May’s Birthstone, the Entrancing Emerald, Ushers in Spring

The intense brilliant green of May’s birthstone, the emerald, is the perfect symbol of spring, a time of new growth and rebirth. The wonderful green color of emerald is without compare in the gem kingdom. Emerald’s precious green color comes from small amounts of chromium and is enhanced by traces of iron. The deeper the color, the more valuable the stone. 

Example of an emerald-cut emerald

The emerald is a member of the beryl family. The green crystals grow slowly within metamorphic rocks and are restricted in size by the rock, making large emeralds rare and costly. Although emeralds are relatively hard and durable, they must be protected from blows because the inclusions found within make them susceptible to breaking. 

Emeralds usually contain inclusions and other flaws, but they are the only gemstone for which these inclusions are not considered a flaw that reduces their value. The French call the tiny fractures or inclusions often found within emeralds “jardin,” or garden, because of their resemblance to foliage. Indeed, flaws are considered part of the character of an emerald, an assurance to the purchaser of a natural stone.


Emeralds were first mined in Ancient Egypt in the extremely hot, snake- and scorpion-infested eastern desert region of the country, 2,000 years before the birth of Cleopatra. During her reign, that famous queen claimed the emerald mines as her own, as this was her favorite stone. She often wore lavish emerald jewelry, and was said to bestow visiting dignitaries with large emeralds carved with her likeness when they left Egypt.   

Emeralds in their natural state: specimen from
the Malyshevo Mine, Sverdlovskaya Oblast', Russia.

Ancient Egyptians would also engrave Emeralds with the symbol for foliage, to represent eternal youth, and bury these jewels with their dead. In ancient Rome, the emerald was associated with fertility and rebirth, and dedicated to Venus, the goddess of love and beauty.


In the sixteenth century, the Spanish Conquistadors in the New World were amazed to find the natives wearing emeralds larger and more magnificent than any they had ever seen. Although the natives attempted to hide their emerald mines, the Spaniards soon discovered and conquered most of them. But it was not until twenty years later that they found the abundant mining operation held by the Muzo Indians, in the area known today as Colombia, and another thirty years to overtake this aggressive tribe. The Muzo mine remains the source of the most prized emerald specimens to this day. 


Colombian emeralds have a deep green color without any blue tint. Typically the deepest green gems are the most coveted. And on occasion a rare Trapiche emerald, with six rays radiating from the center, is found. The rays are actually inclusions that have formed a hexagonal shape. Emeralds are also found in Brazil, Zimbabwe, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Madagascar, Nigeria, and Russia. 


Today, the most common way to cut emeralds is an “Emerald Cut,” a long rectangular shape with large flat surfaces. Emeralds are also cut into cabochons and used as beads. Some people believe that wearing an emerald brings wisdom, growth, and patience. This explains why a gift of emerald for an anniversary is considered symbolic of love and fidelity.

Use Your Synergy Card and Earn Points Toward More Bling!

Do you have your Synergy card yet? Rock N Gold is partnering with Synergy World to bring more rewards to our customers. Synergy cards are both a rewards card and a gift card. With your Synergy card, you’ll earn points for every purchase at Rock N Gold. When you reach 30 points (at $1,000), $30 will automatically be loaded onto your card for use at Rock N Gold! As for referrals, you’ll receive 1 point for every dollar your referred customer spends. For example, if they spend $1,000 you’ll receive $10 added to your card automatically. USe your RGC card at other locations to earn rewards with them and save.

Also: give the Synergy card as a gift card, and it can be used at any place that accepts Synergy cards, to earn more points. Make sure you’re signed up for a Synergy card and start earning points toward more bling!

Forged in the Earth to Delight People Forever… April’s Birthstone, the Diamond

“A kiss on the hand may be quite continental, but diamonds are a girl’s best friend.”


Born in April? Lucky, lucky you. You will have a lifelong excuse—as if you need one—to treat yourself to what is still the most popular and valuable gemstone on earth: the dazzling diamond.


Is there any stone more beloved and desired than the diamond, April's birthstone? Considering its rarity and value, it’s a tribute to the diamond’s appeal that so many women today own at least one, and many men do too.


The diamond is remarkably simple in its composition, yet stunning in its unique ability to reflect and refract light into vivid flashes of brilliant color, for which humans have always revered it. The ancient Hindus called the diamond “vajra,” meaning lightning, because of the sparks of light it throws off, as well as its invincible strength. The diamond is harder than any other substance on earth—four times harder than the next hardest natural mineral, corundum (sapphire and ruby). In 16th-century England, uncut diamond crystals were set into “scribbling rings,” the exposed points used by lovers to etch romantic messages into windowpanes. Diamonds have been used as cutting and engraving tools since early times, for carving cameos from stone, cutting jade, and drilling pearls.

The diamond’s value is not arrived at arbitrarily. It has many qualities that make it the most expensive and prized gemstone on earth. If you are a fan of superlatives, this list is for you:

Pear cut

• As mentioned above, a diamond is the hardest substance on earth by a wide margin. Nothing can scratch a diamond other than another diamond. And a diamond can scratch anything, even a sapphire.


