Sunday, August 29, 2010

Sapphire ~ Birthstone of September

Now, finally, we arrive at my personal favorite birthstone ~ SAPPHIRE!




  Why is this my favorite? Well...I was born in September, so this lovely stone has been in my jewelry collection for some time. Plus, I love the blue colors in sapphire!
  
  Most people do associate the color blue with sapphire, although it is available in many colors (except for red, because then it would be.....Ruby!).


  Like ruby, sapphire is composed of the mineral corundum, which is second only to the diamond in hardness. The mineral is used industrially as a grinder. You may be familiar with sandpaper or other such abrasive that is coated with corundum. 


  Both ruby and Sapphire may be found in Ceylon & Burma, as well as inside the U.S. in Georgia, Montana and North Carolina. 


  In the most general terms, Sapphire has been long thought to foster loyalty and fidelity, and to enhance creativity and intuition. Because it reflects the color of the sky, it is associated with heavenly matters and spiritual protection.


  It has been valued by mankind for at least about 10,000 years; it plays a role several times in the Holy Bible (the tablets upon which the Ten Commandments were written were thought to be Sapphire; in Revelations, it is also listed as the second foundation stone); in ancient Persian culture and also in Vedic myths.


 Some famous Sapphires are:

  • the Logan Sapphire, weighing 432 carats, and currently at the Smithsonian Institute
  • Catherine the Great's sapphire, which weighs over 337 carats
  • the "Star of India", a phenomenal star sapphire weighing in at over 563 carats, and is now kept at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City
  Readers are encouraged to look up pictures on the web of these and other remarkable Sapphires.

A livelier emerald twinkles in the grass,
 A purer sapphire melts into the sea.

~ Tennyson




Such are the "Elements of Life"....



   
http://www.go-west-gems.net/