I Am a God, a Red Glowering Presence in the Sky … Just Not All That Precious

MY NAME COMES from the original Greek word for blood due to my often reddish color. The Greeks associated me with Ares, the god of war, and when the Romans adopted this god they gave it a new name — Mars. Little did they know that it was me, in my reddish powdered form that gave that planet its rusty looking color. When it comes to jewelry, it is usually in a charcoal gray that I am used — I can give the appearance of titanium, black pearls or even black diamonds. However, it must be said I am neither rare nor expensive. The first humans who get to Mars are unlikely to bring pocketfuls of me back to Earth.