• Pure diamond is completely colorless and transparent over a larger range of wavelengths (from the ultraviolet into the far infrared) than any other solid or liquid substance. Nothing else even comes close.


• Diamond conducts heat better than anything—five times better than the second best element, silver. (This is the basis for testing diamonds, as it’s easy to do and can’t be faked.)


• Diamond has a high index of refraction (ability to bend light), which gives it the high luster called adamantine. Diamond also has a relatively high optical dispersion, which gives it the flash of “fire” that makes it so desirable.


Diamonds have been revered throughout history, embellishing the items of royalty like crowns, swords, and emblems, as well as jewelry. Diamonds have also been credited for having certain medicinal properties. During the middle ages, they were thought to heal illness, but only if the ailing person took the diamond into bed to warm it up first. 


Historically, only the elite could own diamonds. In the 13th century, Louis IX of France even passed a law reserving diamonds only for kings. But as more sophisticated methods of diamond mining and exporting evolved, diamonds became more plentiful and accessible to others. 

A diamond before cutting

Formed deep within the earth where there is intense heat and pressure, diamonds are simply crystallized carbon. Volcanic activity brings the gemstones to the earth’s surface, where they are found either in volcanic rock formations or washed out into rivers. India is the first riverbed source of diamond mining, but today diamonds are found primarily in Australia, the Soviet Union, and Africa.



Believe it or not, an uncut diamond often looks like nothing more than a plain pebble upon the beach. The stones’ true beauty was not revealed until gemstone cutting and polishing techniques were perfected in the 16th century. Today, the value and appeal of a diamond depends largely upon how skillfully it is cut and faceted. Diamonds may be nearly any color in the rainbow plus browns, grays, and white. Shades of yellow are most common, followed by colorless. Blue, black, reddish, and greenish are more rare, and more valuable.

Princess or round cut

The ancient Greeks believed that the fire of a diamond reflected the flame of everlasting love. In 1477, Archduke Maximilian of Austria presented his fiancée, Mary of Burgundy, with a diamond ring, this beginning the tradition in the West of presenting the diamond as a promise of marriage and a symbol of everlasting love, now adopted the world over. It’s believed the origin of wearing the engagement ring on the third finger of the left hand is rooted in the ancient Egyptian belief that the “vena amoris,” or vein of love, runs from the heart to the top of this finger. 

From the stunning displays of designer stones flashed by movie stars on the red carpet to the modest engagement rings of young brides, diamonds continue to enjoy great popularity people from all walks of life. As actress Zsa Zsa Gabor said, summing up this universal love of diamonds: “I have never hated a man enough to give his diamonds back.”


“Men grow cold as girls grow old, and we all lose our charms in the end. But square-cut or pear-shaped, these rocks don't lose their shape—diamonds are a girl's best friend.”
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Carrying on the great tradition of diamond jewelry, RGC specializes in creating the most unique and perfect expression of your love and commitment in engagement rings and bridal sets. For all the information you need about buying diamonds, such as an explanation of the Four Cs, please visit our website.

Simon Says…

The late Elizabeth Taylor wearing the Taylor-Burton diamond.

If, as Marilyn Monroe sang, “Diamonds are a girl’s best friend,” then the incomparable Elizabeth Taylor, whom we lost recently, had a lot of VERY good friends. Taylor’s gifts of jewels from her two-time husband Richard Burton put her on the all-time list of diamond collectors. Starting with Burton’s first jewelry purchase for Taylor, the 33.19-carat Krupp Diamond, in 1968, the superstar couple’s names were on the list of important diamond auctions. (By the way, Taylor wore this magnificent stone in a ring almost daily, until her death.)


For her 40th birthday in 1972, Burton gave Taylor a heart-shaped diamond known as the Taj-Mahal, a large flat stone with an Arabic inscription on either side, set with rubies and diamonds in a yellow gold rope-pattern necklace. “This diamond has so many carats, its almost a turnip," Burton said about it at the time. But by the far the best known of his purchases was the 69.42-carat pear-shaped stone later to be called the Taylor-Burton Diamond. It was cut from a rough stone weighing 240.80 carats found in the Premier Mine in 1966, and subsequently bought by famed jeweler Harry Winston. You can read a fascinating account of how the stone came into Taylor’s possession, and what happened to it after that, here: http://famousdiamonds.tripod.com/taylor-burtondiamond.html


Hollywood icons like Monroe and Taylor helped give diamonds the meaning and significance they have today. Although you may not be looking for a 60-carat stone, in today’s diamond market, it’s a good time to add more friends to your collection! Diamond prices are currently good, but like everything else, as the economy changes the diamond market will change with it. Medium diamonds are your best value. The collection diamond prices are still holding strong, but some good values can be found depending on the size you may be looking for. Come in to see our diamonds—we only carry premium to ideal collection diamonds, along with some great non-certified diamonds with our own specifications to give you the best value.


Trust Your Instincts... RGC Designed


Best regards,
Simon Mattar

The History of Jewelry, Part 5

Jewelry of Asia

China
One of the earliest cultures to begin making jewelry in Asia were the Chinese, around 5,000 years ago. Chinese jewelry designs were inspired by religion, featuring Buddhist symbols, a tradition that continues to this day.

