Bella Jewelry and Gifts makes no claims as to the effectiveness of the information in this chart, which is derived from traditional and contemporary crystal and gemstone lore. It is not to be understood as directions, recommendations or prescriptions of any kind. Nor do the author or publisher make any claim other than to report this lore.

JANUARY | FEBRUARY | MARCH | APRIL | MAY
JUNE | JULY | AUGUST| SEPTEMBER | OCTOBER | NOVEMBER | DECEMBER

JANUARY'S BIRTHSTONE IS GARNET –

FEBRUARY'S BIRTHSTONE IS AMETHYST –

MARCH'S BIRTHSTONE IS AQUAMARINE –

APRIL'S BIRTHSTONE IS DIAMOND –

MAY'S BIRTHSTONE IS EMERALD –

JUNE'S BIRTHSTONE IS ALEXANDRITE or PEARL –

JULY'S BIRTHSTONE IS RUBY –

AUGUST'S BIRTHSTONE IS PERIDOT –

SEPTEMBER'S BIRTHSTONE IS SAPPHIRE – Mineral name: Corundum. Hardness: 9 Sapphire is one of the most popular gemstones and comes in many colors including blue, blue-green, green, yellow, yellow green, orange, brown, black, white, gray, purple, golden amber, peach, pink, pinkish red and red. Fun facts: Rubies (July’s Birthstone) are Red Sapphires. Other than diamonds, sapphires are the hardest of all other minerals. This makes them less likely to chip or get scratched than other stones. Rubies are more rare than other colors of sapphire and therefore cost more per carat. Even though they are the exact same mineral, there is one curious difference between Sapphires and Rubies. Sapphire crystals grow to a much larger size than Rubies. Sapphires can reach several hundred carats but rubies rarely reach 30 carats. Most are much smaller. Sapphire is revered as a stone of royalty.
Metaphysical Lore:
SAPPHIRE – Meditation, pure insight and vision with the ability to read the future. When worn renders black magic harmless and helps the wearer discern falsehood and guile. Can be used to rid one of unpleasant thoughts and bring peace and joy. It is said to protect one from poverty, terror, harm envy and ill temper. Sapphires are ideal for opening the third eye and throat chakras.
DARK BLUE SAPPHIRE: intuition, meditation, creative expression, enhancing psychic abilities and activate one’s higher intelligence. GREEN: luck. ORANGE: friendliness, optimism, wisdom. PINK: love, loyalty. STAR: centering, independence, psychic abilities. YELLOW: intellect, learning, memory. WHITE: spiritual development and self-appreciation. The three crossed lines in a star sapphire are said to represent hope, faith and destiny.
Medical Folklore: Calms the nerves.

Gem quality Sapphires come in two varieties, translucent and opaque.
Star Sapphires are created when there are inclusions of the mineral Rutile. These fine needles grew at the exact same time the Sapphire crystal was growing. All minerals grow governed by a specific set of laws of nature. Sapphire crystallizes in the form of tabular prismatic crystals with hexagonal double pyramid structures. Gem quality sapphires are found in Afghanistan, Pakistan, East Africa, Australia, Tanzania, Sri Lanka, India, Madagascar, Cambodia, Thailand and Yogo Gultch, Montana in the United States. In the early 1900’s Tiffany and Co. operated a Ruby mine in Franklin, North Carolina.
Some famous sapphires:
The Star of India star sapphire is perhaps the most famous sapphire and at 563 carats is considered the largest in the world.
The Star of India was stolen in 1964 from the New York Museum of National History along with The Delong Star Ruby. Both gems were recovered. The Delong Star Ruby was dropped off for ransom at a phone booth in Florida and the uninsured Star of India was recovered in a locker in a Miami bus station.
Black Star of Queensland 1,165 ct rough; 733 ct cut; black star sapphire. Found found on Klondyke Ridge, Australia in 1935 by 14 year old Roy Spencer. This “rock” was supposedly used as a door stop for many years by his father Harry Spencer. It was purchased in 1947 by the Kazanjian Brothers for almost $18,000 and cut in 1948.
The Stuart Sapphire (104 carats) dates back to 1214. This fine blue, but flawed, gem passed through the hands of several kings and cardinals before being mounted in Queen Victoria’s State Crown. Eventually replaced by the Star of Africa Diamond, the Stuart Sapphire now rests on the back side of the British Imperial State Crown. It is currently on public display as part of the British Crown Jewels collection at the Tower of London.
Some other large sapphires:
Catherine the Great’s Sapphire weighing an impressive 337.10 carats.
Ruspoliz’s Sapphire, also known as the Wooden Spoon Sapphire, Seller’s Sapphire or Great Sapphire of Louis XIV, 135.8 carats.
Three gems in the J.P. Morgan collection that weigh 188, 158 and 153 carats.

