Almandine Garnets (Belsky Coll.)

Item Description

The Howard Minerals label says spessartine garnet, but "the garnet from here is almandine and not spessartine, although almost all garnets from this location have been incorrectly labeled spessartine by collectors. Repeated chemical analyses have shown the Fe to Mn ratio is consistently about 2.5 Fe to 1 Mn" (MINDAT). Two sharp almandine trapezohedrons are snugly set in the drusy quartz lined vug in the mauve banded rhyolite matrix on this sculptural and excellent small cabinet. The crystals, to 9 mm, are lustrous, dark wine-red and have beautiful flashes of cherry-red color. Classic and excellent material.