Gemini Horoscope Gemstones

Agate is one of the most varied stones in the mineral world. It is a banded form of chalcedony, and it turns up in shades of red, grey, white, blue, brown and green, usually arranged in the concentric rings that give the stone its signature look. The bands can be opaque in one layer and almost see-through in the next, so a single polished slice often reads like a cross-section of a small landscape.

The name is traditionally traced to the Achates, a river in Sicily where the Greeks were said to have gathered the first pieces. Agate has been cut and carved for at least four thousand years. Craftsmen in Mesopotamia and Rome used it for seal rings and cameos, and the German town of Idar-Oberstein built an entire cutting industry around it. Because agate is tough as well as attractive, pieces were passed down through families rather than worn out.

In the tradition of healing stones, agate is treated as one of the steadier, quieter companions rather than a dramatic one. Different varieties, each with its own colour and pattern, were once matched to different purposes. Old handbooks advised wearing it against the skin, on the theory that the warmth and light of the natural world reached the body more easily through the stone.

Properties of agate

• It was believed to shield the wearer from harm and to help them find their footing in unfriendly circumstances.

• Folk tradition recommended it to people who slept badly, and linked it with a steady, regular metabolism.

• According to old sources, it encourages a clear-eyed view of facts and helps a person see a situation as it actually is.

• Lapidaries describe it as carrying a warm, assertive energy that was long associated with vitality and physical strength.

• It is believed to bring a sense of warmth to tense areas of the body and to help accumulated strain loosen its grip.

• In stone lore it is said to draw off surplus energy, which is why it was reached for during demanding periods.

• Popular belief holds that it makes company easier and helps a newcomer settle into unfamiliar surroundings.

• It has a long reputation as a courage stone, thought to support anyone working through a fear.

• Older writers claimed it sharpens clarity of thought and the ability to reason through a problem step by step.

• Folk medicine connected it with a well-toned body and with the smooth circulation of lymph.

• Traditional belief associates it with balanced blood pressure, particularly when the reading tends to run low.

• It has been carried for centuries as protection against the evil eye, since its bold banding catches the eye first and was thought to absorb ill will.

• Its warm, lively character is said to make the good side of an event easier to notice on a difficult day.

• Custom held that a child with an agate in a pocket stays calmer and quarrels less.

• It is traditionally counted among the stones of cheerfulness and inner quiet.

Agate stands for worldly success: tradition says it turns away unwelcome energy and restores courage that has worn thin. People in business customarily carried it below the waist, in a pocket for instance, and a ring set with agate was said to strengthen self-assurance in particular. It appeals most to those who want steadiness, calm and a sense of security in ordinary daily life. The uses described here belong to tradition and folk belief and are not a substitute for medical advice.

Hardness: 6.5 - 7

Composition: SiO₂

Specific gravity: 2.60 - 2.64

Chakras: Root, Sacral, Heart

Care: Clean with lukewarm water and a soft brush, then dry well. Sunlight does not harm it.

Moonstone belongs to the feldspar family, and its beauty comes from its structure rather than its colour. Layers of two feldspars grew alternately as the crystal cooled, and light bouncing between those microscopic layers produces a floating blue-white sheen that seems to move across the surface as the stone is tilted. Gemmologists call the effect adularescence, after Mount Adular in Switzerland, an early source. The body colour is usually milky white, cream or grey, and the finest material comes from Sri Lanka and southern India.

The stone has been linked to the moon in India for many centuries, where it was regarded as a sacred gem and often displayed on a yellow cloth. In Europe it had two great moments of fashion: the Romantic period, and then the Art Nouveau years around 1900, when René Lalique and his contemporaries set it in flowing silver and gold designs that suited its dreamy glow perfectly.

Moonstone needs gentler handling than most jewellery stones. It is only moderately hard, it splits easily along its cleavage planes if knocked, and it should not be left soaking. A soft dry cloth is the whole of its maintenance.

Properties of moonstone

• It is traditionally treated as a stone of the moon and of everything that moves in cycles.

