Rhodolite is a varietal name for rose-pink to red mineral pyrope, a species in the

garnet Garnets () are a group of silicate minerals that have been used since the Bronze Age as gemstones and abrasives. Garnet minerals, while sharing similar physical and crystallographic properties, exhibit a wide range of chemical compositions, de ...

group. It was first described from Cowee Valley, Macon County,

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

. The name is derived from the Greek "rhodon" for "rose-like", in common with other pink mineral types (such as

rhodochrosite Rhodochrosite is a manganese carbonate mineral with chemical composition Manganese(II) carbonate, MnCO3. In its pure form (rare), it is typically a rose-red colour, but it can also be shades of pink to pale brown. It Streak (mineralogy), streak ...

, rhodonite). This coloration, and the commonly inclusion-free nature of garnet from this locality, has led to rhodolite being used as a

gemstone A gemstone (also called a fine gem, jewel, precious stone, semiprecious stone, or simply gem) is a piece of mineral crystal which, when cut or polished, is used to make jewellery, jewelry or other adornments. Certain Rock (geology), rocks (such ...

. Rhodolite like other varietal names is not officially recognized as a mineralogical term, but rather used as an accepted trade name.

Gemmological properties

Mineralogically and chemically, rhodolite garnets are members of the pyrope– almandine solid-solution series, with an approximate bulk garnet composition of Py₇₀Al₃₀. Rhodolites from different occurrences around the world have been characterized by crystal chemical and absorption spectral analysis showing that besides iron such elements as manganese, chromium and vanadium may effect the colour of rhodolites. Rhodolite garnets appear as transparent red-pink-purplish gemstones, including all the different colour shades between violet and red. The colors from different rhodolite sources may vary from a lavender pink to raspberry rose or raspberry red and from purplish-violet (grape) to purplish red. The color of rhodolites, combined with their brilliance, durability, and the accessibility of stones with no visible inclusions have brought about some demand for the stone in the jewelry industry. Rhodolites used in jewelry are generally faceted to make good use of their brilliance, though they also exist in cabochon form. Some rhodolites will change color from purplish to a hessonite brown when heated to a temperature of . This process cannot be reversed.

Natural sources

Many deposits of economic importance are found in countries that belong to the geological unit of the so called “Mozambique belt”, such as

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Malawi Malawi, officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northeast, and Mozambique to the east, south, and southwest. Malawi spans over and ...

Mozambique Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique, is a country located in Southeast Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west, and Eswatini and South Afr ...

Tanzania Tanzania, officially the United Republic of Tanzania, is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It is bordered by Uganda to the northwest; Kenya to the northeast; the Indian Ocean to the east; Mozambique and Malawi to t ...

, etc. Other sources of rhodolites are in

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India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

(

Odisha Odisha (), formerly Orissa (List of renamed places in India, the official name until 2011), is a States and union territories of India, state located in East India, Eastern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by ar ...

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and

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.Rhodolite on mindat.org
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References

{{Gemstone Garnet gemstones