Amethyst

Amethyst is a crystalline quartz that ranges in hue from mild lilac to deep reddish purple. The February birthstone is an excellent facetable jewelry gem for all uses, with a reasonably high hardness of 7. Lower grades of material can be cabbed, carved, and formed into a wide range of beads and ornamental objects.

Amethyst was as valuable as ruby and emerald until the nineteenth century, when significant deposits in Brazil were discovered. Amethystos, which means "not drunk" in ancient Greek, was thought to prevent intoxication. Today, being the most valuable quartz variant, amethyst is in high demand for both designer and mass-market jewelry, and its purple to pastel tones have broad consumer appeal.

The purple variant of the quartz crystal species is amethyst. Even though other purple gems such as sapphire and tanzanite exist, it is the most generally linked with the color purple. Its purple tint might be chilly and bluish, or it can be a reddish purple that is frequently called "raspberry."

The purple color of amethyst can range from mild lilac to deep, intense royal purple, and from brownish to bright. Amethyst also frequently exhibits color zoning, which in the case of amethyst typically consists of angular zones of darker to lighter color.