• Folk belief holds that it eases the swings of mood that come with a demanding month.

• According to old sources, it was given to women as a companion through the different stages of life.

• It is said to encourage tenderness and to make an apology easier to offer.

• Traditional accounts describe it as a travellers' stone, carried especially on journeys by night or by water.

• In stone lore it is believed to bring gentle, revealing dreams to those who keep it near the bed.

• It has long been associated with intuition and with trusting a quiet inner signal.

• Popular belief connects it with new beginnings, and it was worn at the start of a fresh chapter.

• Older writers linked it with a settled digestion and an unhurried evening.

• It is thought to soften an argument between people who care about each other.

• Folk tradition treats it as a charm for fertility and for the growth of a family.

• It was worn by gardeners who planted according to the phases of the moon.

• Traditional belief holds that it helps a person accept a change they did not choose.

• It is said to restore a sense of wonder after a stretch of dull routine.

Moonstone symbolises intuition, tenderness and the natural rhythm of change. It appeals to people going through a transition, to anyone drawn to soft and luminous jewellery, and to those who prefer a stone that soothes rather than energises. The uses described here belong to tradition and folk belief and are not a substitute for medical advice.

Hardness: 6 - 6.5

Composition: KAlSi₃O₈

Specific gravity: 2.56 - 2.59

Chakras: Sacral, Third eye, Crown

Care: Do not soak in water, as the stone is porous. Wipe with a soft dry cloth and keep out of direct sunlight.

Obsidian is volcanic glass. When lava rich in silica cools so fast that its atoms have no time to arrange themselves into crystals, the result is a natural glass with no crystal structure at all. It is usually jet black and glossy, but there are beautiful variants: snowflake obsidian with white sprays of cristobalite, mahogany obsidian streaked with iron-stained brown, and the rare rainbow and sheen varieties that flash gold or violet where microscopic bubbles lie in layers.

Because glass breaks along smooth curved surfaces, obsidian can be flaked to an edge only a few molecules thick, sharper than a surgical scalpel. That property made it one of the most important materials in the ancient world. Anatolian obsidian from around Çatalhöyük was traded across the Near East nine thousand years ago and polished into the earliest mirrors; the Aztecs set it into the blades of the macuahuitl and into the divining mirrors of the god Tezcatlipoca. Mexico, Iceland, Turkey, Italy and the western United States all have significant deposits.

The same sharpness means broken pieces need respect. Obsidian is not very hard and chips easily if knocked against a hard surface, so a polished piece is best stored on its own.

Properties of obsidian

• It is traditionally treated as a mirror stone that shows a person what they have been avoiding.

• Folk belief holds that it forms a shield against ill will directed at the wearer.

• According to old sources, polished obsidian discs were used for scrying and quiet reflection.

• It is said to cut through self-deception the way its edge cuts through anything else.

• Traditional accounts link it with the base of the body and with a firm sense of one's own limits.

• In stone lore it is believed to absorb the residue of a tense encounter.

• It has a reputation for supporting someone working through an old and difficult memory.

• Popular belief connects it with clean endings, and it was carried when a chapter had to close.

• Older writers recommended it to those who take on other people's moods too readily.

• It is thought to help a person say no without a long explanation.

• Folk tradition treats it as a stone of truth-telling, however unwelcome.

• It was set at thresholds and doorways as a guard for the household.

• Traditional belief holds that it grounds a person after an emotional shock.

• It is said to make solitude feel restorative rather than lonely.

Obsidian symbolises protection, honesty and the courage to look directly at things. It appeals to people doing inner work, to anyone who prefers a dramatic black stone, and to those drawn to a material that shaped human history long before metal did. The uses described here belong to tradition and folk belief and are not a substitute for medical advice.

Hardness: 5 - 5.5

Composition: SiO₂ (volcanic glass)

Specific gravity: 2.35 - 2.60

Chakras: Root

Care: Clean with lukewarm water and a soft brush, then dry well. Sunlight does not harm it.

