Its name, 'almandine' originates from 'alabandicus', the name of a stone found in the small town of Alabanda, located in Caria, the second smallest province of Asia Minor. Almandine is a popular gemstone for gemstone jewelry due to its excellent hardness (7.5 on the Mohs scale) and brilliance resulting from its high refractive index. The reason for such color difference is that garnet is rarely ever pure, resulting in mixed garnets, typically traces of pyrope or spessartite. Almandine occurs in a range of reds, including brownish-red, orangey-red and purplish-red. The word 'garnet' is derived from the Latin word 'granatus', which means grain, because many garnet deposits appear as small grains of red crystals in their host rock.

Most material is used as abrasives or sandblasting in the industrial sector, since it lacks the transparency and clarity that jewelers demand. Although there are large amounts of almandine sourced from all over the world, only a small percentage are of gem quality. Even so, the price-per-carat for almandine has remained steady and very modest, similar to that of pyrope, another closely related popular red garnet variety. Almandine is one of the most common garnet varieties, but unfortunately, gem-quality stones have been very rarely surfacing in the international gem markets over the last decade. In Hindu and Buddhist traditions, Garnets were associated with red lotus flowers and believed to increase wealth and fertility.About Almandine Garnet - History and IntroductionĪlmandine garnet, also known as almandite, belongs to the vast group of garnet gemstones. By contrast, Christians saw Garnet as a symbol of Christ’s suffering on the cross and the Holy Qur’an describes the light of fourth level of Heaven as glowing like a Garnet. Centuries later, warriors from India would use Garnets as a projectile in guns, believing that a wound inflicted by the red stone would cause a more grievous injury than a mere bullet. Red Garnet’s blood-like color made it the obvious choice to represent Mars, the god of war. In Roman times, it was thought to bring out passion, even anger. Garnet’s energy has always been considered particularly powerful. Vala’s body was scattered across the earth and his various body parts were transformed into gems. Indra, the leader of the demigods, split Vala apart, killing him and freeing the cows. According to legend, long ago the demon, Vala, took the form of a stone cave where stolen cows were hidden. Interestingly, when found in matrix, Garnets often cluster much like pomegranate seeds do.Īncient Vedic texts record the origin story of many gemstones including Garnet. These words in turn have an even older origin, coming from the Phonecian punica granatum, meaning “pomegranate seeds.” The reference refers to more than just the glowing red color and common shape of Almandine and Pyrope Garnets.

The name Garnet comes from the Latin words granum or granitus, meaning grain or seeds. For most of history, Red Garnets, Rubies, and other glowing red stones such as Spinal and Tourmaline were thought to belong to the same mineral family, called “Carbuncle” – a name which means “little spark.” It wasn’t until the 19th century that these stones were correctly divided into separate mineral families. Originally, the term “Garnet” was only used for the reddish varieties, Almandine and Pyrope, and did not include orange and green Garnets. It is included in virtually every known lapidary, texts which describe gemstones and their powers. Garnet has one of the oldest and most detailed historical traditions of any healing stone.

Amadine garnet