August's Birthstone is Peridot
Peridot is said to symbolise success, peace and luck. A gem variety of the mineral olivine, this wondrous stone is the child of volcanic action.Colour: Should be a lively lime green.
History: Favoured by pirates who believed it would glow in the dark whenever it was near buried treasure, peridot was considered a powerful amulet against all evil and when "set in gold and worn thus, dispels fear of the dark and is a potent amulet against all evil". It also had medicinal uses. If fashioned into a chalice from which medicines were drunk, it was thought to intensify its efficacy. Cleopatra was a great admirer of the stone, and by Renaissance times peridot had become a love stone worn to attract romance.
Found in: USA, Mexico, Norway, Kenya and Burma. Originally mined for the Egyptian kings (1,500BC) on St. John's Island in the Red Sea, today's most important source of peridot in the world is the San Carlos Apache Indian Reservation near Globe, Arizona where it is mined by native Americans.