|
Let's suppose that someone
has bought a moped, yet his friends and
acquaintances keep talking about his 'wonderful
racing machine'. He surely feels confused, or
feels that they are taking the mickey out of him.
A moped was exactly what he wanted for short trips
in good weather, but even the salesman said that
he was now in possession of a 'real flyer'.
That's roughly how things go
with the citrine, the stone for the month of
November. Many people have come to know and love
this stone under the name gold topaz, or Madeira
or Spanish topaz, although in actual fact it has
very little in common with the higher-quality
gemstone topaz - except for a few nuances of
|
 |
|
|
colour.
Thus the history of the citrine is closely interwoven
with that of the topaz, and coincides with it completely
when it comes to the interpretation of alleged
miraculous powers. However, the citrine is a member of
the large quartz family, a family which, with its
multitude of colours and very various structures, offers
gemstone lovers almost everything their hearts desire in
terms of adornment and decoration, from absolutely clear
rock crystal to black onyx. And it does so at prices
which are by no means unaffordable.
In
the Empire style, the topaz was still widespread, but
then the more reasonably priced citrine took over from
it and even usurped its name. Since then, the topaz has
been a rather exotic figure in the jewellery trade, and
has been given the additional predicate 'pure' to make
it clear that the topaz, not the quartz topaz, is meant.
And it is still waiting for its comeback to this day. |
