Rhodolite garnet is the birthstone of the month January. The name rhodolite is derived from the Greek word rhodon which means rose stone. The color resembles the tone of the flower rhododendron. The different shades or purple, pink and also lavender makes this a wonderful jewellery select. It is mostly available in alluvial soil and the origins are Srilanka, Zimbabwe, and lately in 1987 the origin was Tanzania where rhodolites of raspberry color are found. It is one stone which is tough and durable and the maintenance is easy when compared to all other garnets and gemstones. The clarity scale ranges from transparent to translucent and is mostly clean. The prices are moderate and many jewellery lovers like this ardent beauty at accomodable prices.
Rhodolites are a combination of Pyrope and almandine garnet varieties. The Almandine is Iron rich and appears in red tones and the Pyrope is iron and chromium rich deep red like Ruby. The rhodolite garnets are not known to be enhanced. The hardness is 7 to 7.5. The specific Gravity is 3.84 and the refractive Index is 1.760. Rhodolite was believed to improve eye sight and a piece of rhodolite was placed on the eye and also cleared heart diseases. Rhodolite beads where used in meditation which strengthens the chakras.
gempiece.com has a wide range of loose garnets and also deals with custom jewelry for more than two decades. Please feel free to email us if you have any orders and we most warmly welcome you. We serve certificates from Gubelin, GIA- Gemological Institute of America, AIGS- Asian Institute of Gemological Sciences, Tokyo gem lab, GIT, GRS etc. Garnet has a wide variety and the basic chemical components are calcium and almandine is an iron alumina garnet. It is known for its deep red tones with slight purple hues too. They are widely available in Srilanka.
Pyrope is iron and chromium rich variety with deep red hue like Ruby. In greek it means fire or eye.
Mozambique garnet is a combination of Pyrope and almandine. It is originated from east Africa in Mozambique, hence the name. The colors are similar to rhodolite but tones are deeper.
Malaya/Malaia was discovered in Tanzania, near Umba Valley. It has Vivid Hue with color ranges like red-orange, pink-orange, and Brownish red hues.
Grossular is a Calcium- aluminium rich mineral. It is available is yellows and yellowish -green colors.
Mali garnet is a combination of Andradite Grossular. It is also called as Grandite.
Mali garnet was discovered in the Sandaré Mine in Mali’s Kayes region. The range of colors are yellow, greenish yellow,yellowish brown, and brown.
Hydro Grossular garnet is bluish green, green in color. It is a calcium aluminium garnet with hydroxide (OH) replacing silica SiO4.
Leuco- Colorless variety of Grossular.
Uvarovite- chromium rich- vivid rich green.
Proteus- grey, metallic colors.
Garnets are a symbol of love, bravery and safety.
