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Is color shift garnet rare?
Overview
| Known as | Color change garnet, Blue garnet, Alexandrite garnet |
|---|---|
| Discovery | 1990 |
| Color | Color changing from green or lavender to red or blue |
| Occurrence | East Africa, Madagascar, Sri Lanka |
| Chemistry | [Mg3 + Mn3]AL2(SIO4) + Vanadium |
Where are garnets found in the world?
Garnets are found all over the world. There are many types of garnets and each type is found in different locations. Pyrope can be found in South Africa, Sri Lanka, China, and Madagascar, while Almandite originates from India, Brazil, and the USA.
Where is the most common place to find garnet?
Where is Garnet Found?
- Brazil – Brazil is home to a vast array of garnet varieties.
- Namibia – Namibia produces stunning spessartine garnets with strong orange hues.
- Kenya – Kenya is home to the famous Scorpion mine that is world-renowned for its tsavorite garnets.
Where are blue garnets found?
Madagascar
Pyrope–spessartine (blue garnet or color-change garnet) Blue pyrope–spessartine garnets were discovered in the late 1990s in Bekily, Madagascar. This type has also been found in parts of the United States, Russia, Kenya, Tanzania, and Turkey.
Where are garnets formed?
How Does Garnet Form? Most garnet forms at convergent plate boundaries where shale is being acted upon by regional metamorphism. The heat and pressure of metamorphism breaks chemical bonds and causes minerals to recrystallize into structures that are stable under the new temperature-pressure environment.
Where are garnets found in the US?
Garnet mines and occurrences are located in 21 States, but the only presently active (2006) mines are in northern Idaho (garnet placers; one mine), southeastern Montana (garnet placers; one mine), and eastern New York (unweathered bedrock; two mines).
How do garnets change color?
The color change is due to a freak of nature in this variety of garnet. It is a pyrope-spessartine species, that changes hue based upon the source of light. Depending on its position and what kind of light it is exposed to the gemstone’s color will change from red to green.
What is color-change Garnet?
Color-change garnet is usually a mixture of pyrope and spessartite garnets that displays different colors under daylight and incandescent light. This phenomenon is rare and valued by collectors. There is a range of color change, but green or bluish green to red or purple tends to be the most dramatic.
What is the value of a green garnet?
There is a range of color change, but green or bluish green to red or purple tends to be the most dramatic. These rare garnets have been found in Kenya and Madagascar and prices range from about $500 to $1,000 per carat, depending on size, color and clarity.
Do garnets turn blue in artificial light?
This is still true in natural light, but there are recent discoveries of color-change garnets that turn blue in artificial light. The color change can be intense and equal to the color change of top quality alexandrite. In fact color change garnets can easily be mistaken for alexandrite.
Where does Garnet come from?
As a group, garnet gemstones are a relatively common occurrence that form in highly metamorphosed rocks and igneous formations under extremely high pressure and temperatures. Today, the leading supplier of color change garnet is East Africa, particularly the Umba Valley in Tanzania.