Birthstones - January

Garnet

Garnet is the modern January birthstone and the gem designated for the 2nd wedding anniversary.
Dark reds, tangerine orange, vivid lime green, soft bluish-pink... garnet is all these colors and more. Garnet displays the greatest variety of color of any mineral, occurring in every color except blue. Most of the names for garnets relate to a particular color. Garnets are fairly hard and durable gemstones that are ideal for jewelry use, except for demantoid, which is softer and requires more protection. A few garnets exhibit a color-change phenomenon - they are one color when viewed in natural light and another color when viewed in incandescent light.

Colors and Varieties of Garnet:

Almandine Garnet
Description: Deep, dark, rich red to purplish red to orange red (the more valuable almandines are less orange and brown in color).
Sources: Brazil, India, Madagascar, Sri Lanka, U.S. in Arizona, Idaho, New Mexico, Utah, Arkansas and Kentucky.

Demantoid Garnet
Description: Medium green to slightly yellowish green. Rare and valuable, sought after by gem collectors. Legendary demantoid garnet combines a bright green with dazzling brilliance that won over the Tsars of Russia, who used it lavishly. In the past, demantoid garnet was only available in small sizes and was extremely rare, but a new deposit was found in 1998 in Namibia, southern Africa.
Sources: Italy, Korea, Russia, Zaire, Namibia.

Rhodolite Garnet
Description: Another mixed variety, with shades of pink through reddish lavender.
Sources: Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Zimbabwe.

Spessartite Garnet
Description: Medium orange to reddish orange.
Sources: Brazil, Namibia, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, US. Spessartite is one of the most common forms of garnet found in Europe. The main spessartite deposits are located in a garnet mining district in Bavaria, Germany. Growing in popularity is a newly discovered garnet from Namibia, which is a bright orange spessartite, called mandarin garnet because its color is a true orange.

Tsavorite Garnet
Description: Medium, intense green to slightly yellowish green. Rare and valuable.
Sources: Tsavorite is found in Kenya around the Tsavo National Park area. It is also said to be found in East Africa in Tanzania from which it was imported into the United States by Tiffany and Company.

Care & Cleaning of Garnets
The beautiful color of your garnet will last indefinitely, if the gem is properly cared for. As with all gems, protect garnet from scratches and sharp blows and extreme temperature changes. Garnet can be cleaned with most commercial jewelry cleaners or mild soap and water using a soft brush. Be sure to rinse and dry your jewelry thoroughly after cleaning. We suggest that you bring your jewelry to Gillespie Jewelers at least three times each year for a complimentary inspection and cleaning.