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Amethyst

The brilliant purple stone known as amethyst is draped in centuries of history - and mystery. Purple is the traditional color of royalty and amethyst has been used in the British Crown Jewels, by Egyptian royalty, and in Tibetan Buddhist prayer beads. The name comes from the Greek word amethustos" which means not drunken," and the amethyst was thought to prevent one from becoming intoxicated from wine.

Famed renaissance genius Leonardo Da Vinci claimed amethyst was capable of warding off evil thoughts and could inspire intelligence.

Later the amethyst became a symbol of celibacy, piety and religious purity and thus was adopted as a Catholic symbol around the time of the Middle Ages. Amethyst came to be the stone of Bishops and some Bishops still wear amethyst rings.

Actually purple quartz, Amethyst is the birthstone for February. Amethyst is primarily mined in Brazil and Zambia, but is also found in Russia, Mexico, Sri Lanka, and in the US it's found in New Mexico.