The Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Or.) 1862-1899, 1894-09-21
THE PRECIOUS STONES.
Where They Come from and What
They Signify.

The best opals come from Hungary.
Black pearls are the most valuable,
then pink and yellow, then white.
Pearls are steadily increasing in price;
they. cost three times as much as they
did ten years ago. A pearl which
could have been bought for $1,000 in
1884 is now worth $4,000.
The American turquoise is the best.
In value this lovely blue jewel ranks
below the diamond, ruby, or sapphire,
but it's popularity as a ring ornament
never wanes. The Persian turquoise
fades when exposed to light, and turns
a dull green. Blue is the favorite
color of the Persians.
Every jewel has a peculiar signifi-
canoe. Each is a favorite in a certain
month of the year: January-garnet,
constancy. February-amethyst, sin
cerity. Neutrality-suspicious., courage.
April-diamond, innocence. May-em-
erald, success in love. June-agate,
health and long life. JuIy-cornelian,
contentment. August-sardonyx, mat
rimonial felicity. September-chryso-
lite, antidote against madness. Octo-
ber-opals, hope. November-topaz, fl
deity. Observation-Disclosures, prosper
| ity.
| The value of precious stones pro-
duced in the United States last year
| was $S00,000. The export Of diamonds
from South Africa averages annually
! about s2O,O00,OOO. There are $4,000 dia-
| mond-diggers employed there. A dia-
mond is a crystal Of pure carbon. and
as such is safe from injury by acids.
&c b,.if 70
are more SO. Only one pure blood-red
| diamond has ever been found.
The topaz is nearly transparent. The
| yellow topaz comes from Saxony, the
white from Siberia, the pale blue from
| Brazil. False topaz is yellow quartz.
| Chrysoite, too, is often used to imi-
| tate topaz The topaz was once one
of the most popular Of precious stones
in fashionable use, but it has declined
much of late years in the public esti-
| mate of it's beauties.
These are the weights given by a sta
tistical authority, of the si~ largest
known diamonds: Koh-i-noor 103 car
cts; Star of Brazil 125, Regent of France
1885, Austrian Kaiser 139, Russian Car
193 Rajah of Borneo 376
The red variety of the garnet Is the
most common, but violet. green, and
|
| rare Bohemian garnets are dark.
| blrod-red in color, and in the largest
sizes are very valuable. Cinnamon
| rubies, so called, are garnets.
Except in color, the sapphire Is the
same stone as the ruby, but less rare
When of fine quality it is as valuable
as a diamond Of the same size. The
choicest shade is blue.
The breasplate of the high priest, as
! decribed in the forty-ninth chapter OF
Exodus, was made Of gold, blue, pur-
Pile and scarlet. Upon 1T were set four
rows of precious stones. In the first
row were topazes of several varieties
| In the second row there were an en-
erald, a sapphire, and ruby. In the
third row there were an agate and an
amethyst. In the fourth row there
were beryl, an cnyx, and taper.
They Were enclosed in ornamental
ork of gold, the girdle being held to-
gether by strands of linen.
The ruby is, next to the diamond,
the most valuable Of precious stones.
The most popular is "pidgeon's blood. ="
The color varies from rose to crimson.
The ruby, jewelers. say, is extensively
initiated. The Brazilian ruby Is a to-
paz; the Cape ruby is garnet. The
true ruby will scratch either Of them,
and may be thus distinguished.