The editor of jewelry magazine Tatler makes the case for this month’s eye-catching stone, peridot.

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Peridot has been closely associated with light for over two thousand years. The ancient Egyptians worshiped them, believing they fell from the sky, calling them “solar gems”. Egyptian priests crushed them and mixed them with hot drinks, believing that drinking chrysolite would bring them closer to the light of the world.
Habsburg Grand Duchess Isabella’s tiara with peridot and diamonds from the 1820s is the only royal piece with peridot in the center. The Georgian Habsburg Peridot Parure includes earrings, a necklace with seven pendants, a large brooch and a strapless tiara with five apricot-sized peridots. In 2001, this royal chrysolite jewelry set was sold by Sotheby’s London to Fred Leighton, a New York antique jewelry specialist. The popularity of peridot increased significantly during the Victorian and Edwardian eras, when gorgeous colored gemstone jewelry was the height of fashion. They also received the royal seal of King Edward VII, declaring peridot their favorite gemstone.