The first pantheon of gods, with which I had the pleasure to get to know, was from Ancient Greece: for the 8th birthday my parents presented an “Odyssey” adapted for a children's head. And then she herself stormed the library in search of myths and legends. Due to my age, I somehow did not pay attention to many details, but over time I involuntarily looked closely. Male deities, not embarrassed by the "stamp in the passport" of the Greek women they liked, produced demigods, not at all caring about the reaction of the spouses of their favorites (as well as their own) to this action. They did not leave their attention to the virgins, who were somewhere between the world of gods and people - all kinds of dryads, nymphs and other semi-divine beauty. Against this background, I remembered the legend of the nymph Ametis.
The nymph, as befits her in this opus, was incredibly beautiful. Actually, her appearance became the reason for the further development of the plot: the maiden came to the attention of Dionysus, who was famous for his tender love for the opposite sex, amusements and grape-based strong drinks, and best of all - when all this was combined into one endless holiday. Ametis was a rather proud girl, and therefore rejected courtship. The legend does not specify how correctly this was done, but in the end Ametis had to simply run away from the loving god, who at all costs decided to conquer the heart (or heart?) Of the nymph. Seeing that she would not be able to escape, Ametis prayed for help, and the goddess Artemis, who was guarding the chastity of the ancient Greek girls, came to the rescue. True,She did it in a very peculiar way - she turned the beauty into an ordinary cobblestone. Such a salvation, but honor is above all, and therefore Ametis resigned herself and quieted down. And she couldn't say anything. Dionysus, who watched this picture, was, to put it mildly, annoyed, and tried to turn a piece of stone back into a nymph, but, apparently, was an unimportant wizard, or he chose the wrong spell from drunken eyes. The ritual consisted of splashing the best wine from the divine reserves on the stone, only alchemy was clearly not one of the talents of Dionysus: instead of becoming Ametis again, the lump simply changed its color from gray to purple. The deity finally got angry and went home, and the Greeks have since been sure that Artemis herself endowed the mineral with an amazing property,contributing to the retention of its owner from drunkenness and any incontinence, including in desires.
Stone cutters in ancient Mesopotamia made special cylinders from amethyst for their customers. Naturally, anybody from the street could not afford such a product, but in aristocratic circles, the press was very popular, since by modern standards they were the most real analogue of a passport or other identity card. The seal was decorated with artfully carved historical or mythological plots, images of plants and animals, and a special pattern was applied to the side, which served as the very "passport": if you roll the cylinder on a damp clay sheet, you get a unique print that was not repeated by other representatives nobility, and which was very difficult to repeat. Sometimes the cylinder was even used as a personal signature of the owner - needless to say that this piece of amethyst was cherished like the apple of an eye?
The Egyptians did not bother and invent some special meaning for amethyst. I believe that almost all precious and semiprecious stones were endowed with approximately the same “sacred” qualities / properties, and were used mainly for ritual purposes. Well, for various decorations, of course. The first and main thing that they tried to carve out of him in incredible quantities was a scarab, and with it - wisdom and eternal life, which he was called to symbolize. The amethyst insect was necessarily placed in the tomb of the deceased, so that he would quickly return to the mortal world, and necessarily - in his own body. In connection with this ceremony, I had a couple of questions. First, how many kilograms of various amulets were buried in Egypt with everyone who went to the last trial, and second, why the notorious zombie apocalypse has not yet come there?
The ancient Greeks, as already mentioned, firmly believed in the miraculous properties of amethyst, which was supposedly able to almost encode the wearer for ever and ever. The Romans, who brazenly plagiarized most of Greek culture, adopted this conviction, including, preferring not to drink intoxicated drinks, if a piece of amethyst does not hang at the bottom of the glass. They also called the mineral a "blessed stone", as it helped calm down and not flog a fever, helping to settle quarrels.
In the troubled times of the Middle Ages, amethyst, unlike most of its brethren, was not placed on the side of Satan and his accomplices, by no means. Everything is exactly the opposite: for some reason, purple is considered a symbol of spirituality and abstinence, and therefore the stone has practically become the embodiment of piety and humility. As a result, items decorated with amethyst became very popular and were widely used to decorate the church interior, and the clergy at the head of the flock tried to acquire a ring with this stone. Therefore, the amethyst from “blessed” turned into “bishop”, “pastoral”, or “cardinal”. It was only in the 18th century that jewelers finally paid attention to the stone. From that time on, he began to appear in inlaid decorations for social events, many of which have survived to this day.
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Varieties and deposits
Amethyst does not require additional lighting in order to appear in all its glory. On the contrary, it looks best in natural daylight, revealing all its facets. And there are many of them: in nature, it occurs in the form of the so-called amethyst druse, which is a bunch of crystals fused together, resembling a rhombus in shape. The mineral belongs to the quartz family, and stands out among other “relatives” both by its unusual appearance and cost, being the most expensive in its series.
Of course, the most important thing is the color, which is truly unique. Shades of purple in one stone can vary from pale, almost white, turning into pale lilac, from the usual purple, and so on to almost black. The most interesting thing is that in direct sunlight, amethyst literally burns out. The longer it lies under the sun, the paler its color becomes. When artificially heated to 200 degrees, the stone first turns yellow, then turns green, and as a result it becomes an incomprehensible whitish hue, finally fading. Do not be afraid: as it cools, amethyst will return its color. At least that's what scientists say, but personally I would not risk knowingly conducting such experiments.