Turquoise is an opaque copper aluminium phosphate, and it is the copper that gives it the sky blue that no other stone quite matches. The colour shifts towards green as iron replaces some of the aluminium, and many specimens are crossed by a web of veins in gold, brown or black, the remains of the host rock. That webbing, called matrix, means no two pieces look alike. The name reached English through French, pierre turquoise, the Turkish stone, because the earliest supplies arrived in Europe by way of Turkey rather than from Turkey itself.

Turquoise has been mined for at least six thousand years. Egyptian expeditions worked the Sinai for it, the mines of Nishapur in Iran produced the intense blue that became the standard of quality, and Tibetan and Central Asian craftsmen set it into ritual objects. In the American Southwest, Pueblo, Navajo and Zuni silversmiths built an entire jewellery tradition around it, and their silver-and-turquoise work is now recognised worldwide.

Two things must be understood about this stone. It is soft, softer than window glass, so it scratches and chips more readily than most gems. And it is genuinely porous: it absorbs water, oil, perfume and perspiration, which can turn the blue green or crack the surface as the stone dries out. Much commercial turquoise is stabilised with resin for this reason, and untreated material is never soaked or worn in the shower. A dry cloth and shade from strong sunlight keep it as it should be.

Properties of turquoise

• It is traditionally regarded as a stone of calm that takes the edge off restlessness.

• Folk belief holds that it comforts those in mourning and makes the days easier to get through.

• According to old sources, it steadies a person after a sudden shock or upheaval.

• It is said to restore the vitality of a wearer who has been running on empty.

• Traditional accounts describe it as a stone of wisdom that favours unhurried, considered thinking.

• In many cultures it was worn as an amulet against the evil eye.

• It has a long association with the throat and with saying what one actually needs.

• Popular belief connects it with a steady, unstrained heart rhythm.

• Older writers recommended it to riders and travellers as a guard against accidents on the road.

• It is thought to smooth over friction between people living or working closely together.

• Folk tradition treats it as a stone of reconciliation and easy agreement.

• It was set in silver, which old sources claimed suited it better than any other metal.

• Traditional belief holds that a stone changing colour was warning its owner of something.

• It is said to help a person recover their footing after a period of overload.

Turquoise symbolises peace, inner balance and protection. It appeals to people looking for quiet after a hard stretch, to anyone drawn to a colour with six thousand years of history, and to those who like a soft, warm stone that sits comfortably against the skin. The uses described here belong to tradition and folk belief and are not a substitute for medical advice.

Hardness: 5 - 6

Composition: CuAl₆(PO₄)₄(OH)₈·5H₂O

Specific gravity: 2.31 - 2.84

Chakras: Throat, Heart, Third eye

Care: Do not soak in water, as the stone is porous. Wipe with a soft dry cloth and keep out of direct sunlight.

Jade is not one mineral but two, and the distinction was only established in 1863. Jadeite is a pyroxene, rarer, harder and capable of the translucent emerald green known as imperial jade. Nephrite is an amphibole, more common, slightly softer, and typically a creamy white to spinach green. Both are made of densely interlocked fibres, and that felted structure makes jade extraordinarily tough: it resists breaking better than almost any other gem material, even though it is not the hardest.

China has revered nephrite for more than seven thousand years, carving it into ritual discs, burial suits and seals long before bronze was worked there. Jadeite reached China from Myanmar only in the eighteenth century and quickly became the more valuable of the two. On the other side of the world, Maori carvers in New Zealand shaped nephrite into hei-tiki pendants and adzes that passed down through families as taonga, treasures. The European name is a curiosity: Spanish colonists in Mesoamerica called it piedra de ijada, the stone of the flank, from a local belief about its use, and jade is a shortening of that.

Jade takes a soft, waxy polish rather than a glassy one, and it warms quickly in the hand. Both varieties wear well, though dyed and impregnated material is common in the trade and needs gentler treatment than natural stone.

Properties of jade

• It is traditionally the stone of good fortune above all others in Chinese custom.

• Folk belief holds that it protects the wearer and that a bangle breaking has taken a blow on their behalf.

