History and significance of the stones:

Amethyst

The  name  comes  from  the  Greek  “amethystos”  and  means  “sober”.  In antiquity  it was  believed  that wearing  an  amethyst would  protect  against  inebriation. According  to an ancient Greek myth,  the goddess Diana  is supposed  to have  turned a young nymph, called Amethyst, into stone in front of the very eyes of the god of wine, Bacchus. Bacchus poured grape juice over the statue, giving it the wonderful colour that we now call amethyst. This is why the stone is also called bacchus stone in the vernacular. It symbolises friendship, modesty and faith.

Blue topaz

In mystical terms the stone is regarded as cooling and styptic. Its name derives from the place where it was discovered, an island in the Red Sea, formerly called “Topazos”. The topaz symbolises radiance and beauty.

Garnet

The garnet’s  luminosity  is unique. Noah, of Ark  fame,  is  supposed  to have possessed a garnet  lantern, which brought him safely  through  the night.  In  the East  it is prized for its deep red colour. It was called “The blood from the heart of the Earth”. Garnets have a very high refractive index and exceptional brilliance.

Peridot

In Ancient Egypt the peridot was known as the “sun stone” because of  its colour. The Greek term “peridona” means “abundance”. For their part the Romans called it “the evening emerald”.

Smoky quartz

Smokey quartz gets its colour from natural gamma radiation. It is found in the St Gotthard mountain range in Switzerland, amongst other places in Europe. The most famous piece of  smoky quartz  from  there  is endearingly known as “Grandad”, and weighs 130 kg. Smoky quartz is one of the macrocrystalline quartzes, i.e. its crystals can be detected with the naked eye.

Citrine

The citrine  is named after  its yellow colour and  is a member of  the quartz family. In the Middle Ages citrine was honoured as the sun stone, with the ability to grant eternal life. This stone looks best with a facetted cut.

Onyx

Since ancient times onyx has been one of the most important precious stones. Shamen also used it as a healing stone. If the old legends are to be believed, even wounds could be healed with onyx, which  is why Roman warriors  liked to carry this stone with them as protection when they went into battle.

Prasiolite

The name prasiolite is derived from the Greek and means something like “leek green”. Prasiolite  in  fact  very  rarely occurs naturally. The  stones marketed  today are amethysts heated to approx. 500°C. Prasiolite green is very delicate and  is reminiscent of the soft greens found in Nature.

Lemon quartz

The name lemon quartz comes from its lemony colour. Quartzes of a certain quality are heated  to obtain  this  fresh and appealing  colour,  so  that  this wonderful  colour  stone, which goes with every fashion trend, can be worn on any occasion.

Pearls

The god Krishna was the first to find a pearl and he gave it to his daughter
on her wedding day. Since then the pearl has represented love, purity and innocence. In the Hindu culture, pearls are associated with the moon, and Islamic tradition places even greater  importance on pearls. The Koran  tells of pearls as one of  the great  rewards of Paradise. The jewel itself is regarded as a symbol of perfection. In Christendom the pearl symbolises purity.

Diamonds

The diamond –  from Greek “adamantos”,  the  invincible –  is a  form of carbon and  the hardest, naturally occurring mineral. It is regarded as the king of precious stones, thanks to its typical brilliance, its visual appearance, rarity and considerable hardness. A diamond can  only  be  cut  using  another,  and worked  into  a  brilliant-cut  diamond,  because  the individual crystal planes vary in hardness. Diamonds are traditionally weighed in carats, a unit corresponding to 0.2 grams. The four “C”’s are considered when assessing the quality of cut diamonds: colour, clarity, cut and carat. They systematically and clearly determine a diamond’s value.