All About Gemstones

Birthstones by Month   •    Birthstones by Zodiac Sign

Gemstones

Agate is a variety of quartz which usually shows varicolored bands. Some named varieties are: moss agate, banded agate, laguna agate, fire agate*, crazy lace agate*, and plume agate, which appears to be filled with beautiful feathery plumes. (*refer to list below).

Agate is believed to discern truth, accept circumstances, and is a powerful emotional healer. A September birthstone.

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Amazonite is usually polished as a cabochon to display the reflection or iridescent light caused by material trapped within. Amazonite ranges from bright green from China to a bluish green from Russia.

Amazonite has been called the "hope stone" because it inspires confidence and hope. It has also been called the stone of courage and is said to be named after the Amazon women warriors.

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Amber - A sticky resin that once oozed from ancient pine trees trapped small insects, plant material, etc. and became encased in dirt and debris. Through a process of heat and pressure it fossilized to become amber. Amber ranges in color from dark brown to a light, almost clear, lemon yellow. To test for genuine amber make a saturated solution of regular table salt and water and place the piece of amber in this mixture. If it floats, it is amber. If it sinks it is man-made.

Powers attributed to amber include love, strength, luck, healing, and protection, calming for hyperactivity and stressed nerves, humor and joy. 

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Azurite is a mineral with intense deep blue color. Different sources claim the name is derived from the Persian word lazhward or from the Arabic word azul, both of which mean blue. It often occurs with malachite, chrysocolla or turquoise in areas with copper deposits. During the Middle Ages and Renaissance it was ground into pigment for use in paint and eye shadow.

Many believe that Azurite helps to reduce anger and to increase psychic awareness.

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Carnelian is one of the birthstones listed in the ancient Arabic, Hebrew, Italian and Roman tables and is a Zodiac birthstone for the signs of Leo and Virgo. It is a member of the quartz family and most Carnelian is heat treated today to enhance the reddish brown color.

Folklore suggests that carnelian was used to protect the traveler from death and guard against evil.

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Charoite was discovered in 1978 in Russia, the only known location for this rare mineral, Charoite is named for the nearby river. The colors range from bright lavender, violet and lilac to dark purple with swirling patterns of black. It is much sought after and used extensively in all kinds of jewelry.

Charoite is said to enhance self-esteem, accelerate spiritual growth, and improve the ability to love.

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Chrysocolla is often confused with turquoise. It is a copper bearing mineral found wherever copper deposits occur. Pure chrysocolla is too soft for jewelry purposes but it is often found in quartz deposits which make it hard enough to polish. It is also found mixed with malachite, turquoise and azurite.

Chrysocolla is associated with tranquility and peace, intuition, patience, unconditional love, creativity, female energy, and communication. It is believed to relieve ulcers and arthritis.

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Coral was a tiny sea animal that lived in colonies whose hard stony skeletal remains are fossilized. Mediterranean coral has a delicate red or pink color and is used for jewelry. Black Coral is found in Hawaii and the Caribbean, but is rarely available and costly.

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Crazy Lace Agate, also known as Mexican agate, is an attractive, white, opaque stone, patterned like a beautiful, multicolored paisley cloth. Crazy Lace Agate is mined ONLY in Mexico. Because of this, it is often called Mexican Lace Agate.

Crystal healers use this particular Agate to absorb emotional pain, to counteract physical low periods, to bring stamina to the wearer, and to gain insight to the many options available in any decision-making process.

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Dinosaur Bone or "dino bone" is the result of fossilized dinosaurs' bones where the cellular structure has been replaced with quartz, leaving the bone structure intact. Replacement colors can be red, blue, or yellow.

There is no folklore surrounding this fossilized bone which was living flesh 100 - 140 million years ago.

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Fire Agate contains many layers of tiny inclusions which produce a distinctive fire-like iridescence when properly cut to leave only thin protective layers over the inclusions.

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Garnet occurs in every color except blue and most varieties are named for their color. Rhodolite is a purplish red, hessonite is the name for an orange, cinnamon, or pinkish variety. Tsavorite is the name given to dark green garnet. Uvarovite and demantoid varieties are also green.

Garnet's powers include healing, strength, and protection and it is often worn to relieve inflammations of the skin.

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Howlite named for its discoverer Henry How (a Nova Scotia geologist), is one of those minerals that is more famous for imitating another mineral. In this case the other mineral is turquoise. Although howlite is always white or gray, it can be dyed turquoise blue. Its appearance is so good that dishonest dealers have been successful at this hoax.

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Imperial Jasper is considered one of the finest jaspers in the mineral family. Found near Guadalajara, Mexico, the pink color is considered one of the rarest. It often shows concentric circles or eyes.

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Jade is the term applied to forms of jadeite and nephrite. These minerals are similar in appearance. But, due to its more intense color and translucency, jadeite now brings higher prices and is thought to be the true jade.

Ancient people thought that wearing jade would increase body strength and add longevity. Jade is an ancient symbol of love and virtue.

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Jasper is an opaque, finely grained semiprecious gem found in all colors, including: red, brown, pink, yellow, green, grey/white and shades of blue and purple. It often contains interesting patterns many of which resemble landscapes with mountains and valleys, thus the name "picture" becomes part of the name of many well known jaspers.

Jasper is protective. It can align all the chakras and balances yin and yang energies. It is stabilizing and healing.

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Labradorite is a translucent stone that displays strong iridescence when viewed from different angles. Finnish Labradorite exhibits vivid colors of bright aqua, golden yellow, peacock blue, reddish orange, greens and red.

