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More About Gemstones!
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Did you know...?
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Early Norse navigators used pieces of tourmaline to help them navigate on cloudy days. Tourmaline has the ability to polarize light and works as a filter, so it helped the Vikings find their way to their destinations even when the sun was blocked by clouds!
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Tsu Hsi, the last dowager empress of China, loved jade so much that she had an entire banquet set of cups, plates, and chopsticks made from the material. She preferred jade above all other gemstones, including diamonds!
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Diamond and peridot are the only gem materials which form in the mantle of the earth. All other gems come from the crust or the surface of the earth. The famous Hope Diamond gets its beautiful blue color from boron atoms in its crystal structure.
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Queen Elizabeth I loved pearls and had many of her gowns decorated with numerous clusters of pearls. She also owned many pearl hair ornaments and necklaces.
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