Shades of purple: amethyst between legends and beliefs

An ancient legend has it that Bacchus, the pleasure-loving god of libations, fell in love with a pretty nymph named Amethyst: so insistent were his insistence that Amethyst, to escape the god's will, asked for the protection of Diana, goddess of chastity, and it transformed her into a splendid gem, as shiny as it was hard and cold. And it was Bacchus himself who, repenting of his sudden excess of passion, gave the unfortunate Amethyst the color of wine. The typical wine color of amethyst gave rise to the belief that this stone protected from drunkenness, if worn, according to Aristotle, on the navel. Amethyst was highly appreciated by the Egyptians who used it as an amulet at least from the 12th Dynasty, i.e. from 2,000 BC. Among the Jews it was considered the ninth stone ordained by God for the Rational of the High Priest, as well as it occupied the ninth place in the symbolism of the 12 tribes of Israel, under the name of "Ahlamah", the Hebrew name demonstrates among other things that it was believed to possess the virtue of inducing dreams and visions (“halom” means dream). In the text of the Apocalypse, the twelfth foundation of the celestial city, the New Jerusalem seen by St. John, was made up of amethyst, which symbolized the constant thought of the Kingdom of Heaven. In the Middle Ages and Renaissance, vases and cups were carved from amethyst for its power to chase away demons. Doctors used to wear a belt made up of 12 precious stones referring to the 12 months of the year, among which the amethyst represented the month of February. Furthermore, in ancient magical rituals a day of the week was assigned to each stone: for amethyst was on Tuesday.Amethyst is used in Crystal Therapy because it is associated with the 7th Chakra and can be worn as jewelry or placed on the body for energetic benefits. It promotes meditation, psychic protection and awareness. It chases away insomnia and nightmares, promoting a peaceful and relaxing sleep
These are some of the many legends and curiosities that tell the origins of this stone, in addition to the benefits attributed to it, certainly among all the varieties of quartz, it is certainly the most appreciated for its purple color with warm and velvety tones. As previously mentioned, amethyst is a variety of the quartz mineral, with a hexagonal (trigonal) crystalline system and SiO₂ chemical composition. Its color is due to the presence of iron impurities in its crystalline lattice, and ranges from bluish purple to purple to reddish purple. Amethyst has a refractive index of 1.544-1.533 and birefringence of 0.009, it is usually transparent and has a hardness of grade 7 on the Mohs scale, therefore it has good hardness. Its dimensions range from 1 to 20 ct but specimens of over 1000 ct are also found. This gem is cut into all faceted shapes, cabochons, spheres and the less transparent specimens are used to make figurines. The safest way to clean amethyst is to use warm soapy water.