OCTOBER'S BIRTHSTONES ARE TOURMALINE and OPAL
We will cover both of them one at a time.
Opal is a hydrated silica material (Quartz) composed of an aggregate of tiny spherical particles of solidified silica gel. Hardness: 5.5 to 6.5. Colors range from white, black, gray, yellow, orange, red, violet and colorless.
Opal is a fairly soft stone that can be scratched or chipped if treated roughly. If you are rough on your jewelry, an opal pendant or brooch is a better choice than a ring.
Australia produces approx. 97% of the world’s opal. Other opal producing regions are, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Mexico, Hungary, Turkey, Indonesia, Brazil, Honduras, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Ethiopia and Virgin Valley Nevada in the USA.
Although non-gem grade opal can be rather dull looking, opal that displays “play of fire” can be quite striking. Opals that exhibit fire are composed of equal size silica spheres, which are also tightly packed and evenly spaced throughout. Top grade opal has very even sized and even spaced silica spheres.
Opal that has unevenly spaced or unevenly sized spheres will display little or no fire.
Interestingly, there is a variety of opal called Fire Opal that may or may not have fire in it! It is a transparent to translucent variety with a body color of red to orange and the name fire opal refers to the body color, not to play of fire. This type of opal is often from Mexico but is found in other locations.

Metaphysical Lore:
OPAL – Promotes divination and prophecy, balances chakras, for centering self, aids in channeling and teaching truths to others, aids in psychic journeys and has been used to awaken both the psychic and mystical qualities. Can be used to encourage flashes of intuition and insight.
Wearer receives undying love and faithfulness. Enhances passion, emotional expressiveness, warmth, spontaneity, peace, consciousness, and dramatic ability. Opal can assist in the retention of knowledge and is an excellent stone for students. Opal helps to clear, calm and focus the mind. It is known as the stone of happy dreams.
Opal has been used by the Australian aboriginal shamen to invoke visions and by Native American’s in the ceremony of the vision quest.

Some Famous Opals:
The Aurora Australis, 180 carats, found in 1938 at Lightning Ridge, Australia in an ancient seabed, this opal has the distinct impression of a starfish on the back.

The Black Prince, 181 carats, found in 1915 at an area known as the Phone Line in Australia. This stone had a flag pattern on one side and the other side was red. After passing through several hands, this stone became part of the collection at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Los Angeles and was stolen along with several other large opals including The Pride of Australia.

The Pride of Australia, also known as The Red Emperor, 225 carats, found in 1915 at the Phone Line. With broad, rich patches of color throughout, this stone has been in at least five world fairs billed as “The Greatest Opal of Australia”. As stated above, it was stolen along with several other very large opals and has never been found.

The Empress of Australia also from the Phone Line area. This stone has an interesting, yet somewhat sad history. Originally weighing 500 plus carats, with large patches of brilliant red color, the stone was brought down to the local pub for all to see. While one admirer was holding the stone, it slipped from his grasp and fell to the floor breaking into two pieces. They managed to cut three usable stones from the broken pieces, two at 20 carats each and one at 60 carats.

The Fire Queen, almost 900 carats, was found in 1906 at the Angledool Diggings in Australia. The miner, Charlie Dunstan probably didn’t understand the true value of his find and sold the stone for a mere 100 pounds. He committed suicide in 1910.
The stone eventually ended up in the possession of J.D. Rockefeller in the 1940’s who paid 75,000 pounds for it.

The Hope Opal rarely gets a mention because of its famous cousin, The Hope Diamond. This 35-carat stone is carved with a human face surrounded by sunrays. It is assumed to be Mexican but it’s origin remains unknown.

Tourmaline, another choice for October’s birthstone, is the name given to a family of minerals with the same crystal structure but widely different chemical composition color and properties.
Hardness ranges from 7 to 7.5.
Found worldwide, there are nine different species in the group and they not only come in different colors, they also can have multiple colors occurring in the same crystal. Available colors are, colorless, black, blue, brown, bronze, golden, yellow, yellow-brown, pink, red, orange, orange-yellow, and a variety of greens, including, green, blue-green, dark green, pale green, olive green and yellow green. Multicolor gems have zones of color along their length including bicolor, tricolor and watermelon varieties. The colors occur from complex chemical compositions depending upon the chemical makeup of the surrounding area. The ground water flowing through the earth would pick up these chemicals and thus determine the color of the crystal.
Tourmaline is a favorite among mineral collectors because it occurs in a variety of colors, has great crystal structure and is relatively inexpensive. Crystals are often cracked or flawed so gem quality material brings a premium price, especially if they are over 10 carats.
Large, clean Watermelon Tourmalines are prized stones as are large clean pink and red Tourmalines, which are called Rubellite and are often mistaken for fine Rubies by the untrained eye.
Black Tourmaline can occur as an inclusion in Clear Quartz which is then called Tourmalated Quartz which is a prized stone in it’s own right and can make for some beautiful and unusual jewelry as well as great specimens for collectors. Tourmaline has an unusual ability to become electrically charged called piezoelectricity. Heating and cooling or simply rubbing a crystal can cause it to become charged with electricity. When charged, it will attract dust or bits of paper. Quartz crystal reacts in a similar way.

