Winter’s Birthstones
Precious stones for the winter months
October – Opal
Most of the world’s opals are found in Southern Australia and then in Brazil, Mexico, Czechoslovakia and Nevada. The Latin word opalus means precious jewel and that is the opal. October’s birthstone glows, mirroring the shining colors of the rainbow and has been particularly valued because it has a unique capacity to refract and reflect specific wavelengths of light. The opal predates humans and is formed from non-crystallized silica, a mineral found close to the earth’s surface where ancient geothermal hot springs once existed. As the hot springs dried up, layers of the silica combined with water were deposited into the cracks and cavities of the bedrock, forming opal. Since the opal is part 30% water it is fragile and brittle. It should not be exposed to extreme heat or harsh chemicals or subjected to strong pressure as it will break.
The ancient Romans equated the opal with a child that was as beautiful as love itself and called it Cupid Paederos. Another legend has it that the opal is a child of Lightning that gifted Earth in her divine form with his love in the form of a lightning rain of exquisite gemstones. Like many other precious gems opals were treasured both for their great beauty and also for their protective, healing and metaphysical properties. World monarchs and tribal shamans alike wore opals to ward of evil intent and ill-intentioned spirits. They were also worn to protect and strengthen the physical eyes and eyesight and also to protect against nightmares, which are another way of “seeing” that can be very detrimental to the individual. The opal is symbolic of faithfulness and confidence and the powerful energy radiating from its fiery core illuminates and enlightens the mind, heart and spirit, so that one can see through to the heart of the matter, hear what is not being said and obtain insight into the inner wisdom of things.
November – Citrine
Most citrine comes primarily from Brazil, and secondarily from Bolivia and Madagascar. Citrine is actually a rare form of quartz and the color can range from deep amber to the palest prettiest yellow. Igneous metamorphic and sedimentary rocks produce quartz crystals and the lovely yellow citrine is actually a sister of the purple quartz or amethyst. Some are convinced that in prehistoric times when the Earth was still forming her body-being, amethyst when exposed to heat from molten rock changed from purple to yellow becoming citrine. We do know in fact that the color of citrine will deepen if subjected to heat in the jewelry-making process or if left for too long in the hot sun. The name citrine derives from an old French word, citrin meaning lemon. And November’s gemstone, citrine comes indeed with the bright sharp yellow of a fresh lemon or the golden richness of a glorious sunflower. We begin to hear about citrine during the time of the Roman Empire when Romans began wearing the yellow quartz in their jewelry. But citrine became most popular during the Romantic Period in 19th century England when jewelers began to appreciate the beautifully warm and perfect pairing of these yellow gems with gold. Citrine, like all forms of quartz, was believed to have magical powers and was worn as a talisman against evil thoughts and snake bites. It was also commonly used as a remedy for urinary and kidney ailments. Symbolically, citrine with the warm life-giving glow of its bright golden heart is a totemic companion, providing hope and strength to anyone who is dealing with tough times.
December – Topaz
We find topaz primarily in Brazil, Nigeria, Sri Lanka, Mexico, Pakistan, China, and the United States. While topaz is the hardest of the silicate minerals and with small changes within the mineral content can be found in gorgeous colors like blue, pale green, red, yellow and pink, the December topaz is blue. Whether heated by natural or manmade processes, it is the heat that creates the blue in the topaz. Interestingly, although the color blue usually is considered a “cool” “calm” color, the word topaz derives from the Sanskrit word tapas, meaning fire. In fact the blue topaz was understood by early cultures as a cooling and calming gem and it was precisely because of it nature as a counterpoint to fire that it was named after fire. It was believed that when topaz was place in boiling water it would cool it down. But this also translated to cooling violent outbursts, calming heated arguments. People who were hot-tempered by nature were advised to wear blue topaz. This gemstone was credited with many healing powers, among them the ability to cure insanity, asthma, weak vision and insomnia. The blue topaz symbolizes love and fidelity and holds sacred the blue flame of love which is the deepest and most magical heart of Fire itself.