7 Interesting Things You Need to Know About Birth Stones

By Harrison Fray .

If you're looking for a gift that will represent the recipient, a birth stone jewelry is one of the most ideal items that you can give. As the term implies, a birth stone represents a month in the calendar and it is often used for various jewelry designs for the young and old.

One of the factors that attract us to birth stones is their varying colors. Each stone is represented by a different color and most of us associate a specific color or a favorite according our corresponding birth stone.

There are so many things that make these interesting apart for the more obvious reasons. Here are 7 interesting thing you might want to know about birth stones:

1. The history of this jewelry dates back to the time of Aaron as told in the Bible, in the book of Exodus [chapter 28, verses 17 to 20]

Josephus, a 1st century Jewish historian, stated that there is a correlation between the twelve stones on Aaron's breastplate, the twelve signs of the zodiac and the twelve months of the year.

Exodus 28:17-20 states

"Then they mounted four rows of precious stones on it. In the first row there was a ruby, a topaz and a beryl; in the second row a turquoise, a sapphire and an emerald; in the third row a jacinth, an agate and an amethyst; in the fourth row a chrysolite, an onyx and a jasper. They were mounted in gold filigree settings. There were twelve stones, one for each of the names of the sons of Israel, each engraved like a seal with the name of one of the twelve tribes."

2. The Bible's book of Revelation [chapter 21, verses 19 to 20] also states the precise list of birth stones where the foundations of the New Jerusalem are listed

"And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. And the foundations of the wall of the city were garnished with all manner of precious stones. The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald; The fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolyte; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, a topaz; the tenth, a chrysoprasus; the eleventh, a jacinth; the twelfth, an amethyst."

3. The tradition of wearing birth stones became popular in Poland during the 15th century. The norm recommended that each month a person should wear a corresponding birth stones since it is during its month that the gemstone is more potent than usual. In effect, each person was suggested to own all twelve stones were they can rotate them each month.

4. There are the traditional which are based on cultures and societies. Varying cultures have their own set of birth stones which resulted to inconsistent jewellers' lists.

5. Mystical birth stones originated from Tibet which date back over centuries ago.

6. Ayurvedic birth stones originate from ancient Indian philosophy and medicine which date to 1500 BC.

7. Modern birth stones were standardized in 1912. The Jewellers of America adopted an official list in the effort to standardize the birth stones list. This is the most widely-used in USA, Thailand, Australia and other regions.

The fascination with birth stones will probably never cease. They are multi-colored gemstones that attract all ages with their beauty as well as their multi-faceted history.