When did birthstone jewelry first become popular?
The custom of wearing birthstones probably first became popular in Poland in the fifteenth or sixteenth century. For more information about the history of birthstones, try The Curious Lore of Precious Stones by George Frederick Kunz, a fascinating compendium of all the powers that have been associated with gemstones through the ages. For example, everyone originally may have worn the birthstone for each month, since the powers of the gemstone were heightened during its month. If that is true, to get the full effect, you need to go out and get a full set of twelve and rotate them each month. There have been many different sets of birthstones used throughout history and in different cultures, but in 1912 the American national association of jewelers, Jewelers of America, officially adopted the list of birhstones that we use today.
