Known by the ancient Egyptians as the gem of the sun, peridot has enjoyed a mystical reputation with its alleged powers including: warding off anxiety, enhancement of speech articulation, and success in relationships and marriage. Common in early Greek and Roman jewelry, peridot has been popular since 1500 BC when the Egyptians started mining it on Zeberget, later known as St. John’s Island, about 50 miles off the Egyptian coast in the Red Sea. It was a dangerous business back then as the island was infested with poisonous serpents, which a later Pharaoh had driven into the sea. Peridot mining was traditionally done at night when the stone’s natural glow is easier to see, the ancient Egyptians even believed that peridots became invisible under the sun’s rays. Hawaiian natives believe peridot is the goddess Pele's tears, while biblical references to the stone include the high priest's breastplate – studded with a stone for each of the twelve tribes of Israel, one being peridot. Cleopatra reportedly had a fine collection of “emerald” jewelry, which was really peridot but it was the Ottoman Sultans who gathered the largest collection during their 600-year reign from 1300-1918, with an impressive array of both loose gem stones as well as peridot earrings, peridot rings and other peridot jewelry.