Birthstone list
What's your birthstone?If you were born in January, your birthstone is a garnet. Or it could be ruby, amethyst, moss agate, opal or sugilite. Though we tend to think today that there is one birthstone per month of the year, a quick glance over the history of birthstones says something very different. In fact, most months have been represented by many different gemstones, depending on time, place and tradition. According to most, the history of birthstones begins with the ancient Israelites. Always mystics, the Hebrews of the Old Testament ascribed signs and portents and symbolisms to many things. The Book of Exodus describes how the Lord described a breastplate that was to be worn by Aaron, the brother of Moses and High Priest, when he went 'before the Lord'. On that breastplate were sewn twelve stones, one for each of the tribes of Israel. The Breastplate of Aaron is typically regarded as the origin of the concept of birthstones. According to most translations of Exodus, the Breastplate bore the following stones:
There's a great deal of controversy of which stones were actually meant, translation being an imperfect art, but there's no doubt that each of the twelve stones was meant to represent one of the Twelve Houses. These stones eventually became associated with the Kabala, and with the Twelve Houses of the Zodiac. Each of the stones was ascribed a 'personality', and defining characteristics, as well as healing properties that matched the particular vulnerabilities of that Zodiacal sign. At the same time, other cultures were developing similar traditions concerning gemstones. Indian Ayurvedic tradition has its own system of gemstones for the birth months, as did the Romans, the Polish, the Arabic and the Italian. The ancients believed that the powers of a gemstone were held by - and unleashed through - the color of the stone. Thus in one culture, the stone that represents January is a garnet. In another it's a ruby. In yet another culture, the month and Zodiac sign are less important than the day of the week. It wasn't until the mid-1500s that people began to wear gemstones to attract luck, protection and other qualities connected to the gems. Even so, according to many experts, it wasn't until the 1800s that it became a tradition to wear the stone for the month of your birth. In 1912, the American National Association of Jewelers assigned birthstones to each of the twelve calendar months to create the modern birthstone chart that is in use today. Several alternate birthstones have been added in the years since, but it is the general system that most people know. Which brings us back to the beginning. If you were born in January, your birthstone is the garnet. Unless you don't like garnets... because with the wide variety of systems to choose from, you can always find a birthstone that you like, no matter when you were born. The chart below is far from comprehensive, but it will give you some idea of the choices that you have for birthstones for the month of your birth. And if that's still not enough choice for you, you can look to the days of the week to find your birthstone for the day that you were born:
Finally, if you've a fondness for a particular color of gem, there are birthstones of every color for every month. In June, for example, moonstones come in a veritably rainbows, as do September's sapphires and October's tourmaline and many others. No matter what your favorite color or stone, you'll find a reason to claim it as your own birthstone. And if you don't find any official reasoning, there's absolutely nothing preventing you from wearing it just because you like it. |
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