It is a variety of orange garnet. Its name evokes Mandarin. "Mandarin garnet" is a trade name, not a scientific one. This name is reserved exclusively for a variety of deep orange garnets from northwestern Namibia.
At first, this new variety had been named "Hollandine" in homage to Holland whose color is orange.
Its intense orange colour is due to a high manganese content.
This garnet is rich in tremolite inclusions that give it a silky look.
Its composition and 85% of Spessartite, 12.5% of Pyrope and 2.5% of Grossulaire. Most of the stones are included with tremolite (variety of amphibole) which gives them a silky appearance.
Pure stones of more than 1ct are very rare. 90% of these garnets are less than 1ct.
The mine is closed.
The name "Mandarin garnet" is a registered trademark and is often misused for spessartite garnets from Nigeria.
