The earliest forms of
jewelry were items that early humans found naturally, such as shells or bits of
bones. Early gravesites have also revealed that pre-historic man buried his
dead with flowers and with carved ivory beads. These primitive beads would have
taken at least an hour each to make.
Early man also might have
found bits of turquoise that occurred naturally in areas of Turkey and North
America. The pearlescent swirls found inside an abalone or conch would have
also been used as jewelry.
They might have also found
the earliest types of precious gems in the form of natural crystals, such as
quartz or diamonds. Crystals are solid substances where the molecules are arranged
in a symmetrical fashion, and they generally fall into one of six shapes
:
:
Isometric, or cubic
crystals are shaped like blocks and are symmetrically shaped. An example of an
isometric crystal would be pyrite. This is also called fool’s gold because it
has a metallic yellow or brassy color similar to gold.
Tetragonal, where the
crystals are shaped like four-sided prisms and pyramids. An example of a
tetragonal crystal is the zircon.
Hexagonal crystals are
shaped like six-sided prisms, or pyramids. An example of this kind of crystal
is the beryl, which includes gems like emeralds and aquamarines.
Orthorhombic crystals. An
example of an orthorhombic crystal is topaz. Topaz can come in a variety of
colors, although the mostly highly prized is a deep amber color. At one time,
topaz was much more valuable, until rich veins of it were found in Brazil,
which devalued the market.
Monoclinic crystals are
short and stubby, with tilted faces at each end. Monoclinic crystals include
gypsum.
Triclinic crystals are
usually flat with sharp edges but no right angles. Each crystal has three
unequal axes. An example of triclinic crystal is feldspar.
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