Aquamarine Beaded Bracelet

Aquamarine is safe to handle and wear. It is water-safe for short cleansing periods. Avoid prolonged exposure to direct sunlight, which can fade the color in some specimens over time.

Aquamarine is a variety of beryl — the same mineral family that includes emerald and morganite — colored by trace amounts of iron. Its name derives from the Latin 'aqua marina,' meaning seawater, and the stone has been prized for millennia for its luminous, oceanic blue-green. The finest specimens come from Brazil, particularly the state of Minas Gerais, where extraordinarily large and vivid crystals have been found. Significant deposits also occur in Pakistan, Mozambique, Russia, and the United States.

Aquamarine is beryl — Be3Al2(SiO3)6 — with its characteristic blue-green color produced by trace amounts of ferrous iron (Fe2+) within the crystal lattice. The depth of color depends on iron concentration and oxidation state: ferrous iron produces blue, while a mixture of ferrous and ferric iron produces greenish-blue. Most commercially available Aquamarine has been heat-treated to reduce the green component and intensify the pure blue tone. It forms in granitic pegmatites, often as long prismatic hexagonal crystals.

• In ancient Roman and Greek tradition, Aquamarine was known as the sailor's stone — believed to protect seafarers from storms and drowning when carried aboard ships or thrown into the sea as an offering to the god Neptune. Sailors considered it a direct gift from the sea itself.
• Ancient Greeks called Aquamarine a stone of sirens and sea nymphs, believing it washed ashore from the treasure chests of these mythological beings. It was thought to be charged with the energy of the sea and to bring good fortune to those who treated the ocean with respect.
• In medieval European tradition, Aquamarine was used by soothsayers and oracles who believed the stone could reveal hidden truths and aid in divination. It was also thought to rekindle love in troubled marriages and was given as a gift between partners as a symbol of faithfulness and reconciliation.