Spessartine is a rare garnet. Spessartite or spessartine is manganese aluminum garnet, Mn3Al2(SiO4)3. Madagascar Spessartine Garnet is a recently discovered variety with a beautiful raspberry body color and spectacular salmon pink fire. Spessartine is a smooth orange-red or orange-colored stone, also called “mandarin garnet.” Mandarin garnets were recently discovered in East Africa and are a variety of spessartine garnets. They were found in the German Spessart Mountains, hence their name Spessartine.

Rhodolite garnet is a combination of almandine and pyrope, and is sometimes referred to as pyrope-almandine garnet. Rhodolite is a purple-red variety of garnet that has been used since ancient times. Rhodolite garnet, like all garnets, is a fairly hardy gem. Rhodolite Garnet features a vibrant cranberry color, and its name is derived from the rhododendron flower that shares a similar hue. The color varies from pink to purple red and is mined in Africa, India and Sri Lanka. Rhodolite garnet is used as an affordable substitute for ruby. Pyrope garnet is also called anthill garnet in Arizona because ants bring the gem to the surface while building their homes. The term “American ruby” is actually a pyrope garnet (and not a ruby ​​at all).

Hessonite (also called “cinnamon stone”) is a cinnamon-brown to orange variety of grosular gemstone garnet. Hessonite Garnet is a special garnet used in Vedic gemology to enhance creativity and imagination. Hessonite oranges and browns come from Namibia and Sri Lanka.

Commonly called tsavorite garnet, this green grossular is very rare. Tsavorite is among the most coveted members of the garnet family. We love tsavorite garnet because it offers the color and hue of an emerald, yet is rarer and much more vibrant. The Tsavorite Garnet name comes from the Tsavo National Park in Kenya, which is the only region where Tsavorite Garnet is mined. Tsavorite can be considered a “new” gemstone as it was unknown prior to its discovery in Kenya in the 1960s. Tsavorite has a beautiful deep green color, is bright and lively with a high refractive index, and has the durability and the great clarity of a garnet. Although Tsavorite Garnet is rare, a lack of demand keeps prices well below those of the more abundant emerald.

Grossularia is a pale green, pink, brown, or black garnet, Ca3Al2(SiO4)3, occurring alone or as a component of common garnet. Tsavorite is a green grossular garnet variety discovered in 1967. The name Grossularia comes from the Latin Grossulara (the name of the gooseberry fruit), which is the same color as the greenish variety of garnet. Some grossular garnets can have round and elliptical inclusions. Massive white grossular with jade has been found in Myanmar and has been carved by the Chinese. A variety of Grossular Garnets, Hessonite comes in two colors, gold and cinnamon (this variety is commonly known as Cinnamon Stone.

Demantoid belongs to the large garnet family of gemstones, and is actually a variety of the mineral andradite garnet. One of the rarest and most sought after colored gemstones has always been demantoid garnet. The name Demantoid means like a diamond, because it has a very high adamantine brilliance and color dispersion superior to that of diamond. As seen with demantoid garnet, inclusions can sometimes be a benefit to garnets rather than a disadvantage. Demantoid garnet was used extensively by the tsars of Russia. Originally discovered in Russia, demantoid garnet was the favorite of Russia’s leading court jeweller, Carl Faberge’. Demantoid garnets are softer than other garnets and should be protected. Demantoid has been called the “emerald of the Urals” for its occurrence there, and it is one of the most prized garnet varieties. The “horsetail” inclusions in demantoid garnet make it more valuable because they prove it comes from Russia. It can be more expensive than ruby ​​and sapphire.

Andradite garnet can be greenish-yellow, green, greenish-brown, orange-yellow, brown, gray-black, or black. Andradite is a calcium and iron garnet, Ca3Fe2(SiO4)3, it has a variable composition and can be red, yellow, brown, green or black. Andradite garnet is usually black and has no interest in the gem trade, but a variety called “Demantoid” is a vivid green. A new green andradite garnet has been coming out of Namibia, but some experts say they lack much of Demantoid’s character and brilliance. Andradite can be found in calcareous metamorphic rocks, especially marbles and skarns.

Uvarovite, an emerald-green variety from Russia and Finland, is rarely suitable for gems. Uvarovite garnet is found only in small sizes. Uvarovite is a calcium chromium garnet with the formula Ca3Cr2(SiO4)3. Uvarovite garnet has been synthesized (mineralized with borax to facilitate diffusion of precursors) by various sols-gel methods. Uvarovite is quite brittle, making it difficult to cut for jewelry. or 24 trapezoidal faces or combinations of these and some other shapes. Uvarovite garnet is found in Russia and is a group of bright green crystals, sometimes also called a druse. Uvarovite develops in a metamorphic environment in serpentines with chromite and in metamorphosed limestone.

Mandarin garnet is a bright orange garnet. Mandarin Garnet is the trade name for the bright orange spessartine from Namibia. Recently, there was a new discovery of Mandarin Garnet in Nigeria with an amazing neon orange color. Mandarin garnets are the intensely brilliant orange-red varieties of the rare orange spessartite garnet, also known as spessartine.

The Merelani Mint is a green grossular garnet. Merelani Mint Garnet is rapidly emerging as a collector’s stone and is becoming quite prominent due to its beauty and rarity. Merelani Mint is the name given to a bright mint green variety of garnet that has recently been discovered in the Merelani Hills of Tanzania.