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Amethyst is an extremely sought-after gem which has been valued by many civilizations since antiquity. A variety of vitreous quartz, amethyst often forms dramatic prismatic crystals which are often formed into jewelry without being cut. Brazil and Uruguay are common sources of high quality amethyst. In the early Christian church, amethyst was believed to guard against intoxication, hence its derivation from the Greek "amethustos," meaning "not drunk." Kyanite takes its name from from the Greek word kyanos which means "deep blue." Formerly called disthene, kyanite is found primarily in shades of blues and greens. The shiny, translucent gemstone is known for its color zones and variation in hardness. Zodiac signs associated with kyanite are Aries, Taurus and Libra. The stone is said to have an effect on dreams and in improving memory and encouraging mental clarity. Larimar is a rare gemstone found only in an inaccessible region of the Dominican Republic overlooking the Caribbean Sea. The sky blue stone's name was coined by a Dominican, Miguel Méndez, who combined his daughter's name Larissa, with mar, the Spanish word for sea. Moonstone is a variety of orthoclase, a feldspar. It often has a sky blue opalescent sheen, also called schiller or fire, making the stone look as if it is glowing. The sheen is created by thin layering of orthoclase with another mineral, albite. Moonstone was used in jewelry from 100 AD in Rome and even earlier in Asia. Derived from "tapaz," the Sanskrit word for fire, topaz is one of the most brilliant cut gemstones in existence. Topaz comes in a variety of colors from yellow to blue, and deeper blues and pinks are often created by heat-treating stones. Brazil is the world's top exporter of topaz.
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