Metaphysical Lore:
TOURMALINE – One of the most significant minerals for metaphysical use, it occurs in a wide color range. Tourmaline enhances objectivity, flexibility, compassion, joy, relaxation, happiness, serenity, balance, transformation, healing, channeling, and strength. Promotes understanding and encourages self-confidence. Helps diminish fear. Good for relationships and those who counsel others.
For individual colors: BLUE: Promotes peace, helps one to live in harmony with people, places and things. Activates the throat chakra, enhances one’s psychic abilities. GREEN: Brings prosperity, promotes self-healing, is beneficial to all things that live and grow. Can be used to enhance gardens and houseplants. PINK: love, aids in healing old emotional wounds. Can be used to repair “holes” in the auric field resulting from negative attachments or past abuse. BLACK: Provides protection, deflects negative energies instead of absorbing them. Used to neutralize one’s own anger, resentment and jealousy. Increases one’s physical vitality, emotional stability and intelligence. MULTI-COLORED: Helps one to live harmoniously with all people. Helps one explore the inner self and the higher self.

One of the most prolific tourmaline producing areas in the world is Minas Gerais, Brazil. Some truly spectacular crystals have come from this mineral rich area. Other locations of note include Zambia, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Madagascar, Ceylon, The Himalayas, the Russian Ural Mountains, and in the US, California, Connecticut and Maine.
There is an interesting story about the discovery of tourmaline in the state of Maine. Two students by the name of Elijah L. Hamlin and Ezekiel Holmes discovered tourmaline near Paris, Maine in the year 1820. Both had become interested in mineralogy, and spent much of their time searching for minerals among the exposed ledges and mountains in the area.
Late in the autumn, they had spent most of the day on Mount Mica, part of the mountain ridge to the south of the village, and were descending the western slope on their way home, just as the sun was setting behind the great White Mountain range. Young Hamlin hesitated for a moment on the crest of a hill to enjoy natures beauty which spread before him, and on turning to the east for one final look at the woods and mountains behind him, a vivid gleam of green flashed from an object on the roots of a tree upturned by the wind, and caught his eye. There he found a transparent green crystal lying loose upon the earth, which still clung to the root of the fallen tree. The young men began searching the surrounding area for other specimens; but the sun was setting rapidly and they were forced to abandon the search. They resolved to return early the next morning and continue the exploration, but during the night a storm arose, and covered the entire area with a thick coating of snow which remained until the next spring.
Winter was agony for the young men who suffered from "Rock Fever" until the spring thaw and they then went directly to the area of their previous find. As they climbed up over an outcropping of rock, they were astonished to observe many crystals and fragments of crystals, lying loose upon the bare ledges and sparkling in the rays of the sun.
News of the discovery spread to the villagers and many of them rushed to the spot and secured a number of fine specimens as trophies or mementoes, yet no one knew what the crystals were, not even the original discoverers. A few specimens were sent to Yale University Professor Benjamin Silliman, and were only then first identified as tourmaline.
This began a long love affair between the residents of Maine and this beautiful October Birthstone. Tourmaline is the state mineral of Maine and it is sold both as specimens and as jewelry in many gift and jewelry shops throughout that state.

NOVEMBER'S BIRTHSTONE IS TOPAZ - Hardness: 8. Although any color Topaz can be used, the “Official” birthstone is Golden or Imperial Topaz.
Citrine is sometimes used as a substitute because Imperial Topaz can be somewhat hard to find, especially in large sizes. Citrine is very close in color and is widely accepted as a November birthstone.
Clear or White Topaz can grow to hundreds of pounds and still be of gem quality but the golden variety is not often found in large sizes that are suitable for jewelry. Topaz occurs naturally in the following colors: pink, gray, white, colorless, blue, orange, yellow, yellow-brown, green, red, beige, tan and golden.
The most common colors are White, Blue and Golden. The other colors are somewhat rare.
Topaz is found worldwide but is mined commercially in Brazil, Mexico, Russia, Pakistan, Australia, England, Japan, Scotland, Sri Lanka, Burma, Madagascar, Africa, Germany and the US. Locations in the US include New Hampshire, Texas, Pikes Peak in Colorado, and Utah.

Metaphysical Lore: GOLDEN TOPAZ: Causes generosity, happiness, enhanced sense of humor, abundance, and attracts love. It is said to enhance one’s creativity and help’s one to manifest one’s desires. It is known as a stone of true love and success in all endeavors. It assists one to cut through the curtain of uncertainty and see the “big picture.”
BLUE TOPAZ: helps with meditation, enhances psychic powers, spiritual growth, tranquility and leadership ability.
CLEAR: Enhances communication with nature. GREEN: Promotes forgiveness and understanding. PINK: Promotes honor and truth.

DECEMBER'S BIRTHSTONE IS BLUE ZIRCON or TURQUOISE –

Sources:
http://www.opalsdownunder.com.au/articles/famous.php
The Black Opal Advocate
”Australian Precious Opal”, Andrew Cody, 1991.
“Color Encyclopedia of Gemstones”, Joel E. Arem, 1987
“The Book of Stones”, Robert Simmons & Naisha Ahsian, 2005
“Love Is In The Earth”, Melody, 1995