The Chinese used more silver than gold in their jewelry, and decorated it with their favourite color, blue. Early on, they tied blue kingfisher feathers onto jewelry, and later, blue gems and glass were incorporated into their designs. However, jade was preferred over any other stone. The Chinese revered jade because of its hardness, durability, and beauty. It is so hard that it had to be fashioned using diamonds. The first Chinese jade pieces were very simple, but as time progressed, they evolved into more complex designs. Jade rings from between the 4th and 7th centuries BC show evidence of having been worked with a compound milling machine, hundreds of years before the first development of such equipment in the west.


In China, jewelry was worn frequently by both men and women to show their nobility and wealth, and in later years, to accentuate beauty. Women wore highly detailed gold and silver headdresses and other items, while men wore decorative hat buttons to show their rank, and silver or gold rings. Women also wore bands of gold on their foreheads, much like women in the Indus Valley. This was an early type of tiara, often decorated with precious gems. The most common jewelry worn in China was earrings, worn by both men and women. Amulets with a Chinese symbol or dragon were also common. Dragons, Chinese symbols, and phoenixes are frequently found on jewelry designs. Most Chinese graves found by archaeologists contain decorative jewelry.


India
India has the longest continuous legacy of jewelry making anywhere, dating back to Ramayana and Mahabharata times. While Western jewelry traditions were at the mercy of the rise and fall of empires, India enjoyed a continuous development of its art forms for five millennia. One of the first to start jewelry making were the people of the Indus Valley (present-day Pakistan and northwest India). By 1500 BC, residents of the Indus Valley were creating gold earrings and necklaces, bead necklaces, and metallic bangles. Before 2100 BC, before metals were widely used, the largest jewelry trade in the Indus Valley region was in beads, made from rough stones, that were placed into a hot oven and heated until they turned deep red, a highly prized color. The red stone would then be chipped to the right size and be bored with a hole with primitive drills. The beads were then polished and sometimes painted with designs. Bead making was often passed down through generations, with children of bead makers learning how to work beads from an early age.



Jewelry in the Indus Valley was worn predominantly by women and girls. They wore many clay or shell bracelets, shaped like doughnuts and painted black. Over time, clay bangles were replaced by more durable ones. Today in India, bangles are made out of metal or glass. As in China, women frequently wore were thin bands of gold on their brows, as well as earrings, primitive brooches, chokers, and gold rings. Some men in the Indus Valley wore beads, including tiny ones crafted to be woven into men’s and women’s hair.


India was the first country to mine diamonds, with some mines dating back to 296 BC. Realizing their valuable qualities, the Indians initiated the diamond trade, which flourished about 1,000 AD. Today, many Indian jewelry designs and traditions are still in use, and elaborate gold jewelry is commonplace in Indian ceremonies and weddings.

March’s Birthstone: the Brilliant and Beautiful Aquamarine

Picture the brilliant blue waters of the Mediterranean Sea, and you’ll understand why March’s birthstone is named the aquamarine—from the Roman word “aqua,” meaning water, and “mare,” meaning sea, this pale blue gem does indeed resemble the color of seawater. The ancient Romans believed that the aquamarine was sacred to Neptune, the god of the sea, having washed onto shore from the jewel boxes of sirens. Early sailors wore aquamarine talismans, engraved with the likeness of Neptune, as protection against dangers at sea. 

This association with water led to the early belief that the aquamarine was particularly powerful when immersed. Water in which aquamarines had been submerged was used in ancient times to heal a variety of illnesses of the heart, liver, stomach, mouth and throat. Aquamarines were also used to reverse poisoning and to aid in fortune telling. 

The aquamarine is a member of the beryl family, a mineral that crystallizes within large-grained igneous rocks on the earth’s crust. As long as 2,000 years ago, beryl was used to correct vision, and it continues to be used today in the manufacture of eyeglasses. It is a very hard mineral, making the aquamarine a durable gemstone for use in jewelry. 

Aquamarine varies in color from clear blue-green to a light sky blue. The majority of aquamarines, unlike other gemstones, are flawless. The largest deposits can be found in Brazil, but other sources of aquamarine are in China, India, Australia, Africa, and the United States. 

The hardness and durability of aquamarine make it a fine gemstone, and its light blue or aqua color makes it a fine choice when the harsher colors of some other gemstones would overwhelm or distract from an outfit. Its typical delicate color allows it to be used in a larger stone where its beauty can be impressive.

Aquamarine jewelry is associated with beauty, honesty, loyalty, and happiness. A gift of aquamarine symbolizes both safety and security, especially within long-standing relationships. It has even been said that the aquamarine reawakens love in a tired marriage, so if you want to bring back that spark in your partner’s eyes, you might consider this gem as an anniversary gift!

Enter our Facebook Contest and Celebrate St. Patty’s Day with a $50 Gift Card!

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In honor of St. Patrick’s Day and all things Irish, the first five Facebook fans to write a review in our Facebook Reviews section before March 17, 2011, will receive a $50 gift card! What could be easier? Go to our Facebook page and post your review now!