March Birthstone: Aquamarine

The ancient Greeks believed that Poseidon (or Neptune) ruled the oceans, and the mythical creatures that dwelled there. The nereids for example, fifty daughters of Nereus, “the old man of the sea”, of which the god married one. Amphitryte wasn’t keen at first, but Poseidon wowed her with a special gift: amphores filled with seawater, that she had to “fry” in the sun. When she did, the liquid crystallised into the most beautiful gem, literally “seawater”, or “aquamarine”, blue and translucent as the ocean itself. All nereids filled their jewelry boxes with it, and brought them as a dowry when they married. The gems, often with engravings of Poseidon, were very sought after, by gods as well as humans. Especially by sailors. An aquamarine as a talisman offered protection from monsters, provided favourable winds and a good catch of fish. If you’re born in March, it will protect you too, and if it looses its power, put it in salty water. It will regenerate.

Triumph of Poseidon and Amphitrite, Roman mosaic, Musée du Louvre, Paris, France

Nereid riding sea monster, palette (Gandhara, Pakistan), The Art Institute of Chicago, USA