On Monday, Queen Elizabeth II celebrated her 65th year on the British throne. Buckingham Palace commemorated the sapphire anniversary by re-releasing a portrait of the 90-year-old Queen bedecked in a suite of glittering sapphire jewelry her father, King George VI, gave her as a wedding day gift nearly 70 years ago. Snapped by British photographer David Bailey in 2014, the …

The Fire of Australia, known as the world’s most valuable piece of rough opal, has taken up permanent residence in the South Australian Museum’s Opal Collection. Valued at $686,000 (AU$900,000), the opal was purchased for AU$500,000 through the generosity of a private donor and AU$455,000 in funding from the Australian government’s National Cultural Heritage Account. The uncut, 4,990-carat opal is now …

Welcome to Music Friday when we bring you uplifting songs with jewelry, gemstones or precious metals in the title or lyrics. Today, Grammy Award winner Trisha Yearwood tells the story of couple ready to take their relationship to the next level in her 1998 country hit, “Powerful Thing.” Although they started out as “strangers on a two way street” and …

German archaeologists have discovered a hoard of elaborately crafted gold jewelry among other precious items in the 2,600-year-old tomb of a high-ranking Bronze Age woman known as “The Lady.” About 30 years old at the time of her death, the Celtic woman died in 583 B.C. and was buried in a wooden chamber filled with golden brooches, gold strip earrings, bronze …

Standing majestically at nearly 11 feet tall and weighing the same as a Cadillac Escalade, The Empress of Uruguay is billed as the world’s largest amethyst geode. The exposed interior radiates with tens of thousands of deep purple, gem-quality amethyst crystals and is the top attraction at the Crystal Caves Museum in Atherton, Australia. Amethyst is the official birthstone for February …

If the New England Patriots defeat the Atlanta Falcons to win their fifth Super Bowl this Sunday at NRG Stadium in Houston, the resulting championship rings are likely to be the biggest and blingiest ever. The National Football League seems to maintain an unwritten rule that allows teams with multiple Super Bowl victories to design the most extravagant rings. The …

A New York City man, who helplessly watched as his beloved gold wedding band fell off his finger and rolled in “slow-motion” through a sidewalk grate, got it back one week later with the help of a NYC utility company. There are 39,000 sidewalk grates citywide and each one can strike fear into the heart of an average pedestrian. Unlike Marilyn …

Welcome to Music Friday when we bring you hit songs with jewelry, gemstones or precious metals in the title or lyrics. Today, Canadian songstress Amanda Marshall throws caution to the wind while wearing a very special locket in her 1995 chart-topper, “Dark Horse.” In the song she co-wrote with Dean McTaggart and David Tyson, Marshall tells the story of a …

A viral Kiss Cam video allegedly showing a fan proposing to his girlfriend during Saturday’s Atlanta Hawks basketball game — but then dropping the ring — has been exposed as a hoax by the team’s beat writer. In the 95-second video posted by the team, a bunch of handsome couples are gladly taking part in the Kiss Cam ritual — …

A custom Fender Stratocaster guitar inlaid with 1,000 diamonds was one of the biggest draws at last weekend’s National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) trade show in Anaheim, Calif. Conceived by senior master builder Yuriy Shishkov, the Art Deco-inspired design celebrates the 30th anniversary of the Fender Custom Shop. The guitar includes 423 diamonds on the front, 462 on the …