The most popular, the most common color is purple, but, as is the case with minerals, if it is the most frequent, this does not mean that it is the only one. Jewelers and collectors are crazy about green amethyst, featuring unique needle-like blotches. The former try to cut the stone in a special way to emphasize its beauty, while the latter strive to immediately drag the cut cabochon into their bins, admire and show off. There is also a pink amethyst - its shade is slightly cloudy, in addition, there are characteristic dark specks in the stone, but it is considered one of the most beautiful of its kind, and the frame for it should be made only of precious metal. The rarest types of amethyst are black. It is in demand in the occult world: the properties attributed to the black stone make it a tasty morsel for magicians of all stripes.
Amethyst is mined in many countries and on many continents. Among them are the USA, Armenia, Germany, Ceylon, Africa, Madagascar and others. Most of the amethyst is in Brazil, but its quality is poor. Asian deposits provide material that is many times better, but alas, it is too little for full production. The highest quality is found in Russian gems from the Urals, from where amethysts of a unique variety are scattered all over the world, and in the coastal zone of Murmansk.
Amethyst in lithotherapy and occultism
Frankly speaking, I have never used the services of lithotherapists. It is very hard for me to believe that one stone can heal a whole list of diseases. However, at the same time, I perfectly understand that my disbelief is based primarily on the fact that I myself would hardly have completed at least one course of treatment. Improvement from the first application indicates the removal of symptoms, but not getting rid of the cause of the ailment, and personally I would not have the patience to bring the matter to its logical conclusion.
However, I was distracted. If lithotherapy and its adherents exist, then it really benefits someone.
What is amethyst capable of? Lithotherapists use it to treat many diseases, and migraine is in the first row. It is followed by heart disease, but there is a clarification: it does not cure, but helps to reduce them, and relieves symptoms. Joint pain is in third place. Treatment with amethyst may well be a healthy competitor to visiting a beautician, since regular massage with plates made of this material smoothes wrinkles and improves complexion.
I had previously heard about “shungite” water: it is insisted on this stone, and it acquires medicinal properties. It turns out that amethyst water is made according to the same principle, which is used to treat colds and strengthen immunity, as well as cleanse the digestive tract, kidneys and liver.
Purple amethyst helps to normalize sleep: it is enough to keep a stone at the head of the bed to stop taking sleeping pills.
The meaning of violet is the mind, free from any restrictions. It is not surprising that yogis in India revered amethyst as a stone that facilitates the opening of the third eye, however, only with appropriate preparation. Agree, the ability to see the energy component of our world is worth buying a small pebble? True, here too, healthy skepticism prevails in me. If you have had good preparation - are extraneous attributes so important?
For those who are not going to awaken the all-seeing eye, amethyst will help moderate their temper (apparently, this belief stretches from ancient Rome), relieve bad intentions and extinguish unreasonable aggression. In a word, it will lead you on the path of goodness and light. The stone will be a good helper in amorous affairs, as it helps to bring harmony into the union. Mutual understanding gives a chance for happiness even to the most hopeless relationships, so amethyst is chosen by those who have difficulties in building a long and lasting union. To do this, it is enough to place several amethyst figurines at home, and, of course, not to blame all the worries of preserving and strengthening the union on the mineral. Rely on amethyst, but don't do it yourself.
Sailors and fishing enthusiasts have long revered amethyst as their personal amulet. This is due to another interesting property of the stone: before the storm, it changes its color, and gives sailors a chance to survive the bad weather without loss.
Amethyst in crowns and crowns
It is possible to judge the popularity of the stone even in the “old clay” times by the products that, by some miracle, have survived to this day. You can scold collectors as much as you like, taking away unique jewelry from private collections, but a huge share of all the treasures of the world is known to us not only thanks to museum property. Private traders have preserved many magnificent works, including items with amethysts. But let's dwell on the museum exhibits.
The State Hermitage has an amazingly beautiful diadem. The golden crown was discovered in one of the Sarmatian burials near Novocherkassk, dating back to the 1st century. In the center of the diadem, surrounded by a scattering of other stones and multi-colored glasses, is the tiny head of a woman, skillfully carved from amethyst.
The Romans gave us amethyst gem. Many historians are inclined to believe that none other than Marcus Junius Brutus himself, a Roman politician, addressee of Caesar's famous phrase, is depicted on the surface of the stone. It is he or not, but the fact that the gem was created by the ancient master is a fact. And this fact is kept in the Boston Museum of Fine Arts.
Among the 144 precious stones that are strewn with the crown of Charlemagne, which crowned almost all German monarchs of the early Middle Ages, there are also amethysts. The stones have earned this honor for their unsurpassed quality and beauty. You can admire the product in the Hofburg Palace, Vienna.
Many people love flowers. So Maria Theresa decided to please her husband, Emperor Franz I, with a small bouquet. It is only 32 cm in height and about 22 cm in diameter, but on the other hand, it is not assembled from buttercup chamomiles, which a crowned person should not be able to offer, but from first-class precious stones, which took more than 1500 to make, and a fair part of them falls on the share of amethysts.
Our sovereigns did not lag behind their Western “colleagues”. Dark purple amethysts adorned the crown of Irina Godunova, several outstanding in size and quality stones were inlaid in the coronation throne of Alexander I. In 1927, at Christie's auction, with the permission of the country's leadership, magnificent amethyst earrings of Catherine II were sold. And how many more varied items are languishing in museums, and waiting to be paid attention to! Maybe it's not for nothing that amethyst is also called “the soul of all stones”, and it really has some properties that can harmoniously unite all the others?