Venice enchants. Ornate palazzos float in unreality as mist rises from the Grand Canal. My gondola meanders between crumbling walls. Water gates slide by as I wonder what lies beyond. This city, like gems, pearls and all things beautiful, fascinates and seems imbued with magic.
The ancients ascribed protection, healing and good fortune to various gems. "My Magic of Gems" section gives detailed information for those of you who wish to learn more about these wonderful stones.
The ancients ascribed protection, healing and good fortune to various gems. "My Magic of Gems" section gives detailed information for those of you who wish to learn more about these wonderful stones.
Designer Lilia Cardinali
Learn more about the magic of gems
Healing with GemstonesHistorical Uses of Gemstones
| Agate | is worn for protection, to insure good harvest or fertility. It is a power stone. Emerald agate is a color-enhanced stone. The Romans knew the art of dyeing. In Idar-Oberstein/Rhineland-Palatinate, it has been practiced since the 1820’s and this area is the important agate center Details of the process are a commercial secret. For the green color the pigment used is iron with a saturation of chromium and heat. Green agate is the color of healing and hope, brown agates bring stability and grounding. |
| Amber | is the hardened resin of the amber pine. Transparent amber is 120-180 million years old. Copal or opaque amber is 60 million years old. Organic inclusions improve value. It warms and stimulates, and protects against fever, rheumatism, toothache, rickets, and jaundice. |
| Amazonite | when discovered in Africa and Russia was valued for its turquoise color and believed to bring luck and promote energy and balance. To all ancient peoples, the color of sky blue was magical. |
| Amethyst | helps balance mind and spirit. It protects against drunkenness, improves memory, and insures pleasant dreams, gentles, and makes amiable. It helps anxiety, nervous headache or digestive disorder. It also helps you learn mystic, spiritual or psychic lessons. |
| Aquamarine | a sailor’s talisman; promotes cleansing, encourages creativity; and increases hopefulness, optimism, and inspiration. |
| Apatite | comes from the Greek word to deceive because it is easily confused with aquamarine, topaz, beryl and tourmaline. Mined in Norway, Africa and India in ancient times, the clear blue represented the heavens to ancients and had protective powers. |
| Aventurine | improves eyesight and perception, releases anxiety and fear, encourages calm, positivity, and self-confidence. |
| Azurite | is a copper ore prized from prehistoric times for it’s vibrant deep blue and green shades representing the heavens, and all the mystical beliefs and magic associated with gods and the sacred. |
| Beryl | improves communication skills and releases depression and anxiety. |
| Carnelian | releases back pain and traumas, encourages healing, and restores energy flow. It is the classical Roman and Greek amulet for success. It is the stone of ambition and drive and helps in focusing, decision-making and self-actualization. |
| Chalcedony | encourages peace, calm and a sense of quiet detachment. It is said to reduce pain, irritation or inflammation. |
| Chalcopyrite | a metallic mineral, commonly called peacock pyrite because of its brassy gold, green, fushia or purple coloring. While it feels heavy and hard, this mineral is actually quite fragile and should be protected and wrapped when not in wear. Early man valued it because it seems to represent the starry heavens. It is said to restore perception, and improve health of lungs and hair. |
| Citrine | is uplifting, warming, and gives confidence; brings higher levels of wisdom and knowledge. It is known as a stone of joy and sun energy. |
| Coral | is composed of the tiny skeletons of invertebrate sea animals. In ancient times, it was believed to stop bleeding, and safeguard health. It is one of the oldest talismans used for protection--the earliest example being a carved coral fist, and coral continues to be valued for protection in the countries around the Mediterranean and Adriatic Seas. |
| Diamonds | symbolize the sparkle of the stars and heavenly bodies and were valued for their hardness. They are symbolic of love, joy and courage |
| Fluorite | focuses energy, improves physical coordination, dexterity, balance, and learning. It is believed to be a relaxant, and induce favorable dreams. The ease with which it can be carved made it a frequently used talismanic material dating back to mentions by Pliny the Elder. |
| Garnet | insures the wearer of love, faithfulness and safety from wounds. It is considered energizing. It stimulates the senses and increases vitality. |
| Hematite | from the Greek word for blood because when cut into very thin plates it is red and transparent and leaves reddish streaks, but usually appears metallic black when polished.. It protects the wearer from injury in battle. |
| Iolite | is also called water sapphire, stood for faith and love in the 18th century. It was attributed with the abilities of true sapphires, high thoughts, and wisdom and as an amulet against ailments of the eyes. |
| Ivory | and bone were used throughout ancient civilizations carved in various symbols to empower, protect, and prolong life. An ivory Stone Age fertility goddess is considered one of the world’s earliest known works of art. |
| Jade | protects from lightning, aids in battles, brings rain, and drives away evil spirits. In the Orient It is worn as a symbol of wealth, luck and prestige. Jade is one of the oldest stones used by ancient people in both eastern and western (Mesoamerican) cultures for spiritual purpose. Stone age ceremonial tools were fashioned from jade because it has the strength of steel. Jade releases negative thoughts, and is associated with wisdom, serenity, balance and healing. |
| Jasper | encourages honesty, protects against night spirits, staunches bleeding, and helps during pregnancy. It is one of the oldest gem amulets worn for protection. |