Brings forth each person's strengths and originality. It is said to aid sleep and the ability to relate to others.

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Lapis Lazuli is a deep, strong blue, sometimes showing a hint of violet. Lapis lazuli's value decreases with the presence of white patches (calcite), while small veins of pyrite (fool's gold) are prized. It was used by the ancient Egyptians for cosmetic purposes and was also ground, mixed with linseed oil and used by artists.

Strengthens total awareness, creativity, ESP, skeleton, thyroid, helps to expand viewpoint.

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Larimar is a rare stone discovered in the 1970's. It is only found in the Dominican Republic. It has an extraordinary blue appearance similar to the color of the ocean in tropical areas. It was formed by volcanic activity in the presence of copper in the surrounding soil.

Its powers are believed to helps us see events from different viewpoints, to soften and enlighten, to heal the emotional, physical, mental and spiritual body.

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Malachite is a popular stone which has light and dark green banded areas. Many beautiful specimens of malachite combine with other minerals, such as azurite, cuprite, or chrysocolla. 

It is worn to detect impending danger, and is believed to break into pieces when danger is near. It is the guardian stone of travelers and is also thought to increase regeneration, happiness, intuition, instincts. and it is thought to decrease sexual desire and helps to change bad habits.

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Mineralized palmwood comes from palm trees of the Oligocene Epoch, between 20 - 40 million years ago. The characteristic spotted look of palmwood is from the rod like structures within the grain of the wood. Depending upon the angle the lapidary uses to cut the stone these structures show up as spots, tapering rods, or lines. It is the state stone of Texas and the state fossil of Louisiana.

Removes petty annoyances and connects one to earth and nature.

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Mookaite The name Mookaite is actually derived from the place where it is dug, namely Mooka Creek, in Australia, the only source of this beautiful stone. The color bands range from peach to rust red. Mookaite takes brilliant polish but has been recently introduced with a matte finish.

In Australia, Mookaite was and still is considered to be a healing stone that bestows strength.

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Ocean Jasper is a very rare stone mined in one place in the world. It is found off the coast of the remote area of Marovato, Madagascar, and the deposit is so close to the ocean that it can only be mined at low tide. Ocean Jasper is Top known for its beautiful orbicular designs and patterns that look like foaming bubbles. This is a very new stone, discovered a few years ago after a very long search. It is nicknamed "Atlantis Stone" due to the fact that it is found under the ocean.

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Crystal healers use Ocean Jasper to promote patience and help in meditation. It helps to bring peace of mind. The circular patterns suggest that all of nature is interconnected, and that nature is cyclical. Physically, Ocean Jasper is said to aid in problems of digestion, and to help remove toxins from the body.

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Onyx is a quartz stone that is mined in Brazil, India, California and Uruguay. It has a fine texture and black color. It looks spectacular set in silver. Most Black Onyx that is commercially available today is color enhanced (heated and dyed) to increase its depth of color.

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Pearl - is an organic gem formed inside oysters and mussels. It is formed when an irritant such as a tiny stone or bit of sand gets inside the mollusk's shell. A lustrous substance, called nacre, is secreted around the object to protect the soft internal surface of the mollusk. As layer upon layer of nacre coats the irritant, a pearl is formed. Light that is reflected from these overlapping layers produces the characteristic iridescent luster. This process of building a solid pearl can take up to seven or eight years. The most valuable pearls are perfectly symmetrical, relatively large and naturally produced. They have a shimmering iridescence which is called orient luster. The principal oyster beds lie in the Persian Gulf, along the coasts of India and Sri Lanka, and in the Red Sea. Chinese pearls come mainly from freshwater rivers and ponds, whereas Japanese pearls are found near the coast in salt.

Cultured or freshwater pearls are considered to offer the power of Top love, money, protection, and luck.

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Rhodochrosite's pink color is caused by the element manganese and is formed when manganese is dissolved by ground water and combines with a carbonate material that then drips off the ceiling of caves and crevices deep underground. It is commonly found in the form of stalactites and stalagmites which form pink and white banding.

Its powers include drawing love to the wearer, helps release past psychological issues and improves eyesight.

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Rhodonite is a glassy, opaque, pink to rose-red stone, often with black inclusions. It is also found in yellow, brown, green and black. It has black veins, called dendrites, running through it to give it a spiderweb look.

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Hodonite is said to help the wearer achieve his or her greatest potential. Called the Stone of Peace, it helps bring an inner calm and patience.

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Ruby in Zoisite is a semiprecious gem which consists of green zoisite imbedded with ruby inclusions. It is found in Tanzania. The green zoisite is relatively soft while the ruby inclusions are usually quite hard. This can make the stone difficult to cut because of the differences in hardness and requires that diamond tools be used.

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Staurolite is a hard, brownish stone with a special property. It often occurs twinned in a characteristic cross-shape. Perfect crosses of 90 degrees are very rare.

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Tiger's eye (tigers eye, tiger eye, tiger iron) is a member of the quartz family. It is one of the gemstones that exhibits a changeable silky luster as light is Top reflected within the thin parallel fibrous bands.

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Unakite, first discovered in the United States in the Unakas mountains of North Carolina, is an altered granite. It exists in various shades of green and pink and is usually mottled in appearance. Good quality Unakite, considered a semiprecious stone, will take a good polish and is often used in jewelry and other lapidary work.

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Birthstones by Month

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Birthstones by Zodiac Sign

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