EMERALD

Emerald was the very first precious stone, that was discoverd, about sixthousand years ago. Since then the beautiful green stone became an impressive series of properties imputed. The emerald was seen as the symbol for immortality. It was also believed, that he had an positive effect on the eyesight and helped against snakebites. Besides the stone would benefit the intelligence, chastity, courage, eloquence and honesty, heal desentery and prevent epilepsy. Besides the emerald would bring prosperity. Throug the ages the stone was used in the most beautiful diadems, broches,bracelets, necklaces and earrings often in combination with diamonds. Emerald is a mineral and belongs, just as the aquamarine, to the berilminerals, who are found among others in Columbia and Brasil. The strong berilmineral forms hexagonal crystals and varies from pale bluegreen to deep goldyellow. Only the aquamarin crystals and the even more exceptional grassgreen emeraldcrystals (the colour is caused by chrome in the stone) have a precious stonequality. They owe the qualification to their hardness and rarity, but most of all to their beauty: after the diamond, the emerald is the most expensive precious stone. Compared to the diamond the emerald is much more vulnerable. An emerald is seldom free of impurities. The Romans considered the emerald as a stone of the goddess Venus (goddess of beauty) so emerald ornaments were in great demand. Even Cleopatra wore emerald ornaments in the hope that Venus' ever lasting beauty would radiate on her. She had the Egyptian emeraldmines combed out for the most beautifull stones. Much later, in the sixteenth century, the Spanish plundered the emeraldstocks of the Inca's in South-America and brought them to Europe . Napoleon Bonaparte was a big lover of these precious stones and used them for conquering the heart of Josephine de Beauharnais. The sjah of Persia had less success in 1938, when he proposed to the Egyptian princess Fawzia. She answered his proposal, but not from the heart. When the Persian ambassador offered the princess awonderfull emerald jewelry set in the name of her future father in law she didn't give in. A few years later she got divorced from the sjah and returned to Egypt.