Jody Victor : If your birthday is in March (Happy Birthday!), your birthstone is aquamarine. The name aquamarine was derived by the Romans, "aqua" meaning water and "mare" meaning sea, because it looked like sea water. They were considered sacred to Neptune, god of the sea. This association with Neptune promised safe voyages as well as protection against perils and monsters of the sea. Its first documented use was by the Greeks between 480-300 BC. They wore aquamarine amulets engraved with the god Poseidon on a chariot.
Beginning in the Roman period, the aquamarine was believed to possess medicinal and healing powers, curing ailments of the stomach, liver, jaws and throat. During the Middle Ages, it was believed to be an effective antidote against poison. Aquamarines were thought to be the source of power for soothsayers, who called it the "magic mirror," and used it for telling fortunes and answering questions about the future. It is said that Emporer Nero used it as an eyeglass 2,000 years ago, and much later, aquamarines were used as glasses in Germany to correct shortsightedness. In fact, the German name for eyeglasses today is "brille," derived from the mineral beryl.
Aquamarines vary in color from deep blue to blue-green of different intensities, caused by traces of iron. Naturally occurring deep blue stones are the most prized because they are rare and expensive. However, yellow beryl stones can be heated to change them to blue aquamarines.