Amethyst of synthetic quartz is used. Treated amethyst is produced by gamma ray, X-ray or electron beam irradiation of clear quartz (rock crystal) which has been first doped with ferric impurities. On exposure to heat, the irradiation effects can be partially cancelled and amethyst generally becomes yellow or even green, and much of the citrine, cairngorm, or yellow quartz of jewelry is said to be merely "burnt amethyst". The Greek word "amethystos" may be translated as "not drunken", from Greek "a-", "not" + "methustos", "intoxicated". Amethyst was considered to be a strong antidote against drunkenness, which is why wine goblets were
HMS Amethyst (1799) the Île de France some nine weeks earlier and was sailing for Bordeaux with a cargo of cotton, coffee, tea, sugar, indigo, and the like. Still in company with "Nymphe", "Amethyst" captured "Julius Pringle" and recaptured "Active" (4 March) and "Amity" (21 March). Then on 31 March, "Amethyst", with "Nymphe", captured the French privateer "Mars". "Mars" was armed with twenty 12-pounder guns and two 36-pounder obusiers, and carried a crew of 180 men. Cooke described her as being "one of the finest Privateers fitted out of Bourdeaux." The British took "Mars" into service as . "Amethyst" also captured a valuable