A Look at Green Garnets

When you think garnet, the image that pops into your head is usually that of a red stone that looks somehow different from a ruby. However, red is not the only color garnets come in; there is huge diversity here, which includes one variety that is green in appearance. Following are some things to know before buying a green garnet and diamond ring.

Among the six subdivisions of garnet, green garnet falls into two, namely grossular and andradite. Under the former, you have two green garnets – yellow-green and chrome green. “Grossular” comes from “grossularia”, which is the botanical name for gooseberry. Grossularite has a golden green yellow-green or olive green color, whereas tsavorite is the rarest of grossular garnet, and has a color ranging from emerald green to rich green. The beautiful green color is attributed to the presence of chromium or vanadium.

The rarest among green garnets is green demantoid garnet, which has been known to cost as high as thousands of dollars for a carat, the way some high-end diamonds do. Demantoid falls in the andradite variety, which is actually calcium iron silicate that has a refractive index higher than that of ruby and sapphire. This last bit imparts demantoid the highest amount of brilliance among all garnet types.