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#jewelleryfacts365 101/365
Opals are frequently created as triplets, meaning the stone is assembled from three pieces. Opal triplets are composed of a rock quartz layer over genuine opal joined to a base. Triplets resist marring, and the quartz acts to play up the brilliance of the genuine stone.
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| Raw opal |
#jewelleryfacts365 100/365 Aztec jewelry
There were strict rules about who could wear what in the Aztec culture. According to ancient sources, only the Aztec ruler and great lords could wear lip plugs, ear plugs and nose ornaments of gold and valued stones such as turquoise and jade. You didn’t want to get caught by the fashion police because punishment could be harsh.
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| Aztec nose ornament |
#jewelleryfacts365 99/365 Emerald fact
The first known emerald mines were in Egypt, dating from at least 330 BC into the 1700s. Cleopatra was known to have a passion for emerald, and used it in her royal adornments. (source)
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| Ancient Egyptian emerald necklace |
#jewelleryfacts365 98/365 Emerald fact
Sunday, May 8, 2016
In the Peruvian city of Manta, about the time of the Spanish Conquest, an emerald the size of an ostrich egg was worshipped and adored as a goddess, bearing the name of Umina. The emerald was only brought out and worshipped on high feast days and, according to her priests, the best way to honor the ‘mother emerald’ was to bring smaller emeralds, or ‘daughters’, to her.(source)
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| A fine emerald in matrix from Chivor, Colombia |
#jewelleryfacts365 97/365 Emerald fact
Saturday, May 7, 2016
The emerald has long been known as the jewel of Kings, its rarity and beauty lending itself well to possession by royalty. As a talisman, it was said to have the ability to sharpen the wits, confer riches and power and to predict future events. It was also thought to strengthen the memory, which is a form of wit sharpening, and to enable the wearer to become an eloquent speaker, a kingly gift indeed. (source)
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| The world’s largest cut emerald |
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