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February Birthstone Amethyst is the birthstone of February and the most popular bits of the symbolism and folklore of this stone involves the stone’s purported power to prevent drunkenness.
Amethystos means “not drunk” in Ancient Greek. Greeks believed you could drink all night and remain sober if you had an amethyst in your mouth or on your person. But how does Bacchus has a part in the history of this stone? Long ago, Bacchus, the god of wine, was angered one day by an insult from a mere mortal and swore revenge against the next mortal that would cross his path. To perform this, he created two fierce tigers.
At that moment a beautiful maiden, named Amethyst (February Birthstone) was on her way to worship at the Temple of Diana and she had the misfortune of crossing paths with the god of wine, Bacchus. He spied the maiden and unleashed his two guardian tigers upon her. As the great beasts bounded towards the hapless lass, the maiden Amethyst pray to Diana, and the goddess Diana intervened.
“Jewelry needs to fulfill the function for which it came into being. The only way that a Jewelry Designer will see its art in LIFE is with the eyes, the mind, and the heart of the Spectator.
The viewer in the last stroke in any jewelry piece”.
– Ines Arenas Jewelry Gallery
Diana turned Amethyst (February Birthstone) into a statue of pure crystalline quartz to protect her from the brutal claws of the tigers. Immediately, remorse seized Bacchus. To atone for his actions, he poured his wine over the stone, staining the crystal a deep, violet hue. And so, the maiden Amethyst give her name to the crystal.
Later on, perhaps this association with calming physical passions led some early Christians to associate the amethyst with Christ. The gem’s purple colors represented the purity of spirit. I like this story about Bacchus and Amethyst because makes the stone more interesting.
Besides, a calm and clear mind is said that are two characteristics of Pisces people, may be related to their birthstone? February Birthstone Amethysts were considered so valuable that, at one point, the use of amethysts was restricted only to royalty because of these powers.
Happy Birthday to the ones born in February, who share these personal characteristics with which their birthstone represents!!
Best Option For February Birthstone
Amethyst: #7 hardness on Mohs scale, good toughness. Sources are Brazil(major source), India, Namibia, Sri Lanka, United States, Uruguay, Zambia. A closely related quartz variety called ametrine contains a striking mixture of two contrasting quartzes—purple amethyst and yellow citrine. Ametrine deposits are found in Brazil and Bolivia.
Experts gemologists consider Africa the best source of amethyst’s for have the royal purple with reddish overtone hues; the gem’s finest color.
How To Choose the Best February Birthstone?
February Birthstone Amethyst is made of quartz, a very common crystal that is abundantly found across the world. It’s the cousin of other quartz gemstones like citrine (yellow quartz), rose quartz (pink variety), and smoky quartz (smoky colored variety).
Amethyst only comes in purple shades but sometimes you’ll come across ‘green amethyst’. This is not amethyst, but a green variety of quartz that sometimes displays a light purple shade on the surface.
Amethyst crystals can come in very large crystals, often its colors can be diluted and spread unevenly throughout the crystal.
For your jewelry, choose an amethyst with vibrant color. Amethysts are pretty affordable but lower the value of amethyst, doesn’t mean that they are worthless.
Clarity is important as it allows the crystal to reflect light out of the surface. If the stone contains inclusions that hinder the movement of light, it can affect the brilliance of the stone.
Cabochon is the best cut for February Birthstone Amethysts to maximize the color of the stone. For eye-clean crystals with minimal or any uneven distribution of color inside the stone (zoning). Faceting is more appropriate since the goal of faceting is to enable the stone to reflect as much light as possible that as a client is what you should pursue.
Depending on the size of the stone and the color distribution any type of cut is possible be it oval, cushion, triangle, marquise, or emerald.
For highly included crystals with prominent color distribution, cutting them as a cabochon is more suitable, because gemologists consider flaws (inclusions, zoning) are used to advantage with this type of cut.
Regarding carats, we have good news because February Birthstone Amethysts can be found in a considerable range of sizes. If you are someone who likes large center-stones, this makes a good choice because the price of amethysts does not go up with the increase in carat weight.
The most common treatment for February Birthstone Amethyst is heating and is used when amethyst is too dark or too light because it can affect the beauty of the stone. When amethyst is heated, the color change either by darkening, lightening, changing the hue of the crystal completely.
For example, if a transparent or slightly green amethyst is heated, it can turn into a brilliant Royal Purple. Also, as very dark crystals can look plain black, heating can lighten the crystal to bring it to a nice, vibrant shade of violet.
How To Take Care of Your February Birthstone Jewelry?
Taking care of your amethyst jewelry is quite easy. Remove unwanted dust and oil deposits on the crystal can be done with warm and soapy water. In addition to regular cleaning, you must take extra care while wearing the stone.
Try to avoid bumping or scratching the stone against a rough surface. When storing the amethyst, keep it away from harder stones and metals that could scratch its surface. Yes! The surface can be easily scratched.
Heat is the worst amethyst’s enemy. Extreme heat in repeated exposure to sunlight can cause the color to fade, so really try to avoid it. Harsh chemicals such as chlorine can also harm the stone and the metal where the stone is setting. Remember to take off your jewelry while sunbathing, swimming or when doing household jobs like doing the dishes or the laundry.
Professional maintenance once every year or so can prolong the life of your amethyst.
But if you have to replace the amethyst on your ring after some time, do not worry Amethysts are affordable, it will not be expensive to have your stone replaced.
