Beyond a love of artful design and exquisite handwork, Grand Ice founder Ava Solomon Polan possesses a passion for the character and mystery of gemstones themselves. “They are not new,” she says of the earth’s ancient and glittering rocks that seem to come “fresh” from the mines. “Through color, composition and tactile feel, stones express their own spiritual characteristics that last for the ages—whereas we just possess them for awhile.”
Indeed, our collective fascination with gemstones dates back thousands of years. In ancient times, colored gems were associated with magical powers and used for everything from good luck charms to therapeutic aids to predictors of the future. Legends named emeralds as good for vision; sapphires as a mark of wisdom; and yellow stones as a cure for jaundice. The Bible asks, “Who can find a virtuous woman? For her price is far above rubies.” And according to Hindu legend, the first ruby was created when a jealous courtier stabbed a revered maharani whose blood splashed onto a diamond.
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The Romans viewed rings with colored gems as prized symbols of power—they were certainly powerful enough to outlast the Roman Empire! After the fall of Rome, as much of the population migrated to Northern Europe between the fourth and eighth centuries AD, gemstones with rich hues were used to create some of the most colorful and intricate jewelry ever made. Later, even William Shakespeare compared rubies to kisses in one of his works.
Perhaps Elizabeth Taylor sums it up best, “I’ve never thought of my jewelry as trophies . . . for we are only temporary custodians of beauty.”
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