Emerald

Birthstone for May

Emerald is a green variety of beryl, colored by trace amounts of chromium and sometimes vanadium. Cleopatra was famously obsessed with them. The Incas and Aztecs regarded them as holy. Colombian emeralds remain the global standard for color — a deep, slightly bluish green that jewelers call 'jardin' for the garden of natural inclusions that virtually every emerald contains. Unlike diamonds, emeralds are expected to have internal flaws; a flawless emerald is either extraordinarily rare or synthetic. Their relative softness makes them tricky to cut and easy to damage, which is why the emerald cut — a rectangular step cut that protects the corners — was invented specifically for this stone.