We welcome August—and her traditional birthstone, Sardonyx.
Sardonyx is irregularly "striped" with two different variations of Chalcedony: "Sard" (the blue portion shown here) and "Onyx" (the narrow bands in white). The range of possible natural colors is quite wide (including black and white) and, like onyx, the stone can be color-treated with heat or chemical washes (usually various acids) to amplify or change the stone's natural color.
In the antiques retail trade, sardonyx is sometimes casually called "agate." Agate and sardonyx are related—different varieties of chalcedony. Agate is usually softer than sardonyx and agate's bands are more irregular than the straight-ish lines found in sardonyx. Both sardonyx and agate are used decoratively, including in jewelry.
Sardonyx has been employed artfully since ancient times. Egyptians and the Bronze-Age Minoans from Knossos, Crete (circa 3500 BC) made bowls and other decorative vessels from the stone. The Hebrew Bible mentions sardonyx (at a time when the stone was more precious than gold, silver or sapphires). Later, Ancient Roman warriors carried into battle sardonyx amulets carved with the face of Mars, the God of War, to provide courage and success. The Persians believed that sardonyx could cure epilepsy. Medieval English midwives would place a sardonyx pebble between the breasts of their patients to help ease delivery. During the Renaissance, sardonyx was believed to provide eloquence. And Italian Intaglio cameos were sometimes carved in sardonyx—in which the color of the top layer is selectively carved-away to reveal a different, underlying color.
The handsome sardonyx and sterling silver brooch, shown above, is hallmarked London, 1987. Click on the photo above to learn more about it.
Though our Greenwich Village store is now permanently closed, LEO Design is still alive and well! Please visit our on-line store where we continue to sell Handsome Gifts (www.LEOdesignNYC.com).
To arrange a visit our Pittsburgh showroom (by private appointment only), please call 917-446-4248.