Mandarin Garnet

MANDARIN GARNET

Up until a few years ago, Mandarin Garnets were are relatively unknown gemstone - the reason being that they are exceedingly rare, and there wasn't a reliable source of them. About 15 years ago, in the hills of Namibia, they discovered this material from the Spessartine family of garnets. Most spessartites have either a deep reddish or brown color, but these garnets found in Namibia had a beautiful deep fiery orange color. These stones are treasured by collectors for their rarity. Much of the material from Namibia tends to be included, especially the larger specimens over 5 cts. Supply of this material has been dwindling, and it is getting more difficult to find fine gem quality Mandarin Garnets.

Hardness: 7-7.5
Clarity: Type II - typically containing some eye visible inclusions
Origin: Namibia, Nigeria, Madagascar