Amethysts sparkle with light — they are partly translucent and vary in color from a pale pinkish-purple to a deep violet. Amethysts were used to make ornaments and jewelry in ancient Egypt and are the birthstone for the month of February. The word amethyst comes from a Greek root, amethystos, which literally means "not intoxicating," from a-, "not," methyskein, "make drunk," based on the ancient belief that the stone could prevent drunkenness.