The birthstones for October are tourmaline and opal. Tourmaline comes in various colors like black, brown, violet, green, and pink. It is a semi-precious gemstone that is mined in countries like Brazil, Tanzania, and the United States. Opal is known as the "Queen of Gems" and comes in colors like white, yellow, red, orange, green, brown, black, blue, and colorless. It is mostly mined in Australia, though also found in other countries. Both stones were thought in folklore to have various powers and were used in traditions.

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The birthstones for the month of October are
Tourmaline and Opal.
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Tourmaline came from a Sinhalese word
‘thuramali’ or ‘thoramali’, which describes
different gems found in Sri Lanka.
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Opal has a number of possible origins
including the Roman word ‘opalus’ and the
Sanskrit word ‘upala.’ It may have also
come from the Greek word ‘opallios’ which
means ‘seeing’ and ‘opaque.’
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3. Colours of Tourmaline
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The resulting combinations of numerous
elements mean that it occurs in a number of
colours.
Black is common
Brown
Violet
Green
Pink
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About Tourmaline
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Tourmaline is a semi-precious gemstone
that is a crystal boron silicate mineral that
is compounded with numerous other
elements.
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Tourmaline measures 7 to 7.5 on the Mohs
scale of hardness.
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5. Tourmaline is mined in:
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Brazil
Tanzania
Nigeria
Kenya
Madagascar
Mozambique
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Namibia
Afghanistan
Pakistan
Malawi
United States
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Folklore Points to the Tourmaline
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Surrounding this gem claims that it was
believed to have traveled along a
rainbow and as a result collected many
colours.
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The Chinese used tourmaline for
carvings for many centuries and in
ancient India it was used in ceremonies
and as a tool for bringing insight.
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7. Properties attached to Tourmaline
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The ability to discovery goodness and reveal
sources of evil.
It was believed to grant enlightenment and
power over spiritual events, bring peace and
turn base metals to gold.
It was also believed to strengthen body and
spirit, enhance the nervous system, blood
and the lymphatic system.
As it was supposed to assist with creativity,
tourmaline was a favourite used by artists
and writers as a talisman.
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8. About Opal
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The opal, also known as the ‘Queen of the
Gems,’ is one of the softest stones with a 5.5
to 6 measurement on the Mohs hardness
scale.
Opals were said to improve self-image and
luck.
A light opal, also known as white opal, is
about 60% of the total production of the
gem.
Opal brought about invisibility if it was held
in the hand, wrapped in a fresh bay leaf.
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9. Colours of Opal
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Opal is a form of silica which contains between six
and ten percent water and can be:
White
Yellow
Red
Orange
Green
Brown
Black
Blue
Colourless
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10. Opal is mined in:
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Australia (The majority of the world’s opal, in
fact about 97%.)
United States
Czech Republic
Slovakia
Hungary
Turkey
Indonesia
Brazil
Ethiopia
Nicaragua
Guatemala
Honduras
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11. Legends of Opal
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Russians believed right up to the 20th century
that if an opal was found in a collection of goods
for sale that it possessed the evil eye which
meant no goods should be purchased.
Arabs thought lightning flashes brought the
stones to earth and Greeks viewed it as a sacred
love stone.
One legend states the movement of the stars in
the sky was controlled by a giant opal, and was
also responsible for human love and was said to
have control over the amount of gold that exists
underground.
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12. In Middle Ages
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Able to bring good luck.
It also brought about invisibility if it was
held in the hand, wrapped in a fresh bay
leaf.
In Ancient Egypt and Babylon
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The opal was believed to be a healing stone.
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