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PRIMARY: AQUAMARINE

Aquamarine, the primary March birthstone is a semi-precious to precious gemstone that measures 7.5 to 8.0 on the Moh's hardness scale. At one time it was believed that aquamarine used to be a charm against poisons and a good luck stone for new brides.

This light blue-green gemstone is closely related to emerald, as both belong to the beryl family. However, one of the reasons aquamarine is less valuable than emerald is that, due to peculiarities of its mineral structure, aquamarine is much less likely to have inclusions than its green cousin, so it is easier to find large, clear, high-quality stones. Nevertheless, flawless aquamarines are getting harder to find, so the highest-quality birthstones are considered precious rather than semi-precious.

Alternate: Bloodstone - "The stone of courage"

Bloodstone is an ornamental gemstone with a hardness level between 6.5 and 7.0. Bloodstone, also known as heliotrope, is a variety of jasper that is opaque dark green in color with red speckles. Some birthstone lists will include any form of jasper as an alternate March birthstone.