JUNE: MORGANITE

June Birthstone: Morganite
June’s other birthstone, the magnificent Morganite, has a peach-pink brilliance and is a relative newcomer to the gemstone world!.  This alluring mineral belongs to the Beryl family of gemstones, citing distinguished cousins such as Emerald and Aquamarine.  Morganite’s hues ranging from delicate blush to warm peach-pink, oozing personality and verve whilst exuding both funk and modern sophistication!

Healing Properties:
Morganite has long been known as the stone of Divine Love.  Its gentle pink hues radiate warmth, compassion and emotional harmony, encouraging openness of heart and spirit. Basics, Magpies: joyful energy and vivacious vibrations!!

Potted History & Magical Myths:
Morganite’s story is almost as glittering as the stone itself!! Spoiler alert: Morganite is named after America’s Greatest Banker: John Pierpoint Morgan!  Discovered in Madagascar in 1910, the gemstone was sent to Tiffany & Co.’s renowned gemmologist George F. Kunz (Kunzite is named after him), who confirmed it as a new variety of Pink Beryl.  Later that year, Kunz proposed the name Morganite at a meeting of the New York Academy of Sciences, honouring his friend and patron John Pierpont Morgan (J.P. Morgan).

Why was such an incredible accolade given?  JPMorgan was one of the most powerful financiers of the American Gilded Age.  Not just a financier who happened to be responsible for what has become one of the greatest global investment banks but was also a driving force behind the development of modern America!!!

Whilst a veritable titan in the finance field JPMorgan was also one of the world’s greatest gemstone collectors.  A devoted patron of Tiffany & Co., he commissioned Kunz to assemble a remarkable collection of gemstones for the 1889 Paris Exposition, where the celebrated Tiffany-Morgan Collection of Gems won gold among hundreds of exhibitors.  JPMorgan donated this incredible cache of precious gemstones (and other collections too) to the American Museum of Natural History in New York with its centrepiece being the Star of India, a Star Sapphire that weighs an impressive 563.35 carats.   This scene-stealer was latterly the subject of a bejewelled heist in the 1960s, but that is another story….
Quite the glittering legacy for a gemstone bearing his name.