February Birthstone

A little about the Purple Gem… Amethyst!

Amethyst is one of the best-known gems of the quartz family.  Its rich purple color has been praised for centuries.  Amethyst is one of the 12 original birthstones and carries on as the birthstone for February to this day.

The Greeks believed that amethyst protected the wearer from intoxication.  I will say from experience that I don’t believe this is actually true.  Still the rich color of the amethyst does seem to have a calming, soothing feel to it.

Amethyst really tells the story of the world.  These are the rich purple gems that come from Zambia to the rose of the Rocky Rose™ Amethyst colors that are found in Montana.  Brazil is famous for its Amethyst from the Amazon from the southern state of Rio Grande del Sol.  Then there is one of our favorites, Uruguay.  This tends to be a rich even, clear purple.  We cut a lot of this material, in our safe and comfortable workshop.

These are the most famous locations, but amethysts of various grades are found in many locations around the world.  Some beautiful material comes from the eastern part of Congo, but we do not deal in this material.  Because of all the rebel armies it is clearly a conflict zone and we choose not to work in these areas.

Amethyst can be as small as a tenth of a carat and can go as large as hundreds of carats.  It ranges from the light purple Rose de France, to the pink lavender of Rocky Rose™ to the rich purple colors often referred to as “Siberian” colors.  This is one of the gem worlds most wide ranging gems in terms of color and size.  As one of the original birthstones in the breastplate of Jacob, wishing a happy birthday to everyone born in February.  And a salute to all of you that love purple gems.