Morganite

Birthstone:
June’s other birthstone is the mightily magnificent Midas touched Morganite! This peach of a violet, pink mineral belongs to the Beryl family with distinguished cousins such as Emerald and Aquamarine. Morganite oozes personality and verve whilst exuding both funk and sophistication!

Healing Properties:
“I'm pickin' up good vibrations, She's giving me the excitations (oom bop bop).” Not surprising as Morganite is known as the stone of Divine Love! 

Potted History & Magical Myths:
And if coming from such an illustrious crystal clan was not enough, Morganite is named after America’s Greatest Banker: John Pierpoint Morgan!!! It was discovered in Madagascar 1910 and sent to Tiffany’s eminent gemologist, George F. Kunz (Kunzite is named after him), who declared it to be a Beryl. In December of that year, at a meeting he was hosting at the New York Academy of Sciences, he proposed naming the stone “Morganite” in recognition of the patronage and support his friend JPMorgan had bestowed upon the science and jewellery world.

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

Whilst a veritable titan in the finance field he was also one of the greatest global gemstone collectors. He was a devotee of Tiffany’s and his passion for Mergers & Acquisitions led him to commission George Kunz to acquire an impressive gemstone collection for an exhibition in 1889 in Paris, which duly won Gold out of an impressive 382 entries. This collection came to be known as the ‘Tiffany-Morgan Collection of Gems’. JP Morgan 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….