Guilding the Stone - May Trivia Quiz

Answer: Johnny Cash

This was probably one of the most hackneyed questions to appear on the Irish pub-quiz circuit. Countless new quizmasters thought it a clever trick question, only for it to be met with groans from experienced quizzers who had heard it a dozen times.
The story was that Johnny Cash was inspired to write the song on a tour of Ireland in the 1960s. While flying between gigs, he looked down to see a patchwork of fields all of varying shades of green.

Answer: Egypt

The name emerald comes from the Sanskrit word "marakata," meaning "the green of growing things."
Records exist of emeralds being mined near Babylon in 4000BC. Egypt had a virtual monopoly of production in 'the old world' until at least the 16th century.

Answer: Thin Lizzy

"Down from the glen came the marching men
With their shields and their swords
To fight the fight they believed to be right
Overthrow the overlords"
'Emerald' appeared on the 1983 live "Life" album. It was written by band members Brian Downey, Phil Lynott, and Scott Gorham, with Brian Robertson, who also played on the album.

Answer: False

Carat for carat, a good emerald can be worth two or three times as much as a diamond. [Source: www.jewelsforme.com/Emerald-History.asp]

Answer: Aristotle

Aristotle wrote that owning an emerald "increases the owner's importance in presence and speech during business, gives victory in trials, helps settle litigation, and comforts and soothes eyesight". He added: "An emerald hung from the neck or worn in a ring will prevent the falling sickness (epilepsy). We, therefore, commend noblemen that it be hanged about the necks of their children that they fall not into this complaint." [www.jewelsforme.com/Emerald-History.asp]

Answer: Marlene Dietrich

Dietrich had a collection and wore two emerald bracelets and and a clip brooch in many movies. Grace Kelly, Elizabeth Taylor and Sharon Stone were all stars who were given emeralds by husbands or suitors.

Answer: Paris

Ed Harris, Max von Sydow, Horst Buchholz and Helmut Berger starred in the 1985 movie about a WW2 American agent who had to ensure that a captured US officer did not disclose details of the forthcoming Normandy invasion.

Answer: 5.2cm (c2 inches)

The 'Mogul Emerald' dated from 1695 and weighed 217.80 carats. One side was inscribed with prayer texts, and engraved on the other were floral ornaments.

Answer: Venus

In ancient Rome, Venus was the goddess of beauty and love. Note: I know that Diana and Vesta are mythological goddesses

Answer: Queensland, Australia

The town was named after 'Emerald Downs Hill', a verdant green hill located nearby. It was intended to be the base for the western railway. In more modern times, the town was marketed as the gateway to the Sapphire Gemfields, one of the largest sapphire producing areas in the southern hemisphere.

The area was also a centre for coal mining and agriculture and was famous for its production of sunflowers.

Answer: 55 years

And if you were Canadian you would have received a message of good wishes from the Governor General.

Answer: Yellow Brick Road

The Emerald City was the capital of the Land of Oz and lay at the end of the yellow brick road in the books by L. Frank Baum. It was first described in 'The Wonderful Wizard of Oz' (1900).

Answer: Grey's Anatomy

'The Emerald City Bar' was also known as Joe's Bar in the hit medical drama that first aired on ABC on 2005. It was the story of a group of diverse medics working at a Seattle hospital.
"Emerald City" was just one of the nicknames that Seattle, Washington, was known by. It was selected as a result of a public competition in the 1980s.

Answer: Central America

The Emerald Toucanet was a brightly coloured member of the Toucan family and was indigenous to an area stretching from Mexico through Central America to Venezuela. They bred in humid forests and open woodlands.

Answer: Brazil

Weighing in at 185,000 carats (36kgs), the Bahia Emerald was found at the Carnaiba emerald mine in July 2001. In September 2008 it was reportedly stolen from a vault in Los Angeles County, California. At that time it had been valued at $370 million. It was subsequently recovered in Las Vegas, Nevada. The discovery prompted a legal dispute over ownership. [Sources include CNN.com, December 27, 2008]