known gem variety of the mineral olivine, a species of magnesium-iron rich silicate minerals. This bright yellow-green to green gemstone has caught the fancy of humans for thousands of years.

September - Virgo

Sapphire - Sapphire is the modern September birthstone and the gem designated for the 5th, 23rd and 45th wedding anniversary; a star sapphire is typically given on the 65th wedding anniversary.

October - Libra

Opal - Opal is the modern October birthstone and the accepted gem for the 13th wedding anniversary. There are two distinct types of opal, common and precious. The way the silica particles form determines which type. In precious opal, silica particles are packed in regular rows and layers.

November -Scorpio

Citrine and topaz. Yellow Topaz is the modern November birthstone and blue topaz is the Modern December birthstone. Topaz is the accepted gem for the fourth, 19th and 23rd wedding anniversaries. Topaz is found in a variety of colors including: brown, red, orange, pink, sherry, yellow as well as colorless.

December - Sagittarius

Tanzanite - While Turquoise is often used as December's birthstone, now celebrate this month with Tanzanite. In October 2002, Tanzanite was added to the official birthstone list by the American Gem Trade Association as an additional birthstone for December. Tanzanite was first discovered in 1967 in Tanzania, East Africa. As one of the newest and most exotically colored gemstones, Tanzanite is part of the Zoisite mineral species and is only found in East Africa. Tanzanite is very rarely a pure blue and usually exhibits rich purple overtones.

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