Precious stone

A brooch with an embedded ruby

A precious stone is a gemstone whose translucent and hard quality led to it being classified as the most valuable and luxurious of jewels by the ancient Greeks. The four gems which belong to this category are the diamond, the ruby, the sapphire, and the emerald irrespective of their modern value. They are distinguished from semi-precious stones which comprise all other gems.

Precious stones, alongside iron, semi-precious stones, and alkahest all mixed in the same ratio, are an ingredient for brewing panacea.

History

Pure, unpolished precious stones are acquired from mining, and in the 15th century, the Assassin stronghold of Monteriggioni had deposits of precious stones which they extracted for their economy.

Because of their beauty and rarity, precious stones were historically used to craft the most lavish of jewelry and gifts. Accordingly, they were universally the accessories of the nobility and are still a symbol of wealth in modern times. Notwithstanding this, they have served as convenient instruments of bribery, and the Assassins of the Italian Brotherhood during the Renaissance exploited the greed of Templar accomplices in this manner to acquire intelligence.

For a more mundane use, expensive jewelry decorated with precious stones have made obvious gifts for gentlemen looking to court young ladies. It was primarily through such gifts that the Assassin Perotto Calderon entered into an affair with Lucrezia Borgia, daughter of Templar Grand Master Rodrigo Borgia, in 1498. Likewise as a young lady, the Assassin Aveline de Grandpré enjoyed gifts of jeweled brooches by men she flirted with throughout New Orleans.

In 1527, the Assassin Giovanni Borgia discovered via the Book of Abraham that precious stones were a vital component to panacea.

Trivia

Precious stones

• In Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy, Precious Stones were a crafting material used for "constructing lavish jewelry" to create an Expensive Gift or for "filling a gift box with gems" to create a Rare Gift. Both were commonly used in memories involving bribery or courtship. Precious Stones were also an ingredient for brewing panacea, and they were primarily obtained from the memory "Resourceful – Digging In" in Italian Wars: Chapter 3 – Mario Auditore.

Appearances

• Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy
• Assassin's Creed III: Liberation