The amethyst jewelry of Egyptian Princess Sithathoryunet (ca. The boy king Tutankhamen was entombed with a bracelet featuring a large amethyst scarab, and Queen Mereret was buried with amethyst heart scarabs and an anklet with gold and amethyst beads.Egyptians thought it protected them against witchcraft and feelings of guilt and fear.Egyptian pharaohs favored amethyst from Nubia, a region at the confluence of the Blue Nile and White Nile, for personal adornment as long ago as 3100 BC.It weighs more than 2.5 lb (1.17 kg) and includes the 530-carat Cullinan I (Star of Africa) diamond and an additional 333 diamonds, 31 rubies, 15 emeralds, 7 sapphires, 6 spinels and 1 composite amethyst. The 3-ft-long (92 cm) scepter is held by the British monarch during coronation and represents the power of the head of state. The crown jewels of many countries, including Britain’s Sovereign Sceptre with Cross, include amethysts. In the 1800s, discoveries of multiple large amethyst mines in Brazil provided such a large supply that the gem was no longer rare, making it affordable.Some historians suggest that at one time, amethyst was the most valuable of all the cardinal gems because it was the color of kings, nobles, priests, and magistrates.It was one of the five traditional cardinal gemstones considered precious above all others, along with diamond, ruby, sapphire, and emerald. Amethyst has been valued as a gemstone for thousands of years.The historical romance around amethyst was derived from both its coveted deep purple color and its rareness.In 1904, a synthetic coal tar dye was developed, reducing the cost of purple dye.Each gastropod produces only a drop of dye, so thousands were required to color fabric, rendering purple fabric very expensive and rare. The yellow mucus oxidizes to reddish purple in bright sunlight along shorelines.Tyrian purple pigment is made from mucus secreted by certain Mediterranean and Atlantic Murex sea snails.In ancient times, the color purple signified power and royalty because it was very difficult to make.February’s birthstone was once one of the most valuable of gems, but today we know it is simply a beautiful variety of quartz crystal with an added bit of iron and radioactivity. The deep purple gemstone has been prized as a symbol of power, love, and intelligence over the ages. Synopsis: There are many legends about amethyst, from its origins to how it was used to signal lovers about safe haven in difficult times. Enough UV radiation from sunlight will fade it to lilac or gray.Īnd it can change color when heated, turning light green, yellow, or brown… though another dose of the right radiation can bring back its purple hue.Īmethyst is the February birthstone, so if you know anyone born in this month, try giving them a birthday gift that was once the stone of sober kings. It doesn’t take a lot of radiation it’s naturally occurring in other rocks found where amethyst crystals grow, and not nearly enough to be harmful to humans.Īmethyst’s color can change when exposed to other kinds or radiation. These would normally be invisible, but when exposed to gamma rays, they make the quartz turn purple-into amethyst. It has trace amounts of iron, only a few parts per million.

Since then, huge finds in many places, especially Brazil and Uruguay, have made amethyst plentiful and affordable.Īnd that’s good, because this brilliant purple gem is now available to everyone and is still just as striking.Įspecially when you consider that amethyst is just quartz with a few special qualities. In the Middle Ages, it adorned the rings of religious leaders and the scepters of royalty. The stone was thought to cool tempers and prevent drunkenness, so it was cut into jewelry for wise kings and crafted into wine goblets for those who hoped to stay sober. To Egyptians and ancient Greeks, amethysts were as precious as diamonds, rubies, and sapphires. This specimen is at the Gallery of Mineralogy and Geology in the French National Museum of Natural History in Paris. The mines that produce it have been depleted, so it is quite rare, making it the most valuable amethyst. “Deep Russian,” from Siberia, is the highest grade of amethyst.

Russian amethyst price