Birthstones

By: Jo-Ann Keith
Submitted: 2008-09-17 17:18:26
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January’s Birthstone is Garnet.  

Garnets are found in a wide variety of locations including Kenya, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Brazil, India, Madagascar, Canada and USA. The majority of today's Garnet supplies come from Africa.

A superb garnet will never will never fetch a high price as will an exquisite ruby because a ruby is vastly rarer.

Amethyst is February’s Birthstone. Amethyst is a variety of quartz that is mined in Brazil, Uruguay, Sri Lanka, Siberia, Canada, India, Bolivia, Argentina and some African countries, Zambia being a significant source for Amethyst.

Uruguayan Amethyst is frequently turned into Citrine by heat treatment, which changes its color.  Amethyst is a wonderful affordable purple gemstone. Purple has long been the color of royalty and nobility. It is a deep, passionate color that evokes emotions.

Aquamarines name is derived from Latin words meaning sea and water, therefore name "aquamarine" means sea water.  It is March’s Birthstone.  Aquamarine is found in Brazil, India, Russia and USA (Maine, New Hampshire, Connecticut, North Carolina, Colorado and Vermont). Aquamarines are mined in a number of exotic places including Nigeria, Madagascar, Zambia, Pakistan and Mozambique. Brazil is the source of the finest aquamarine.

April’s Birthstone is the ever popular Diamond.

Diamonds are the hardest mineral on earth with a hardness of 10 on Mohs' scale, so it can be cut or polished only by another diamond. Diamonds colors can be changed by artificial exposure to intense radiation or by heat treatment. Most of the coloured diamonds we see these days are created by this heat treatment.  Colorless or pale blue are the most commonly used in jewellery.  Red and green are rare colors, but orange and violet are the rarest and so are much more valuable.  Some diamonds may be clear enough to see through or at least clear enough for light to shine through causing them to radiate.

Kimberley, South Africa, is the center of the South African diamond mining industry.  In the late 1800’s a 651 carat diamond, in rough form, perfectly clear & white was found in a mine in South Africa. It was faceted into a dazzling cushion cut of about 245 carats in 1897, the year of Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee. Therefore it received the name the Jubilee Diamond. 

The emerald cut was specifically designed for emeralds to minimize loss of material in cutting.                         

June – Pearl.  Everyone seems to love the beauty of a strand of pearls. It is a classic piece of jewelry. Pearl often symbolizes a happy marriage and in many countries is used as a wedding gift. The price of pearls vary widely as a result of luster, size, how they were grown, color and type. Natural pearls are the most expensive, followed by cultured pearls. Fresh water pearls tend to be relatively inexpensive.

Natural Ruby shades vary from light to dark red and rubies often have purplish undertones.  Some rubies are red with yellowish to orange tones.   Some rubies are red with blue to purple tones.  The variations add to the charm and individuality of each gemstone.

If you were born in July, Ruby is your special birthstone, but Ruby jewelry is a universal favourite. We associate the color red with Ruby, but the universal feelings of love and passion, so it's no wonder that ruby jewelry has always been in demand.

Burmese rubies are considered among the most beautiful examples of the gemstone.  Other important sources of quality rubies include Sri Lanka, Madagascar, Thailand, Vietnam, Kenya and Afghanistan.  Rubies of varying quality are found in other parts of the world, including the United States.

August’s Birthstone is Peridot and is the anniversary gemstone for the 16th year of marriage.  Peridot is a stone with a sparkling pale green color. Shades like lime, yellowish green, olive green or medium dark green hue.                                                                                             

Peridot is found in Australia, Brazil, China, Egypt, Burma, Pakistan, Norway, and USA (Arizona, Colorado, Hawaii, and New Mexico).   Much of the today's Peridot comes from Arizona, but has been mined from St John's Island in the Red Sea for over 3500 years. In 1994, an exciting new deposit of Peridot was discovered in Pakistan, and these stones are among the finest ever seen.   Peridot has a hardness of 6.5 - 7.

September is Sapphire month.  The Cornflower blue Sapphire is the most popular color, but all shades of blue are found. Sapphires exist in many other colors, including yellow, colorless, black, white, orange, pink, and brown. The deeper the color of pink the higher their monetary value as long as the color is going toward the red of rubies.

Some sapphires are cut into an oval shape that produces a star with six rays that stretch across the sapphire's surface. The cost of sapphire gems varies depending on their color, clarity, size, cut, and overall quality.                                                                                

Significant sapphire deposits are found in Eastern Australia, Southeast Asia, and Sri Lanka. Sapphire and rubies are often found together in the same area, but one gem is usually more abundant.  Quality sapphires are found in Ceylon, Thailand, Australia, India, Burma, Africa, and Brazil.

October’s birthstone is Opal and is the anniversary gemstone for the 14th and 18th years of marriage.  The name Opal is derived from the Latin word opalus, meaning seeing jewel. Australia is home of the Opal and is the national gemstone.   Australia produces around 97% of the world’s Opal.  Smaller amounts of Opal can also be found in India, New Zealand, Honduras and the US.            

Fire opals are transparent to translucent opals with warm body colors yellow, orange, orange-yellow or red and they do not show any play-of-color. The most famous source of fire opals is Mexico and these opals are commonly called Mexican fire opals.   

Topaz along with Citrine is are birthstones for November and is the anniversary gemstone for the 4th and 19th year of marriage.

Pure topaz is colorless, but it also occurs in a broad range of colors: yellow, blue, pink, peach, gold, green, red, and brown.  Sherry yellow stones from Brazil are particularly valuable.  But pink is the rarest but natural pink stones are cannot be found easily.  Today pink topaz is heat treated. 

Article source: Expert Articles