handmade sterling silver jewellery - Birthstones and Anniversaries

Many cultures attributed have a stone for each month of their calendars, so jewellers lists are not always consistent with what constitutes a traditional birthstone. However, the popular custom of wearing birthstones dates back to 15th Century Poland, and it is the Polish tradition that is often reflected in the Traditional lists of birthstones. Each stone is said to have powers that are heightened in its month. So, people owned a full set of twelve birthstones and rotated them monthly.

In 1912 the American National Association of Jewellers adopted a list of gemstones to reduce the amount of inconsistency in the list of birthstones used by jewellers. These are the Modern stones in the table below. Mystical birthstones are much older and are Tibetan in origin. And the Ayurvedic birthstones are from ancient Indian medicine and philosophy.

Month	Traditional Birthstone(s)	Modern Birthstone(s)	Mystical Birthstone	Ayurvedic Birthstone
January	Garnet	Garnet	Emerald	Garnet
February	Amethyst	Amethyst	Bloodstone	Amethyst
March	Bloodstone Jasper	Aquamarine	Jade	Bloodstone
April	Diamond Sapphire	Diamond	Opal	Diamond
May	Emerald Agate	Emerald	Sapphire	Agate
June	Alexandrite Emerald	Moonstone Pearl	Moonstone	Pearl
July	Ruby Onyx	Ruby	Ruby	Ruby
August	Sardonyx Carnelian	Peridot	Diamond	Sapphire
September	Sapphire Peridot	Sapphire	Agate	Moonstone
October	Tourmaline Aquamarine	Opal Tourmaline	Jasper	Opal
November	Citrine Topaz	Citrine Topaz	Pearl	Topaz
December	Zircon Ruby	Turquoise Blue topaz	Onyx	Ruby

Babylonian and Indian cultures attributed gemstones with magical properties. Astrologers have since assigned gems of certain colours to the signs of the zodiac.

Sign	Dates	Stone
Aquarius	January 21 - February 19	Garnet
Pisces	February 20 - March 20	Amethyst
Aries	March 21 - April 20	Bloodstone
Taurus	April 21 - May 20	Sapphire
Gemini	May 21 - June 21	Agate
Cancer	June 22 - July 22	Emerald
Leo	July 23 - August 23	Onyx
Virgo	August 24 - September 23	Carnelian
Libra	September 24 - October 23	Peridot
Scorpio	October 24 - November 22	Beryl
Sagittarius	November 23 - December 21	Topaz
Capricorn	December 22 - January 20	Ruby

ANNIVERSARY STONES

1 - Gold (alternative - Peridot)
2 - Garnet
3 - Pearl (alternative - Jade)
4 - Blue Topaz (alternative - Blue Zircon)
5 - Sapphire (alternative - Pink Tourmaline)
6 - Amethyst (alternative - Turquoise)
7 - Yellow Sapphire (alternatives - Golden Beryl)
8 - Tourmaline (alternative - Tanzanite)
9 - Lapis Lazuli (alternatives - Amethyst, Green Spinel)
10 - Diamond (alternative - Blue Sapphire)
11 - Turquoise (alternatives - Citrine, Yellow Zircon)
12 - Jade (alternative - Opal)
13 - Citrine (alternatives - Moonstone, Hawk's Eye)
14 - Opal (alternatives - Agate, Bloodstone)
15 - Ruby (alternatives - Rhodolite Garnet, Alexandrite)
16 - Peridot (alternative - Red Spinel)
17 - Watches (alternative - Carnelian)
18 - Cat's Eye or Chrysoberyl (alternative - Aquamarine)
19 - Aquamarine (alternative - Almandine Garnet)
20 - Emerald (alternative - Yellow or Golden Diamond)
21 - Iolite
22 - Spinel
23 - Imperial Topaz
24 - Tanzanite
25 - Silver (alternatives - Tsavorite, Green Garnet)
30 - Pearl
35 - Emerald
40 - Ruby
45 - Sapphire (alternative - Cat's Eye)
50 - Gold (alternative - Imperial or Golden Topaz)
55 - Alexandrite
60 - Diamond (alternative - Star Ruby)
65 - Blue Spinel
70 - Sapphire (alternative - Smoky Quartz)
75 - Diamond
80 - Ruby

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