August’s birthstone, peridot, is the gem quality variety of the common mineral olivine. In geological terms, olivine is a mantle-mineral, brought to the surface of the earth by volcanic eruptions. In Hawaiian folklore, peridot symbolizes the tears of Pele, the volcano goddess of fire who controls the flow of lava on the islands. Peridot has [...]
When you think of blue gemstones, the first one that springs to mind for most people is sapphire. Tanzanite is a popular blue gemstone (albeit with a violet tint) and semi-precious gems such as topaz, apatite, lapis lazuli and turquoise are all relatively well known. But what of Kyanite, a gem that you may perhaps have never heard [...]
When most people think about sapphire, blue is the colour that automatically comes to mind. But did you know that sapphire can be found in virtually every colour of the rainbow? Yes, September’s birthstone truly is a rainbow gemstone. Mineralogically, sapphire is known as corundum (as is ruby) and as the second hardest gemstone on Moh’s Hardness [...]
If opal doesn’t take your fancy, why not consider tourmaline? Available in a wide variety of colours, tourmaline is a semi-precious gem occurring in various shades of almost every hue. Tourmaline is mined in Brazil, Sri Lanka, Nigeria, Mozambique, Madagascar, Afghanistan, Pakistan and the U.S.A. Paraíba tourmaline is a vividly colored purplish or greenish blue variety found in [...]
