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www.mineralgallery.co.za Minerals F-J |
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Garnet |
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Name
Garnet group
Color
Red to green
The name garnet is given to a group of isomorphous minerals of different composition and color.
Almandine is of a deep velvety red and the most widely used in the jewelry making. In Austria and Czechoslovakia it is faceted and used for highly elaborate jewelry. In India it is cut as beads or cabochons. The best stones are those that are not too dark.
Glossularite is generally olive green, but there are also yellow, red, brown and violet varieties. It is slightly glassy in appearance and only transparent crystals are used for jewelry. Here in South Africa we have access to a vein of glossular garnet of interesting colors.
Pyrope is similar to almandine, but is lighter in color and brighter , even though it is translucent. It is often mistaken for ruby. Transparent specimens are faceted or cut as cabochons. It was very popular during the Victorian period.
Rhodolite is half-way between almandine and pyrope, being of a rhododendron red color, and is the most prized of the garnets. The fire of top-quality rhodolite is indeed magnificent.
- Tsavorite is the scarce green garnet that looks similar to the emerald. It comes from Kenya.
Garnet is also called the "stone of health" because it stimulates the root chakra, which gives you physical vitality. It is also known as the "stone of commitment or devotion" which facilitates self-love and heals issues of abandonment. It activates the kundalini energy and is therefore believed to be a healer of all disruptive energies along the spinal column.