• According to old sources, it encourages moderation and a balanced way of living.

• It is said to support a long life and a calm approach to ageing.

• Traditional accounts link it with the heart and with generosity that does not draw attention to itself.

• In stone lore it is believed to steady a household through a period of difficulty.

• It has a reputation for encouraging wisdom of the practical rather than theoretical kind.

• Popular belief connects it with harmony between family members.

• Older writers recommended it to those making a decision that will affect many people.

• It is thought to soothe irritability at the end of a long day.

• Folk tradition treats it as a stone passed between generations, gathering meaning as it goes.

• It was carved into pendants for children as a lifelong guardian.

• Traditional belief holds that it supports the kidneys, an idea preserved in its Spanish name.

• It is said to make prosperity feel like enough rather than never quite enough.

Jade symbolises good fortune, moderation and quiet continuity between generations. It appeals to people who value tradition, to anyone who wants an exceptionally tough stone for constant wear, and to those drawn to a soft green that never looks loud. The uses described here belong to tradition and folk belief and are not a substitute for medical advice.

Hardness: 6 - 7

Composition: NaAlSi₂O₆ / Ca₂(Mg,Fe)₅Si₈O₂₂(OH)₂

Specific gravity: 2.90 - 3.38

Chakras: Heart

Care: Clean with lukewarm water and a soft brush, then dry well. Sunlight does not harm it.

Emerald is the green variety of beryl, coloured by chromium or vanadium, and it is one of the four stones traditionally counted as precious alongside diamond, ruby and sapphire. Its green is unlike any other: deep, slightly bluish and saturated, and a stone that is too pale is simply called green beryl rather than emerald. Almost every emerald contains inclusions, fissures and mineral crystals that jewellers call the jardin, the garden, and these are accepted as part of the stone's character rather than treated as faults.

Colombia has produced the finest emeralds for five centuries, from the mines of Muzo, Chivor and Coscuez. Before that, Egypt worked deposits near the Red Sea that are still known as Cleopatra's mines, and today Zambia, Brazil, Zimbabwe and Afghanistan all contribute. The stepped rectangular cut known as the emerald cut was designed specifically for this gem, because its many internal fractures make it vulnerable to the pressure of pointed corners.

Care is a real consideration. Nearly all emeralds on the market are treated with oil or resin to reduce the visibility of surface-reaching fissures, and heat, hot water, steam and ultrasonic cleaners will drive that filler out and leave the stone looking cloudy. Emerald is cleaned only with a barely damp soft cloth and kept away from heat.

Properties of emerald

• It is traditionally described as a stone of the heart, associated with love that has settled into loyalty.

• Folk belief holds that it reveals a lie told by someone the wearer trusted.

• According to old sources, looking into its green rested tired eyes after close work.

• It is said to encourage patience in a person who wants results too quickly.

• Traditional accounts link it with renewal, in the way spring green suggests it.

• In stone lore it is believed to strengthen memory and the recall of names and faces.

• It has a long reputation as a stone of eloquence, worn by those who must persuade.

• Popular belief connects it with faithfulness and with a marriage that lasts.

• Older writers recommended it to those recovering their balance after a period of excess.

• It is thought to support compassion that does not exhaust the person feeling it.

• Folk tradition treats it as a charm for safe travel, especially at sea.

• It was worn by rulers as a sign of a fair rather than a fearsome reign.

• Traditional belief holds that it makes forgiveness feel possible sooner than expected.

• It is said to bring a sense of growth back to a life that has felt static.

Emerald symbolises renewal, faithfulness and generous intelligence. It suits people marking something they intend to last, anyone drawn to the richest green in the mineral world, and those willing to give a beautiful but delicate stone the care it needs. The uses described here belong to tradition and folk belief and are not a substitute for medical advice.

Hardness: 7.5 - 8

Composition: Be₃Al₂Si₆O₁₈

Specific gravity: 2.67 - 2.78

Chakras: Heart

Care: Do not soak in water. Wipe dry after wearing and keep away from heat.