May's Birthstone - Emerald

Emerald Brooch by Barclay

The birthstone for May, as well as the stone of the Zodiac for the constellation Cancer, is emerald - a shimmering, green member of the Beryl family.

Thought to bring, and associated with, patience, wisdom, and understanding, Emeralds are often a wonderful gift a wedding or anniversary, as these traits are associated w/stong, everlasting love.

The use of emeralds in jewelry can be traced as far back as to the time of the Ancient Egyptians and Ancient Romans.

The Ancient Egyptians associated emeralds with everlasting youth and often carved sybols of leaves into the gemstones.  Ancient Romans thought emeralds to represent fertility and rebirth and associated the gemstone w/the goddess of love, Venus. 

Some famous sayings about emeralds include the Biblical Quote: “And the second row, an emerald, a sapphire, and a diamond.”  And the quote from  Samuel Taylor Coleridge: “And ice, mast-high, came floating by,  As green as emerald.”