Sunday, July 5, 2009

March's Birthstone the Aquamarine

The bluish-green variety of beryl known as aquamarine is birthstone for March. It is a very popular, medium priced stone. Metaphysicists value it for its clarity. Aquamarine is a gemstone variety of the mineral beryl, and birthstone for March. Its color is bluish-green or aqua. The name is derived from the Latin “aqua”, water of the sea. It can be found where other varieties of beryl are found. The finest gemstones comes from Russia, Sri Lanka, and Brazil. The US

produces some aquamarine, in central Colorado and near the Big Horn Mountains of Wyoming. Found mainly in granite pegmatites, aquamarine is related with quartz, feldspars, and muscovites. The color is due to iron impurities in the beryl. There are no major industrial uses for aquamarine, although it does contain the rare element beryllium, which is used in x-ray windows, computer parts, aircrafts, missiles and communication satellites.

Aquamarine is commonly popular as a gemstone. For years it was carried by sailors at sea as a charm, and for their safety. Metaphysicists say it replaces anger and negativity with peace and clarity. Aquamarine is mentioned in the Bible, as a stone in the breastplate of Aaron, and in the book of Revelation as one of the foundation stones of the church. Fantastic aquamarines are on display at several museums around the world. The Smithsonian, the British Museum of Natural History, the LA County Museum, and the museum of Hyde Park all display large, well known aquamarine specimens. The largest known aquamarine was found at Minas Gerais, Brazil, and weighs 110 kilograms.

No comments:

Post a Comment