Article: Birthstone Origins: Stranger Than Fiction
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Birthstone Origins: Stranger Than Fiction
In the Old Testament, the book of Exodus tells the story of the Breastplate of Aaron, used in religious ceremonies. (Aaron?just in case you were absent from Sunday school that day?was the Biblical figure who performed, at Moses' direction, the miracles that confounded Pharaoh and his magicians.)
Aaron's breastplate was adorned with four rows of gemstones, three gemstones in each row, in the following pattern: Sardius, topaz, carbuncle; emerald, sapphire, diamond; ligure, agate, amethyst; beryl, onyx, jasper. These twelve gemstones represented the twelve tribes of Israel. The twelve positions were later co-opted by astologers who linked them to the twelve months of the calendar year and the twelve signs of the zodiac.
The Traditional Birthstone List contains th...
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