Where is garnet mostly found

Every species of garnet, and there are many, posses similar crystal formations and physical properties, but differ in chemical composition. These mineral variations form a set of closely related gemstones, called a mineral group. The gemstone species of garnet include pyrope, almandine, spessartine, grossular, uvarovite and andradite. Most gem quality varieties of this mineral are a mixture of two or three of these mineral species. For example, rhodolite garnet, is a mixture of pyrope and almandine.

The most popular varieties of garnet include the reddish and purple hues of the gemstone. These shades have a very long history, appearing in pieces found in both ancient Egypt and Rome. The popularity of red garnet may stem from its amble availability. It forms in metamorphic rocks that are found on every continent.

Today there is a wide array of garnet hues available to choose from including reds, pinks, oranges, yellow, greens, browns, and even blues. New species and deposits of garnet have been found all over the world.

Listed below are the locations where garnet naturally occurs and is mined to be transformed into beautifully faceted gemstones.

Why are garnets so popular, and what are the different types of garnets I can find in the market? You might be wondering. Read this article till the end if you want to know everything there is to know about the beloved and beautiful garnet family. The minerals known as Garnets can be traced back to B.

However, the garnets and their trading became more common and popular in the Bronze Age, where they were used both as gemstones for beautification and spiritual reasons and abrasives for their sharpness and hardness. Garnets have a lot of fascinating uses and incredible facts associated with them. This is because of the incredibly close physical resemblance of garnets to the luscious red seeds.

Pyrope-spessartine is a blue-colored garnet that was discovered in the late s. It is the rarest colored garnet in history. It can change color from blue-green to purple depending upon the color temperature of the viewing light. Due to the variety of different colors it can possess, it is the rarest of all garnets. Almandine is the most commonly used garnet. However, the less common red-colored almandine garnet is sometimes used for jewelry and in gemstone form.

Garnets of different kinds have been used as healing stones and spiritual gemstones for a major history part. Especially red almandines were considered to have protective powers to ward off demons in the Egyptian culture from to B. They have been used as abrasives for polishing weapons and finishing materials for quite a long time.

Nowadays, garnets are used for abrasive applications in the water-jet cutting process and sand cutting processes. Garnets have many different types. Pyrope is a member of the garnet family that provides bright red coloration in its natural samples. The name Pyrope is derived from two Greek words meaning Fire and Eye. The color ranges from Dark red to Blood red and sometimes pink, and upon heating, some Pyropes turn green in color.

The form of Pyrope garnet is usually trapezoidal or hexagonal. Pyropes are not extremely rare. Pyropes usually occur in unison with other garnets. Primarily Pyropes are used as gemstones and jewelry. The spiritual use of Pyropes is also common. These gemstones are warm and soothing in nature, often gifted to loved ones because the red color symbolizes love and beauty.

So, you should surely get one for your significant other. One of the most common types of garnet species is the almandine garnet. It is an iron alumina garnet that has a dark reddish color. The color may even reach a hint of purple in some cases. It is one of the hardest garnets known to man. The structural integrity of an almandine garnet is mostly Hexoctahedral. It is also considered the state gemstone of Connecticut. Almandine garnets are not very valuable in gemstone form or jewelry form because of their commonness.

These garnets are mostly found in metamorphic rocks. You might find almandine garnets in granite as well. Rare almandine gemstones are considered spiritually healing.

They are also associated with an increase in endurance, sexual performance, and libido. In the industrial sector, it is the most commonly used garnet for abrasive applications.

So, there are a lot of incredible uses of almandine. Andradite is one of the rarer species of garnets known in the world. It was first found in Norway in the 19th century. Mainly it is yellow or green in color, but there are grayish-black variations also in existence. It can range from granular to massive in the size of crystals.

Andradites are much rare and higher in value in comparison to Pyrope and Almandine. Demantoids are the rarest. Specific name of a garnet group mineral depends on the dominant cation. Almandine is the most widespread mineral of the group. Uvarovite is commonly described as a common garnet group mineral although it is rare in nature and occurs only in specific chromium-rich rocks. Possible replacements in the lattice are not restricted to those mentioned above, but these are the most important ones.

Almandine is a common mineral in metamorphic rocks that formed when buried in crust under the load of at least 10 km of rocks and sediments 1. This rock sample is a schist metamorphosed clay-rich sediments that contains many common Al-bearing porphyroblasts like almandine red, equant , staurolite dark, elongated , and kyanite light blue, elongated in a light-colored groundmass of muscovite mica.

Width of sample is 7 cm. Garnet group minerals crystallize in the cubic system — they all show roughly equant dimensions no elongation. Garnet in rocks may demonstrate beautifully developed crystal faces.

They are outstandingly dense minerals for a silicate mineral with such a composition. Their specific gravities range from 3. This is a result of close packing of the crystal structure which allows garnets to be common minerals deep in the crust and mantle. It is also physically hard, some garnets are even harder than quartz. This property and a lack of cleavage makes it a potentially good abrasive material and garnet is indeed frequently used for that purpose.

Rocks that host garnets are relatively good guides that help to identify the specific garnet species. Red equant grains in mica schists belong to iron-rich variety almandine. Pyrope is a Mg-rich variety that occurs in originally deep-seated rocks like peridotite , kimberlite, eclogite, or serpentinite. Spessartine, the manganese-rich variety of the pyralspite group, is common in magmatic rocks, especially pegmatite. Ugrandites are typical in metamorphosed calcareous rocks like skarns.

This is simplified approach, of course. For example: almandine also occurs in igneous rocks, not only metamorphic rocks. And spessartine also occurs in skarns. The color of garnet is primarily controlled by its composition. Pyralspites are either red, orange, purple, or even almost black. Grossular and andradite are yellowish brown to black or green.

Uvarovite is bright green. Garnet crystals are beautiful because they are intensely colored and often have nicely developed crystal faces. Garnet is a well-known mineral not only because it is so widespread, but mostly because of its deep red color and beautiful crystal faces which make it a semi-precious gemstone.

Industrially garnet is mostly used as an abrasive because of its hardness and irregular fracture. It is also used in water purification filters. Garnet is a common mineral in some igneous rocks.

Pegmatites may contain beautiful almandine or spessartine crystals. This pegmatite is composed of spessartine, sodic plagioclase, and muscovite crystals.

Width of sample 10 cm. Purple Mg-rich pyrope is a common ingredient of ultramafic rocks from the mantle. Width of view is about 20 cm.

Width of view is 15 mm. Andradite demantoid crystals. Andradite is not usually green, but demantoid is a green variety of andradite that owes its color to chromium that is partly in place of iron in the crystal lattice. Width of view is 30 mm. Melanite Ti-bearing black andradite in an alkaline igneous rock. Note well-developed crystal faces.

Kaiserstuhl, Germany. Width of the large crystal is 4 mm. Beach sand from Sri Lanka that contains lots of heavy minerals like almandine pink and spinel dark red.

Width of view 20 mm. Garnet concentrated from a beach sand in Australia. Garnet is used as an abrasive material. Garnet-rich fraction of heavy minerals sorted out by running water near the coastline at Pfeiffer Beach, California.