Today I am taking a closer look at Emeralds - the birthstone for May.
Emerald is a green, bluish green gemstone and variety of the mineral beryl, it gains its green colour by small amounts of chromium and or sometimes vanadium,
It has a hardness of 7.5 - 8 on Moh's scale.
Emerald is a cyclosilicate - basically a compound with a structure in which silicate tetrahedrons, made up of a silicon atom surrounded by four oxygen atoms, are arranged in rings - look it up!. Most emeralds also contain inclusions ( other materials trapped inside), so they can become easily scratched or damaged.
Emeralds are usually found in rocks among layers of mica. they are obtained from open pit mining or terrace mining. Miners dig a pit using anything from shovels to larger earth moving equipment, depending on the size of the mine.
Emeralds were mined in Egypt from around 1500BC, These Egyptian mines were exploited on an industrial scale by early empires and then later Islamic conquerors. This mining largely came to an end following the discovery of the Columbian deposits. Columbia is now the worlds largest producer of emeralds, followed by Zambia, However Emeralds are found throughout the world including the continents of North and South America, Australia, Asia, Africa and Europe.
In the world of spirituality emeralds are believed to strengthen your connection to divine energies by opening your heart and mind. it represents unconditional compassion, love and acceptance in every form.
it is known as the stone of successful love, and a provider of loyalty and domestic bliss. It is also considered by some to enhance unconditional love and promote friendship and to bring you immense luck and good fortunes, even when you lose hope.
Emeralds are believed to be a powerful energy stone with healing powers, providing both emotional and physical relief, lifting depression, detoxifying blood and strengthening heart and eyes, immune and nervous systems as well as curing ailments of the pancreas, backbone, lymph nodes, intestines and kidneys.
I currently have a couple of pieces available on my website which include emerald beads.
A knitted diamond and emerald pendant
A pair of crocheted wire and emerald earrings.
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