Malaya Garnet (Umbalite)

Item Description

Malaya Garnet (otherwise known as Umbalite Garnet) is a variety of Garnet that ranges in color from pinkish to orange to nearly red. The word Malaya is a Swahili name given to Garnet gems that are a mixture of different species i.e., Grossular, Spessartine, Almandine, Pyrope and Andradite creating a stone that carries certain elements from various species. The word "Malaya" literally means "out of the family" or "bastard", and was used to describe these Garnets because they had no distinct "genetic" makeup. When these stones were first found in the 1960's they were thought to be Spessartine. After extensive testing they were found to be not Spessartine, not Grossular nor Pyrope but somewhere in between. This gem, like many from this area is a combination of two or more species (my guess would be Spessartine and Grossular). The color in this gem is reminiscent of certain Spessartine garnets that I've seen from Nigeria but with more of a rich peachy overtone. The stone is virtually eye clean and has a very attractive "Oval" cut. A very lively gem from one of the most active gem producing countries in the world. This material is becoming hard to find on the market, as the dried up river beds that produce these gems have been harvested again and again, each time producing less and less material.