| Labradorite | protects against energy drain and negativity. |
| Lapis lazuli | mining began in Babylon 6,000 years ago. It is a symbol of truth; believed that wearers carried the presence of God; eases eye troubles, asthma, induces sleep, relieves anxiety. The gold flecks of pyrite were believed to represent the starry heavens. |
| Malachite | helps release of old memories and patterns, and attachments to allow forward growth. |
| Mica | The ancients valued mica flecks in any stone because they mimicked the stars and early man wove myths of power and protection around all heavenly bodies: the sun, moon, stars and planets. |
| Moonstone | gives emotional balance, improves intuition, helps stomach aches and headaches. |
| Mother-of-Pearl | or pearlized shell is one of the earliest materials used by ancients as adornment and for magical values. A powder of pulverized mother-of-pearl and jade was thought to bring immortal life and protect the wearer. |
| Murano Glass | The origins of glassmaking are very ancient in the Venetian Lagoon; excavations have yielded fragments of objects dating to the Roman era. In the late 10th and early 11th centuries, glass production took root in Venice, and in 1291, to reduce the possible danger from fires, moved en bloc to Murano, a nearby island, Aventurine glass with its flecks of gold or silver flux was invented at Murano and dates to the 1600's. The gemstone aventurine was name after this glass for its natural aventurescence. In addition to Murano glass, sunstone and midnight sunstone glass with its copper flux is an example of this technique. |
| Ocos | are tiny geodes with crystals inside formed by fluids that seep into the rock cavities and crystallize. Interiors may be filled with a banded quatz-like striped agate or lines with groups of crystals called druzy. They were valued by ancient people who believed the crystals represented the heavens where the gods resided and assigned magical powers to the contrast of great beauty found inside ordinary-looking "rocks". |
| Onyx | wards off evil and is the stone of self-mastery and self-control. It boosts determination and mind setting. |
| Opal | is a hardened silica gel, usually containing 5 to 10 percent water, and is a fragile stone. Its iridescence is caused by the way the structure, a regular arrangement of tiny silica spheres, diffracts lightOpal was found in central Europe, in what is now the Czech Republic. Ancients believed its mysterious lights represented the starry heavens where the Gods resided, and therefore considered them a lucky talisman. |
| Peacock Ore or Bornite | is a copper ore mineral that has various iridescent shades of blue to purple. It was discovered in 1845 by an Austrian mineralogist. It symbolizes the multicolored heavens, home of the gods. |
| Pearls | are a symbol of innocence and wisdom. They promote tolerance, honesty, and flexibility and offer life-giving powers. White symbolized innocence, faith and pure heart and mind; black is the color of prosperity. |
| Peridot | promotes emotional balance and healing, frees the mind from envy, and dispels night terrors. |
| Prehnite | is named after a Dutch colonel and sometimes referred to as green amethyst. It protects from harm; heals. |
| Rock crystal | concentrates consciousness; serves as a prayer amulet; promotes clarity, order, and calm. |
| Rose Quartz | induces calm and emotional release; improves relationships; reduces stress. It opens hearts, encourages peace and gentleness and teaches tolerance and forgiveness. |
| Sapphire | signified high thoughts, wisdom, faith and love. It also served as an amulet against ailments of the eyes. Blue sapphire symbolizes trust, truth, sincerity and faithfulness. |
| Serpentine | Protects against the bites of venomous creatures; protects from harm; heals. |
| Shell | is one of the earliest materials used by ancients as adornment and for magical values. A powder of pulverized shell and jade was thought to bring immortal life and protect the wearer. |
| Silver | helps balance mind and emotion. As a mirror of the soul, it helps you see yourself as others see you. |
| Smoky Quartz | protects, quiets and grounds energy. It improves relationships and decreases disagreements, enhancing all communication skills. |
| Sodalite | cultivates learning ability, consciousness, and communication. It promotes helps balance mind and emotion. |
| Sugelite | is a naturally colored pink violet stone much prized for its rarity and color. It has a reputation for energy and healing. |
| Topaz | directs and focuses energy, cleanses negativity from emotions, increases power and strength. Golden topaz brings peace and harmony. Blue frees up communication. |
| Tourmaline | has been known in the Mediterranean region since antiquity, but the Dutch only began importing it in 1703. Believed in ancient times to have the power to reduce fevers and encourage rest. Green tourmalines are symbol of fidelity and friendship. |
| Turquoise | is one of the oldest gemstones known. Ancient mines in Mesopotamia date to 4,000 BC. The blue color is associated with heaven and immortality. It was worn for protection and good luck. Egyptian tombs often contain turquoise artifacts. In ancient Persia, turquoise was worn to ward off unnatural death. If the stone changed color, it was thought to predict imminent danger. We now know that turquoise may change color in response to heat, water, and oils unless it is stabilized. |
| Unikite | is an opaque granitic rock composed of quartz, feldspar and greenish epidote. It has existed in Russia since ancient times, but has only recently come to the commercial market. It is valued for it’s unusual color combination of coral and moss greens. |
| Zircon | drives away evil spirits and bad dreams, banishes grief and melancholy, restores appetite, and induces sleep. |
When I went to Venice, my dreams became my reality...
-Marcel Proust
-Marcel Proust