May
Birthstones & FlowersMay ~ Emerald ~ Love, Success
Symbols of love and rebirth, emeralds and their vibrant green color celebrate springtime romance. Yet emeralds also speak of feelings that endure, making them the gemstone of 20th anniversaries. For thousands of years, emeralds have ranked as one of the most precious of all gems. Rare transparent emeralds may be even more valuable than diamonds. Moguls and pharaohs coveted emeralds. Cortez, conqueror of Mexico, lost in a shipwreck an Aztec emerald the size of a man's palm. Most emeralds contain, like diamonds, inclusions of bubbles, cracks and foreign crystals. This "garden," as the experts call it, defines an emerald's character and identity.
4 x 3mm oval emerald is set amid swirls
of 10k gold on a 17-inch chain
Pic provided by Ice.com
Your Flowers
The May flower more commonly known to symbolize this month is the Lily of the Valley, a beautiful shade-loving woodland flower. Lesser known is the hawthorn, related to the rose family. Hawthornes are a varied group of shrubs and small trees found throughout North America. All have sharp thorns on the branches and younger stems. Hawthorne, harvested from their natural wild environment in the United States, has a long history in both folk medicine and clinical medicine as a heart tonic. The herb is typically used to improve cardiovascular function, as it increases the supply of blood to the heart muscle, resulting in enhanced circulation throughout the body. It has shown to have positive effects upon stabilizing angina pectoris, as well as aiding recovery from heart attacks. Flower pics provided by ArtToday.
