An intricate family affair, these gems don’t fall under a single species but rather a combination of varieties – what makes them all essentially named Garnets are a shared crystal structure. The most common, almandines, come in a wide array of shades; and the rare, andradites, have the highest dispersion of all, with even more fire than diamonds!
A specially fine variety is known as Tsavorite. This rare chrome green gem is found in the border area between Tanzania and Kenya in East Africa. Its high refractive index and dispersion levels translate into wonderful brilliance! Their alluring pure green hues, durability, purity and rarity explain why they are regarded as one of the finest of coloured gems! Above in the cover image features a neon mint tsavorite, prized for their lively and glowing colour.
Besides those, the eye-catching orange gems known as Mandarin Garnets are highly desired for their brilliance and hardness. As featured below, the super bright-orangey variety are called Fanta orange as in the soft drink!
The name “garnet” stems from an ancient word signifying “pomegranates”, as they are often found in the delightful shade of jewel-like pomegranate seeds, so it’s only fitting that their nomenclature derives from the Latin word ‘garanatus,’ meaning seed-like!
Garnets come in an impressive range of colours: rhodolite garnets are intense pink with purple undertones, while the striking Malaia (below image) drifts from pink to reddish hues. Mali garnets range from lemon yellow to mint green, and the very rare demantoid garnets shine bright green!
Garnet hardness ranges from 6.5 to 7.5 on the Mohs scale, depending on the type. For example, almandine, spessartine and tsavorite rank higher than demantoid. All in all, they are considered to have fair to good toughness, and as long as properly cared for, they are durable enough for daily wear.
Whichever colour you love, a garnet is definitely a great choice to create a special and personalised piece of jewellery that will sparkle and shine for generations.
