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Marquise
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Oval
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Amethyst Crystal
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February’s birthstone, amethyst's intense color and relative availability have ensured its popularity throughout the millennia. Amethyst has been popular as a gem since Pre-Roman times. The wine-loving Greeks even believed amethyst gems could prevent intoxication while medieval European soldiers wore amethyst amulets as protection in battle. Most of the high-grade amethyst mined today comes from Uruguay, southern Brazil and Africa.
Amethyst belongs to the Quartz family, tiny amounts of iron and aluminum turn ordinary clear quartz into amethyst. All forms of quartz (including amethyst) are piezoelectric, making for important applications in electronics. Tourmaline is the only other gemstone that possesses this property.
Amethyst ranges from pale to dark violet. The finest qualities of amethyst are a medium dark violet with a strong secondary red color. Darker shades of amethyst may display slight color fluctuations under different light sources. Amethyst of all qualities is available in all sizes and shapes. Light amethyst will be very low in per carat prices while even the finest qualities are still very reasonably priced.