| MAY/EMERALD | | | | Pearl & Alexandrite are both commonly used for |
| Emerald. A deep green stone, natural emeralds | | | | this month. Pearls are formed inside a mollusk, a |
| almost always have visible inclusions, and need | | | | response to an irritant felt by the animal. They |
| special care when setting & cleaning. A natural | | | | can be found in many shades of whites, and |
| Emerald without flaws is very rare, and | | | | many shapes- from perfectly round to fanciful |
| expensive! The hardness is 7.5-8. This stone is | | | | baroque. Alexandrite is one of the few |
| fragile, and care should be taken in cleaning & | | | | color-change stones. It will appear to be different |
| wearing- no sharp knocks on table edges or | | | | colors in natural and flourescent lighting. It is rare |
| doorways! This stone has been linked to fertility & | | | | in it's natural form, but can be found in a synthetic |
| the Earth Goddess, is sacred to the Goddess | | | | form, with the same color-change properties. The |
| Venus, and was worn by women to ease the | | | | hardness is 8.5. Pearls are attributed to the |
| pain of childbirth. Emerald is a cousin to the Aqua, | | | | Goddess Venus as a symbol of innocence. Pearls |
| both are in the Beryl family of stones. Emeralds | | | | are readily found in both sea & fresh-water |
| are found in Brazil, Colombia Brazil, Africa, Russia, | | | | varieties. Alexandrite is found in Russia, Tanzania, |
| Pakistan, and Zambia. | | | | Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe, and Brazil. |
| JUNE/ALEXSANDRITE OR PEARL | | | | |