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4JG61 - Tsavorite Garnet - $ 800 SOLD Lindi, Tsavo Plains, Tanzania thumbnail, .9 x .7 x .4 cm
Tsavorite is technically a rare form of Grossular Garnet and is not only rare as heck but desirable because of its unique beauty. This pair of intergrown crystals is absolutely stunning. The deep green, almost electric color, fabulous clarity, and superb luster make this specimen a true killer. This is a fantastic , if admittedly small thumbnail. However, the color intensity adds somewhat to the visual impact and the unusual sharpness and gemminess of the crystal transcend the size limitation. It MUST also have a sizable gem value if cut up...
4JG64 - Grossular (v. Hessonite) Garnet - $ 600 SOLD Jeffrey Mine, Asbestos, Quebec, Canada (now closed!) miniature, 4.2 x 3.2 x 1.3 cm
The Grossular (Hessonite) Garnets from the Jeffrey Mine are world-famous, and some of the most sought-after specimens for the species. These dark honey-colored crystals have superb luster, excellent striations that are classic for these garnets, and sharp crystal definition. More importantly, they have that rare internal brightness combined with external glassy lustre that places this piece in the top percentiles for quality. This is a killer miniature all the way. It is even better in person!
D05-46 - Grossular Garnet - $ 125 SOLD Coahuila, Mexico thumbnail, 2.7 x 2.7 x 1.5 cm ex. Sam Nasser
A large, sharp, unusually big crystal with fat and juicy color. It is isolated and 3-dimensional, and just gorgeous. Most are much smaller. It DOES have, admittedly, a little bit of damage in the form of minor edge wear. It is hard to notice and not detracting.
D06-163 - Grossular Garnet - $ 9500 SOLD Jeffrey Mine, Asbestos, Quebec, Canada small cabinet, 7.3 x 4.8 x 2.4 cm
A stunning, rich, specimen of classic garnet from this now defunct mine, just vibrant with deep color and glassy lustre. This piece is one of the best I have seen for sale in recent years. Note the complex additional stepped faces on many crystals, which result in extra reflection of light and more "sparkle" to the piece overall. In person, the crystals are also much more gemmy and internally vibrant.
D06-191 - Tsavorite - $ 1750 SOLD Merelani Hills, Arusha, Tanzania thumbnail, 2.1 x 1.6 x 1.5 cm
This is a luscious apple-green, lustrous, translucent, crystal of grossular var. tsavorite, a rare and beautiful member of the garnet family. The crystal size and quality is exceptional for a specimen tsavorite - usually they are smaller and rougher! This 44.84 carat thumbnail is an example of the beauty and color that has made it rival emeralds in jewelry. Some dings to the back, but the display face is pristine and incredibly sharp! It was originally priced at $100 per carat as gem rough, yikes! Luckily I got a "specimen pricing" on this lot. NOTE THIS IS BETTER IN PERSON! IT IS HARD TO CONVEY THE QUALITY IN PICS - IT GLOWS IN PERSON!
D06-195 - Tsavorite with Graphite and Apatite - $ 1250 SOLD Merelani Hills, Arusha, Tanzania thumbnail, 2.5 x 1.9 x 1.7 cm
This thumbnail of tsavorite garnet not only is gemmy and a lovely emerald green color, but it is also on real matrix of silvery black graphite and a minor blue apatite - a most unusual association! The largest tsavorite crystal is doubly terminated and measures 1.1 cm in length. Overall, it weighs 39.84 carats. This is an excellent tsavo thumbnail specimen! MORE BRILLIANTLY LUSTROUS IN PERSON!
D06-198 - Tsavorite with Graphite - $ 950 SOLD Merelani Hills, Arusha, Tanzania thumbnail, 2.3 x 1.7 x 1.6 cm
This is a superb, stunningly attractive cluster of GEMMY, emerald green, grossular var. tsavorite on lustrous, black graphite with minor pyrite. The largest tsavorite measures 1.0 cm in length and the cluster weighs 31.37 carats. This is a competition quality thumbnail.MORE BRILLIANTLY LUSTROUS IN PERSON!
DEN11-388 - Hessonite Garnet - $ 8500 Mana Mine, Barang, Federally Administered Tribal Areas, Pakistan small cabinet, 8.8 x 5.5 x 5.1 cm
To my mind, this small locality has produced a trickle of what have to be rated among the finest examples of Hessonite garnet in the world. Most people do not even know the mine name for sure - I have seen smaller pieces trickling to the market under a variety of lcoality placements. And,most specimens are partial crystals or clunky matrix pieces with small crystals. This aesthetic, impressive display piece is 3-dimensional and has fat crystals , symmetric as you can wish for, wrapping around. The central crystal is 3.5 cm and is fully terminated on the back of the piece, as well. IN fact, the whole backside is complete and showy, just with a few very minor bits of edge wear showing while the front is pristine. It is more transparent in person I believe, because the photos were not overdone or taken with close lighting which makes the crystals appear more gemmy when more strongly backlit. This is a major specimen, suitable for any collection and, I think, a real treasure from a place where this kind of money does not buy the best aquamarines or tourmaline but can land you something like this that just leaps out of the crowd, to my eye. Joe Budd photos
DTN22 - Grossular Garnet var. Hessonite - $ 750 SOLD Jeffrey Quarry, Asbestos, Quebec, Canada thumbnail, 2 x 1.4 x 1 cm ex. Irv Brown
Green cored garnets are most unusual, especially in crystals of this size! This cluster of grossular garnet, from the world's famous garnet and vesuvianite locality in Canada, is characterized by green cores surrounded by transparent, colorless, areas; all of which make up a fine 3-dimensional column of solid garnet specimen. It is complete all around, 360. The large crystal measures .75 cm across. In addition, there is a growth of secondary, gemmy, pink crystals of grossular.
