Connecticut State Mineral
Garnet STATUS Official DESCRIPTION Taken as a whole, the garnet group, comprising several chemically and physically similar members, is one of the more common minerals. Some members, however, are quite rare and are prized by collectors and for use as gems. Garnets are normally deep red to reddish brown, but can also be brown, black, green, yellow, orange, pink, white, or colorless. Several varieties of color-changing garnets also exist.  The main members of the garnet group are pyrope, almandine, spessartine, grossular, andradite, and uvarovite. Hessonite is the variety name for a fine orange, cinnamon brown, or pinkish variety of grossularite, while tsavorite is the trade name for fine dark green grossularite. Melanite is a black titanium-bearing variety of andradite, and demantoid is a rich green variety. Rhodolite is a purplish-red, pyrope-almandite, solid-solution garnet. All species of garnet occur as gemstone quality. The only color garnet does not occur in is blue. STATE SYMBOL Connecticut is one of the finest sources in the world of almandine garnet. Garnets as abrasives are an important industry in the state. Garnet was named the state mineral by the 1977 General Assembly. Samples of Connecticut garnet are on display at the Connecticut State Museum of Natural History in Storrs. Garnet is also the state gemstone of New York.  NAME ORIGIN The word garnet may come from the Latin words granatus orgranum, which mean "grain", and refer to the stone’s formation, wherein crystals resemble grains or seeds embedded in the matrix. The Latin word granatium means "pomegranate." The name of this stone may also come from the Middle English word gernet, meaning "dark red." FORMATION AND OCCURRENCE Garnet forms from a whole family of minerals, including aluminum, calcium, chromium, silicon, oxygen, magnesium, manganese, iron, and vanadium, into several classifications of garnet.  Garnets form under the high temperatures and/or pressures that metamorphic and igneous rocks must endure. Geologists use garnets as a gauge of how much temperature and pressure a rock has experienced. GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION Deposits of industrial garnet are found at two locations in New York. In the Gore Mountain area, industrial garnet is mined as the primary product; and near the town of Willsboro, a byproduct of it is recovered as wollastonite mining. Garnet is found throughout the world, and different varieties occur in different locations. High-quality almandine garnet is found in India; Sri Lanka; Minas Gerais, Brazil; Zillertal, Tyrol, Austria; Telemark, Norway; Broken Hill, New South Wales, Australia; and Wrangell Island, Alaska, United States. Spessartine garnet is found in Iskardu, Pakistan; Sri Lanka; Sanyeshan, Guangdon Province, China; Broken Hill, New South Wales, Australia; and Berilanda, Ceara, Brazil; and in several western U.S. states. Grossular garnet occurs in Sri Lanka, Myanmar, South Africa, Tanzania, Kenya, and Broken Hill, New South Wales, Australia as well as Val D'Ala (Ala Valley), Piedmont, Italy; Telemarken, Norway; Maharitra, Madagascar; Minas Gerais, Brazil; the Jeffery Mine in Asbestos, Richmond County, Quebec, Canada; Sierra de las Cruces, Coahuila, Mexico; and in New England, Pennsylvania, Idaho, Utah, and California. USES Historical Uses Humans have used and worn garnet for thousands of years. It is said that Noah used a garnet lantern to help him light the way while steering the ark. This may have led explorers and travelers to carry the stone to light their way and protect them from disaster. Early Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans used garnet in jewelry. Modern Uses A very small number of garnets are flawless enough to be cut as gemstones. To display the star effect, a garnet must be cut as a cabochon. Star gemstones tend to be opaque rather than transparent due to the presence of the inclusions. The majority of garnet mining is for massive garnet that is crushed and used to make abrasives. Harder garnets are also used to make garnet paper, a type of sandpaper. In 1994, United States production of industrial garnet was valued at about $14 million, while gem garnet production was valued at only about $233,000. According to the U.S. Geological Survey, U.S. production of gem-grade garnet will continue to increase and additional deposits will be brought into use in the coming years. Legend/Healing Garnet’s powers are believed to include healing, strength, and protection. It has been said that garnet gifts demonstrate affection for friends and lovers, strengthen bonds and heal broken ones, and help to insure that the pair will meet again. The stone is also believed to regulate the heart and blood flow, relieve inflammation, maintain sleep, and aid in curing depression. A story in Greek mythology involving Hades and Persephone has led to garnet’s association with gifts that strengthen ties. After Hades abducts Persephone and takes her to the underworld, Zeus sends Hermes to rescue her. As Persephone is leaving, Hades gives her a pomegranate, knowing that once she has experienced the sweetness of the seeds, she will return to him. In fact, Persephone returns to Hades for three months of every year, causing winter on earth. The gift of the pomegranate seeds has been associated with the gift of fine garnet gems. BIRTHSTONE Garnet is the traditional and modern birthstone for those born in January. It is also the stone for the Zodiac sign Aquarius, and may be given as a gem on the second and sixth wedding anniversary.	Garnet Mineral Sample Garnet Up Close Cut and Polished Garnet Stone Delicate Garnet Setting GARNET FACTS Group: Nesosilicates Chemical Formula: (Ca2+, Mg2+, Fe2+)3(Al3+, Fe3+, Cr3+)2(SiO4)3 Crystal Structure: Cubic Hardness (Mohs): 6.0-7.5 Color: Virtually all colors except blue Transparency: Transparent Luster: Pyrope, almandine, spessartine, and grossular have a vitreous luster. Andradite (including demantoid) and uvarovite have an adamantine luster. Density: 3.60-3.80 Streak: White Cleavage: Imperfect Fracture: Conchoidal to uneven
	Some data courtesy of the Mineralogical Society of America Author: World Trade Press