The gorgeous and varied garnet is a lucky birthstone for those who were born in January. Although red is the most prevalent color of garnets, they also come in a stunning array of other hues, such as orange, yellow, purple, and vivid green. Even garnets have been known to shift from blue to purple depending on the illumination. The ability of the garnet birthstone to bestow the bearer with good health, riches, and happiness is seen by some to be its genuine value.
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What color is the birthstone for January?
Garnets are frequently thought of as red gems. Garnets actually come in a variety of hues. They originate from all across the world, and since the Bronze Age, people have used them as jewelry. Nowadays, most garnets are not stones of gem quality. Instead, they are largely employed as abrasives in industry. To create beautiful jewels, only rocks with the ideal size, color, and clarity are cut.
The Latin word granatus, which means seed, gave rise to the name garnet. Small garnet crystals resemble the crimson seeds of the pomegranate, suggesting that the phrase may be a reference to the fruit.
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Characteristics of the January birthstone, garnet
A set of silicate minerals with slightly varied chemical makes up garnets. Garnet crystals may include different concentrations of calcium, magnesium, iron, manganese, aluminum, and chromium depending on the environment in which they developed. Due to these variations, garnets are found in a variety of hues, opacities, and hardnesses that range from 6.0 to 7.5 on the Mohs scale.
The majority of garnets are created during metamorphosis, which is the structural alteration of sedimentary rocks like shale under extreme heat and pressure. These circumstances exist where tectonic plates converge. Under these circumstances, minerals recrystallize into structures that are more tolerant of the high pressure and temperature present. Some turn into garnets. Garnets can also be found, though to a lower level, in igneous rocks like granite.
Garnets are hard, so even when weather erodes the metamorphic and igneous rocks they crystallized in, they largely maintain their shape. They end up as sediment, which eventually turns into soil, sand, or sedimentary rock. These formations provide garnets to miners since it is simpler to remove the crystals. Australia provides almost half of the world’s supply. India, China, and the United States are further significant sources.
Garnets come in many colors
Because specific components are present, garnets can have various colors. Almandine crystals are dark red, brownish-red, and black because it contains iron and aluminum. Magnesium and aluminum are the causes of the pyrope garnets’ red color. Manganese and aluminum give spessartine its orange hue. Calcium and aluminum are present in grossular, which results in primarily green crystals as well as red, yellow, and cinnamon-brown ones. Due to calcium and iron, andradite garnets are red, yellow, brown, and green in color. Bright green gems are produced by the unusual calcium chromium garnet type known as uvarovite.
The opacity of garnets ranges from absolutely opaque to translucent. Some garnets have inclusions, which are microscopic fragments of other rocks that reflect light to give the stone a star-like pattern. Additionally, inclusions can make the gemstone appear to change color in certain lighting situations.
Garnets in history
Garnets have been used by humans since the Bronze Age. Jewelry made of red garnet and dating to 3100 BCE was found by archaeologists in the graves of Egyptian pharaohs.
The jewels were esteemed by both ancient Greeks and Romans. They wore garnet jewelry, such as signet rings with cut garnets for sealing documents with wax.
An extensive collection of Anglo-Saxon gold and silver metalwork was uncovered in Staffordshire, England, in 2009 by a man using a metal detector. The objects, which go by the name Staffordshire hoard, are from the sixth and seventh centuries. 3,500 pieces of jewelry set with garnets are among them.
The discovery of garnet reserves in Bohemia (in the modern-day Czech Republic) at the beginning of the 16th century ignited a thriving garnet jewelry industry in Europe. Through the Victorian era, the gemstone was still in demand, but by the turn of the 20th century, demand had decreased.
Mythology behind the January birthstone
Garnets and other red gemstones like rubies and spinels are heavily entwined throughout early history and mythology. These crimson gems, known as carbuncles, were difficult for early jewelers to differentiate from one another.
Numerous urban legends are connected to garnets. Garnets were thought by ancient warriors to bring victory. They served as the Crusaders’ traveling defense against injuries and mishaps. Ancient Asian warriors, however, thought that burning garnet bullets caused more serious wounds. The Hanza tribesmen used garnet bullets instead of lead ones to attack British forces in 1892 during fighting along the Kashmir border because they thought they were more potent.
Like many costly stones, garnets were once thought to have therapeutic properties. People once believed that garnets could cure depression and protected the wearer from wounds, poisons, and unpleasant nightmares. They treated fever with red garnets and jaundice with yellow garnets.
