Garnets come in a wide range of colors.
The garnet is a popular gemstone most known for its popular dark red coloring. However, a garnet comes in almost every spectrum of the rainbow and has other uses besides adorned in jewelry. Garnets are a hard and durable stone that have industrial uses as well. The garnet dates all the way back to the 13th century.
Name Origin
Garnet comes from the latin word granatium which means a pomegranate. The small, red crystals of the garnet resembled pomegranate seeds. Albertus Magnus, a German theologian and philosopher first proposed the name garnet to mineralogists in the 13th century. Today, garnet can be referred to as almandine, andradite, demantoid, grossularite, hessonite, pyrope, rhodolite, tsasvorite and several others.
Chemical Composition
A garnet is a composition of several but similar minerals and silicates. Different varieties of garnet include iron, aluminum, magnesium or chromium ions and some even have a calcium element. The garnet ranges from six to 7.6 on the Mohs Scale of Hardness. Due to their durability, they are often used as abrasives.
Sources
The garnet was originally found in the United States. Idaho, New York and Montana are the only states today that produce garnet for industrial use. Internationally, several countries including Australia, China and India including several other countries in Africa export large amounts of garnet.
Color
Garnet is most popularly known as a red gemstone. However, garnet exists in many colors including green, yellow and orange. Blue is the only color a garnet does not come in.
Associations & Care
Garnet is the birthstone for the month of January. It is also the gemstone for the second and sixth wedding anniversary. The gem can be cut into any shape including round, oval or cushion cuts, and can be easily cared for with mild soap and a toothbrush to scrub.
Tags: 13th century, However garnet
