A rich and saturated pink.
Gemstone Family: Quartz
Colour: Pink
Crystal symmetry: Trigonal
Origin: Myanmar, Sri Lanka, India
Durability: Mohs Hardness: 9
Care: Clean with warm water and a mild soap.
History: Throughout the middle ages, sapphire was used in medicine, as the gemstone was believed to have the ability to cure diseases of the eyes.
Effortlessly lighthearted.
Gemstone Family: Tourmaline
Colour: Pink
Crystal symmetry: Trigonal
Origin: Brazil, Africa, United States, Mozambique, Afghanistan, Russia
Durability: Mohs Hardness: 7 - 7.5
Care: Clean with warm water and a mild soap.
History: As this gemstone was fairly recently introduced into popular jewellery as an alternate birth stone for October compared to other stones, tourmaline has become a choice stone for New Age devotees, who believe that the mineral produces great swathes of psychic energy and neutralises negative energy.
A stone with a distinct personality, enhanced by its firey undercurrents.
Gemstone Family: Quartz
Colour: Red
Crystal symmetry: Amorphous
Origin: Australia, Brazil, Slovakia, Mexico, South Africa, United States
Durability: Mohs Hardness: 5.5 - 6.5
Care: Clean using soapy water and a soft cloth.
History: The Mayans and Aztecs called fire opal "quetzalitzlipyollitli", which means the "stone of the bird of paradise". This gemstone was used frequently in mosaics and rituals of the time.
White sapphire is a celebration of the absence of colour.
Gemstone Family: Corundum
Colour: White to colourless
Crystal symmetry: Trigonal
Origin: Myanmar, Sri Lanka, India
Durability: Mohs Hardness: 9
Care: Clean with warm water and a mild soap.
History: Currently the most popular gemstone for engagement rings, sapphire was worn by royalty throughout the ages as these stones signified wealth, wisdom and virtue.
Blue sapphire is an established favourite, giving the wearer a broad scope.
Gemstone Family: Corundum
Colour: Blue
Crystal symmetry: Trigonal
Origin: Myanmar, Sri Lanka, India
Durability: Mohs Hardness: 9
Care: Clean with warm water and a mild soap.
History: In the beginning of the eleventh century, sapphire became a favourite stone for the rings of priests and clergymen, having previously been a preferred gem for the jewellery of medieval European kings.
Peridot combines distinction with subtlety.
Gemstone Family: Minerals
Colour: Ranges from yellow-green to olive green, depending iron impurities.
Crystal symmetry: Orthorhombic
Origin: China, Pakistan, United States, Myanmar, Brazil, Sri Lanka, Australia, South Africa
Durability: Mohs Hardness: 6.5 - 7
Care: Clean using soapy water and a soft cloth.
History: An early Greek belief was that peridot had the ability to ward off evil spirits. However in order for it to do so, the stone needed to be pierced, threaded on the hair of an ass, and tied around the left arm of the wearer.
Casual luxury.
Gemstone Family: Corundum
Colour: Ranging from oxblood red to pale rose red.
Crystal symmetry: Trigonal
Origin: Myanmar, Thailand, Sri Lanka
Durability: Mohs Hardness: 9
Care: Clean with warm water and a mild soap.
History: A popular Middle Ages belief was that ruby could warn its owner of impending danger by becoming dull and dark. The first wife of Henry VIII, Catherine of Aragon (1485-1536) allegedly predicted her own disgrace by the blackening of her ruby.
Red in one of its purest, darkest hues
Gemstone Family
Garnet
Colour
A purple red
Crystal symmetry
Trigonal
Origin
Russia, Brazil, Sri Lanka, Tanzania
Durability
Mohs Hardness: 6.5 - 7.5
Care
Clean using soapy water and a soft cloth.
History
Long thought of as the traveller's stone, ancient religious texts describe a single large garnet as being used to navigate Noah's ark at night.
Amethyst is restrained, yet regal
Gemstone Family: Quartz
Colour: Violet, Purple
Crystal symmetry: Trigonal: hexagonal prism
Origin: Brazil, Russia, Canada, Sri Lanka, India, USA
Durability: Mohs Hardness: 7
Care: Clean using soapy water and a soft cloth.
History: In medieval times, royal crowns and bishops' rings were studded with amethyst. The British royal scepter boasts a huge road amethyst, set for the coronation of James II (1633-1701), and another surmounts the sovereign orb.