This unusual necklace combines black onyx, a gem prized since early antiquity, with jade of soothing cool green. The result is at once dramatic and sophisticated, a jewel suitable for both day and evening wear. Shiny onyx has been popular in both the old and new worlds for centuries. In Exodus, the gem is mentioned as fitting prominently into the breastplate of the high priest. Its lustrous polished surface makes it especially sought after for modern jewelry. As an amulet, the chief virtue of onyx is that it attracts and absorbs negative humors from the body of the wearer, causing relief from both physical pain and mental anxiety. Black onyx serves as a buffer from pain and a defensive wall against evil and illness. The name jade is applied to two distinct minerals: nephrite and jadeite, both extremely hard and usually green in color. In its purest form, jade is white, but it can range in hue from bright emerald green to spinach green, to the translucent yellow of early spring leaves to blue, black or mottled. Jade was prized in the pre-Columbian world, where it was used for ceremonial objects, but enjoys its greatest popularity in the orient. For millennia, the Chinese have had a passion for fine jade, and collectors will go to great lengths to acquire rare examples. Jade is valued as a good luck charm and is thought to relieve a number of physical ailments relating to the heart and kidneys. Its popularity continues to grow today in both east and west.