Learn about the birthstones for other months of the year:
The garnet is the birthstone for January. Garnets come in a variety of colors, however red is the most common. These include yellow, green, orange, brown, and black.
The birthstone for January is it rare?
The particular variety of garnet you are interested in will determine how rare it is. Some, like the Demantoid or Tsavorite discussed below, can be significantly rarer and therefore more valuable. The popular deep red garnets, however, are significantly more prevalent.
You’re in luck if you’re seeking for an exotic alternative to the January birthstone! Garnet comes in a wide variety and can be found all over. The history of this birthstone for January is extensive and fascinating.
Pyrope Garnets
The January birthstone is typically a lighter shade of red, occasionally with a hint of brown. Pyrope Garnets are stunning garnets that are. They frequently have few inclusions and are exceedingly clean.
Tsavorite Garnet
In reality, the tsavorite garnets are green gems. This garnet birthstone’s striking emerald green hue is sure to impress. This is one among the most expensive versions of the January birthstone because of its popularity.
Some of the rarest gemstones are garnets called tsavorite. You’ll pay a little more for jewelry with this magnificent stone as the January birthstone. If you desire distinctive garnet birthstone jewelry, it can be worth the extra money because it is beautiful and unusual.
Demantoid garnet
For instance, the Demantoid garnet, which costs about $1,000 per carat, is one of the rarest and most expensive varieties of garnet. A traditional garnet will often cost between a few hundred dollars and several thousand dollars, depending on its quality and size. The Ural Mountains are where these stunning jewels were discovered.
Is amethyst the birthstone for January?
What stones represent each month’s birth? Garnet, amethyst, aquamarine, diamond, emerald, alexandrite, ruby, peridot, sapphire, tourmaline, topaz, and blue topaz are the gemstones associated with the months of January through December. Find out more about these well-known gemstones.
Why is garnet the birthstone for January?
Although garnet, a gemstone that comes in a wide spectrum of hues, is most frequently associated with the color crimson, pink, green, orange, and purple variations are also becoming more and more popular. The birthstone for January was believed to ward against poisons, wounds, and evil nightmares as well as treat depression throughout the Middle Ages.
What color is the month of March?
The birthstone for March, aquamarine, has a deep color and has long been associated with youth, health, and hope. Its captivating hues, which range from light to deep blue, are reminiscent of the ocean. The aquamarine, a birthstone for March, adds a lovely touch to spring and summer outfits.
What gemstone is associated with January 7th?
Garnet. The Middle English word gernet, which means “dark red,” was used to describe garnet in the 14th century. The name, which derives from the Latin word granatum, which meaning “seed,” was given to the gemstone because it resembles the red pomegranate seeds.
What color is garnet?
There are actually numerous types and colors in the garnet family, despite the fact that it is best famous for its red hue. The more popular garnet gemstones and their colors are listed below:
- The most popular garnet, almandite, is a red with a violet tinge.
- garnet that is rhodolitepurplish crimson or rose in color
- Pyrope, a fiery, deep-red stone that frequently has a brown tinge, is derived from the Greek
- Brownish-red or cinnamon-colored hessonite
- Orange to red-brown in color, spessartite is also known as mandarin garnet for its purer forms.
- Malaiaorange, reddish-orange, or pinkish-orange
- bluish-green to tsavorite green
- The word, demantoidgreen to bluish-green, refers to a luster resembling a diamond.
- Lotus garnet is a more recent variant that was just identified in late 2015 and has a distinctive pinkish orange to orangey pink tint. It is a combination of pyrope, spessartine, and almandine garnet and is frequently discovered alongside spinel or rhodolite garnet.
Garnets all have identical crystal structures, but depending on where they are found, different traces of calcium, magnesium, iron, and aluminum give them different colors. They can be found in the US, Canada, South Africa, Australia, Madagascar, Canada, and Europe. The majority of mined garnets are crushed and utilized in garnet paper and other abrasives; just a small portion are of gemstone quality. Garnet is typically not treated to enhance its color or clarity.
Any garnet with vivid, clear hues and little inclusions will fetch a greater price. Tsavorite and demantoid garnets, with their green tones, are the rarest and most expensive varieties. Both rare and precious minerals include rhodolite, which has reddish undertones, and spessartite, which has vivid orange-red undertones.