Interesting Facts About The June Birthstones

Tweet

The birthstones associated wth June are the pearl, moonstone and the alexandrite. The alexandrite is one of the most valuable gems on the earth. It was named after the Russian tsar, Alexander II (1818 - 1881). It was discovered by a French mineralist Nils Gustaf Nordenskiold. Thought to be a emerald at first because it was found in a emerald mine. It is said that the discovery of this stone came on the same day that the Russian tsar became of age and it was declared the official gemstone of Imperial Russia's Tsardom. Pearls are organic and formed by shelled molluscs such as mussels and oysters. These are extremely rare and usually quite small. Cultured pearls are more common and are made by introducing a mother-of-pearl bead in the shell of the mollusc. The animal will then produce a "pearl sac" and the process continues to make the pearl. The oldest reference to the pearl was the 7,500 year old "Umm Al Quwain Pearl". It was found in a grave. The moonstone exhibits a almost magical bluish white shimmer that closely resembles that of the moon. The shimmering phenomena is known as 'adularescence'. This stone was very popular during the "Art Nouveau" period about 100 years ago.