The emerald is recognized as one of the four most precious gemstones. The radiant green colour of the emerald is linked to spring and rebirth, making it the fitting gemstone for May.
The name emerald comes from the Greek word “smaragdos” which simply means green.
The history of emeralds can be traced back to antiquity. They were worn by royalty in Babylon and Egypt and have been mined in Egypt since 1500BC, where the mines were referred to as “Cleopatra’s Mines”.
Emeralds are graded by four factors, being colour, cut, clarity and transparency. The most import is colour and the best is a blueish green with an even saturation. The second important is transparency so not too dark or too light of a colour. This is one gemstone where inclusions in its clarity are tolerated and emeralds without any inclusions are extremely rare and can be even more expensive than diamonds.
Did you know that emeralds symbolize royalty, romance, intrigue, loyalty, faithfulness and friendship.
The popularity of this gem is increasing as we see more and more celebrities wearing emerald adorned jewellery.
Interesting Emerald Facts
- Emeralds are produced in more than 30 countries and Colombia is the largest producer providing more than 50% of the worlds production.
- Ancient folklore believed that putting an emerald under the tongue would help you see into the future.
Emeralds of Queen Elizabeth II
Queen Mary wearing the Delhi Durbar tiara with emeralds.
Wearing the Delhi Durbar ne kale, Cambridge emerald earrings & Vladimir emerald tiara .
Thanks to her grandmother Queen Mary, the Queen possesses an extensive selection of emerald jewellery. It included emeralds given to Mary at the Delhi Durbar, the Indian celebration marking the start of George V’s reign as King and emperor with Mary at his side as Queen.
To know more about emeralds and to see our wide selection of jewellery, please visit us @ 145 Church St. in Toronto.
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Photo credits: queensjewelvault.blogspot.ca
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