gem7-35 - Grossular Garnet - $ 2850 SOLD Jeffrey Mine, Asbestos, Quebec, Canada miniature, 5.5 x 4.0 x 2.7 cm
This specimen from the now-closed Jeffrey Asbestos quarry features a nearly 1-inch, 2-cm garnet smack in the middle of smaller crystals. The large crystal is REALLY gemmy and bright, and is among the largest crystals for this location in terms of breadth - rarely do you get them this size (did, rather). It is extremely symmetric as well. Because of its thickness, an the backing of smaller crystals, a deep color comes through whereas otherwise many large crystals from here are more pale in appearance. The crystal is pristine save for one small ding on the south-facing edge , which is there but not readily visible unless you go look for it. Still, if it were not there, this would be a 5k-plus specimen. With the small ding, its reduced a lot in price but still quite definitely looks like a killer and glows on a shelf; and I think its the best piece in this size AND price combinaiton I have had to offer (especially with the mine now closed!).
gem7-61 - Hessonite Garnet - $ 4000 SOLD Ex. Giuseppe Agozzino, Eric Asselborn Collections small cabinet, 8.4 x 4.7 x 3.8 cm
This is a superb specimen with great aesthetics, featuring a large display face of brilliantly lustrous, almost metallic, wine-red garnet crystals from this classic locale. No damage to the display face, and the jewel-like look of the piece, and the size, all combine to make it very significant. You rarely see such for sale. This was one of the very few Alpine pieces we obtained when Wayne Thompson and I bought most of the significant parts of Eric's worldwide collection last spring. Well-known collector Giuseppe Agozzino found this "miracle" pocket in July of 1977 and sold it to collector Christian Lallement, after which it passed to Eric's collection where it remained for some 20 years.
GEMS-037 - Hessonite Garnet - $ 1100 Tanzania thumbnail, 13.00 mm ; 10.68 carats
Hessonite Garnets are some of the most vivid and beautiful gems in the Garnet family. These stones are beloved for their great color and large size stones. Garnets are generally very difficult to find in stones over 4 or 5 carats because the material simply does not often form large, gemmy sections that produce big stones. This gem is really impressive with a rich red color (with a slight orange overtone) and an attractive Flower Round Brilliant cut, but the greatest aspect of this stone is the sheer size! It is very difficult to find a gem of this quality with this color over 10 carats. They are truly few and far between in this size range. The stone is virtually eye clean and the color amazingly very rich. A great opportunity for a Garnet to collector to add a significant gem to their collection.
Gro - TN 1081 - Grossular - $ 495 SOLD Lake Jaco, Sierra de la Cruz, Mun. de Sierra Mojada, Coahuila, Mexico thumbnail, 2.5 x 1.8 x 1.7 cm
J11-79 - Tsavorite Garnet on graphite - $ 1200 SOLD Merelani Hills, Lelatema Mts, Arusha Region, Tanzania thumbnail, 1.8 x 1.5 x 1.5 cm
Intense, deep, rich color marks this garnet as a top grade tsavorite, and not just a "minty green" garnet from this important locality for tanzanite that also has recently spit out incredible garnets and diopsides as well. The crystal is complete, embedded in its back in graphite matrix, and has saturated color throughout. It is hyperbole perhaps, but the lustre on this crystal is nothing short of "freaky" and I do not use the word lightly. Killer thumbnail! Joe Budd photos
J12-428 - Grossular Garnet - $ 950 Sierra de los Cruces, Lake Jaco Locality, Coahuila, Mexico small cabinet, 5.7 x 3.5 x 3.4 cm ex. David Stoudt
A 3-cm-across, sharp, dramatic, textbook crystal of wine-red garnet sits here on a well trimmed matrix. This is an old and rare style, for the locality, quite different from the generally matte finish crystals you usually see from here in a variety of browns and orange colors (and, from one large find of the past, in pink). The crystal is well excavated without any repairs, and is nearly pristine (just the tiniest little dings are present, in context on such a sharp, exposed crystal). The piece is a significant Mexican garnet specimen and has the aesthetics you would want in garnet from other lcoalities, but seldom see in the lumpy matrix characteristic of this particular location. ex. Dave Stoudt Mexico Collection, and previously in the Evan Jones Mexico Collection (both being very notable for the suites assembled). Joe Budd photos.
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