So... back to my quest of finding rocks for every season & every reason. It's March! Winter will soon be melted away. The almost-full moon was casting shadows on the snow last night, and even the darkness was energizing. Beautiful!
Here is what I've found out:
The modern birthstone for March is Aquamarine. Traditionally, Bloodstone has also been used. Spring Equinox is in March, & the Emerald is considered the stone of Spring. Other Spring stones are: Amethyst, Green Diamond, Chrysoberyl, Spinel, Pink Topaz, and Olivine. Jade is the Mystical stone of March. March Zodiac signs are Pisces and Aries.
Pisces: (Feb. 19-Mar. 20)
Birthstone: Rock Crystal Quartz (White, Clear),
Sapphire (Blue),
Amethyst (Purple),
Bloodstone (Green with Red Markings)
Sugalite (Purple/Black)
Planetary Stone: Aquamarine (Blue/Green)
Lucky Charms: Amethyst (Purple)
Aries (Mar. 21-Apr. 19)
Birthstone: Bloodstone (Green with Red Markings),
Diamond (White, Clear)
Garnet (Dark Red)
Ruby (Red)
Planetary Stone: Jasper (Brown or Red)
Lucky Charms: Bloodstone (Green with Red Markings),
Jasper (Brown or Red)
Diamond (White, Clear)
Jasper is also mentioned as March Birthstone in many cultures, including Russian, Italian and Jewish, in the book, The Curious Lore of Precious Stones by Kunz. He also recommends to use stones found on your birth continent as their birthstone. His suggestion for those in the USA for March is Californite - which I'd never heard of before! A little research revealed Californite is a type of Vesuvianite, also known as California Jade. It's a nice, translucent green and can be seen here: Californite Gallery
I'm surprised that Malachite isn't a March birthstone. It's a nice multi-shaded green that reminds me of spring. The copper in Malachite used to cause stone workers to get sick, if they didn't use water to work with it, so it was considered an unlucky stone. Perhaps that's why.
An interesting bit of Tarot trivia - Mary K. Greer associates Aries with the Emperor Card & the ruby. She associates Pisces with the Moon card and the stones Pearl, Moonstone and Milk Opal. I love her tables of correspondences - I'm a correspondence geek!
More resources on birthstones can be found in these books:
The Curious Lore of Precious Stones by George Frederick Kunz
Crystal, Gem and Metal Magic by Scott Cunningham
Love is in the Earth by Melody
The Essence of Magic by Mary K. Greer
Wow! so many stones to choose from and all beautiful. I'd never heard of Californite (or Vesuvianite, either); I'll have to check it out. Are you familiar with Teton Jade? It's the common name for stone found in the area of the Grand Tetons. A pretty, soft green color, possibly serpentine, though that's just a guess.
ReplyDeleteI've never heard of Teton Jade - sounds like it's worth looking up. When I was a kid, we camped in the grand Tetons & swam in a very cold lake. I picked up a rock on the beach there that I still have - kind of a heart-shaped red striped jasper that fit perfectly in the palm of my hand. I liked the feel of that rock, and wouldn't mind finding more along that line - thanks for the tip!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great post! thanks for sharing!!!
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