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| Emerald, the May Birthstone |
Here are some fun facts to help improve your knowledge and lore of the stunning and ever-popular Emerald:
Emerald, the May Birthstone
- Emeralds are a variety of the mineral beryl.
- Emerald green is the most sought after and valuable shade of emerald.
- Emeralds get their green color from trace amounts of chromium and sometimes vanadium.
- Ireland is known as “the Emerald Isle” for its lush green fields.
- The emerald is the gemstone for the Zodiac star sign, Taurus.
- Emeralds are traditionally given as gifts for 20th, 35th and 55th anniversaries.
- An emerald with the right color and characteristics can be rarer and more expensive than a diamond of similar size.
- Emeralds are symbolic of springtime and rebirth, and so are believed to help with fertility, ensure a healthy pregnancy, and ease childbirth.
- The word emerald is derived from the Greek word, smaragdos, which means means green stone.
- On a scale of 10, emeralds are a 7.8 – 8 on the Mohs scale of mineral hardness.
- Today, most emeralds are found in Colombia, and the most famous emerald deposit is called the Muzo mine, located northwest of Bogota.
- Up until around 200 years ago, peridots were commonly mistaken to be emeralds.
- Green Swarovski crystals are used to make replica emeralds because they can be more precisely faceted.
