Amethyst is found in large geodes buried on the steep sides of volcanoes. When a potential geode is found, the miner (often with burro in tow) will spend hours or days using a hand held drill to drill a small hole in the side of the often very large geode. Once the hole is complete, a candle on a string is lowered into the geode.

If a rich purple color is seen, the miner will then begin the difficult task of digging out and carrying back to civilization the rare find! Amethyst is actually a form of quartz and its coloration comes from small amounts of iron impurities in the crystalline structure. 

Interestingly enough, amethyst and citrine are one and the same, however the iron in citrine has been oxidized, fading the rich purple to yellow or orange.

The earliest recognition of amethyst hails from the ancient Greeks, who so named the stone ‘amethystus’, or ‘not drunken’. Thus it was kept and carried to protect against the inebriating effects of alcohol.

While we make every effort to offer a selection of all of our jewelry online, the fact is that nearly all of our jewelry is one-of-a-kind and putting even a sampling online is a difficult task.  If you see a piece in some of our sample photos (above) or you are looking for something, please let us know and give us a call!