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Mystery ring- possibly green garnet?

Niffler75

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Hi everyone,

Newbie to the forum here and my first list so please be gentle! I am a gemstone collector and usually buy certified stones but decided to take a punt on this ring. It was mixed in with other vintage and antique items. It is hallmarked 925 and sold as green garnet.
I was drawn to the dispersion. It is hard to capture the colour which is a yellowish green with a colour shift to more green in natural daylight. It is super sparkly with reddish flashes.
Under x10 loupe the cutting seems a good quality and facet junctions are sharp. There are minimal inclusions (no bubbles).
I am aware I will need to get it appraised to know for sure but could it be Mali garnet? It doesn't appear to be peridot, chrome tourmaline or chrome diopside. It is probably unlikely to be demantoid. It could also be a synthetic.I
Thanks in advance for your thoughts! ☺ 20200104_134341.jpg
 

qubitasaurus

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I get the feeling it might be peridot. Something similar to this one
 

Niffler75

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Hi quibitasaurus, really appreciate your thoughts. At first glance I thought initially it was peridot too, then saw the sparkle. I am a sucker for green gems and peridot is my birthstone.

Comparing it to other peridot I have the tone of green is really very different. It's RI appears very different to peridot I have.
It was tricky to capture in a photo.

Hmmm, anyone else have any ideas?
 

icy_jade

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Looks like this


Is there any color change?

From Gem Select:

The garnet group of gemstones is one of the most important of gem groups. There are numerous varieties of garnet, ranging in color from bright red to vivid green and everything in between. Some of the more popular green garnets include demantoid garnet and tsavorite garnet, two of the most valuable garnets available today. Demantoid is a variety of andradite garnet colored by chromium and ferric iron, while tsavorite garnet is a type of grossularitecolored by vanadium or chromium. Other green garnets include color change garnet, 'common' grossularite garnet and the exotic hybrid Mali garnet found only in the West African country of Mali.

Maybe Mali garnet?
 

Niffler75

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Hi icyjade,

Yes, the colour shifts from yellowish green under incandescent light to a slightly darker green with less yellow in natural light. My peridot don't shift colour. It is not 'sleepy' at all. I also get reddish flashes when I move the ring. V hard to capture in a picture. I ruled out demantoid (surely couldn't be that lucky ).

By a process of elimination came up with ?Mali garnet too. It certainly performs like videos I have seen.

It is pretty eye clean and the central stone is 10mmx8mm.
Any other thoughts? It will be my first time taking a stone for appraisal and really don't want to get laughed out the room!

Many thanks!
 

T L

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It could be chrysoberyl or a type of grossular garnet. It could be peridot too, but peridot has a less than ideal luster.
 

stracci2000

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Since it is set in sterling silver, I'd feel confident to say that it is not any kind of green garnet or other more expensive/rare stone.
It looks too dark for peridot. My guess is green tourmaline.
 

Niffler75

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Thanks for your input TL and stracci. I will get it checked out and report back on the outcome! =)2
 

partgypsy

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It's a neat ring. And an unusual color. Please post back when you solve the mystery.
 

Daisys and Diamonds

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It's a beautiful colour what ever it is
i hope you get much joy from wearing it
 

Niffler75

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Hi partgypsy, yep it was the colour that pulled me in. Never seen anything like it before. It is truly beautiful.
Hi daisys and diamonds, that's very kind of you! :hand:
Thanks guys!
 

Bluegemz

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I can imagine green garnets easily. I saw some at a gem show which were the color of the stones in your ring. They shifted colors slightly and were extremely dispersive. In any case, it’s a lovely ring!
 

Niffler75

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Hi bluegemz, thanks for taking the time to give your thoughts. Yes definitely the dispersion and colour shift has me thinking. :think:
it's impossible to capture in a photo. I get beautiful red flashes from it in the sunshine (not that we have had much of that lately in the UK).
 

briolette

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I'm guessing demantoid or Mali garnet especially with the red flashes. If you look at Gemfix's mali garnet page, you'll see a bunch of them have an olive over tone to them. It's a beautiful ring!
 

Niffler75

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Hi briolette:mrgreen2:

Thanks for your thoughts and the link. I am embarrassed to admit I have been comparing the dispersion to online videos while jumping around in the garden (the neighbours already think I am crazy anyway!). Thankfully I don't need to jump much at all to get the red flashes! I am taking it to get appraised but if it is a Mali why has it ends up in a silver setting? Hmmm, putting my Sherlock hat on and off to hopefully speak with a gemologist today!
 

Gloria27

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The cutting style of the main stone and lack of variation in the small ones makes me think of Peridot CZ. Some sellers fail to mention the CZ part and sell it as Peridot when it's actually Peridot coloured Cubic Zirconia.
Rooting for you that it is a Garnet rather than CZ, either way it's a nice ring and I would totally wear it.
 

stracci2000

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I am taking it to get appraised but if it is a Mali why has it ends up in a silver setting?
Yes, that's what I previously mentioned. Rare and valuable faceted stones are not usually set into sterling silver. Whatever it turns out to be, it is very beautiful!
 
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Bluegemz

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Maybe it’s because this particular color is not as sought after? The ones I saw were not too expensive in the olive hues. I’m not an expert, but that may be a reason.
 

Niffler75

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Hi everyone, just to update you I had the ring looked at yesterday by a lovely GIA trained lady. It certainly had her bemused a she took it into different lighting and observed the colour shift. She also identified some inclusions within the stone so did not think it was CZ. She said if it is synthetic it is a very clever synthetic. :think:

On a more positive note I have been really inspired by people on the boards sourcing stones and having jewellery made. So I am taking the plunge and remodelling my engagement ring! I have a beautiful spessartite and a sunset tourmaline on their way :kiss2:and will post pics in a new thread. Good start to 2020!
 

Nick_G

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Hi everyone, just to update you I had the ring looked at yesterday by a lovely GIA trained lady. It certainly had her bemused a she took it into different lighting and observed the colour shift. She also identified some inclusions within the stone so did not think it was CZ. She said if it is synthetic it is a very clever synthetic. :think:

On a more positive note I have been really inspired by people on the boards sourcing stones and having jewellery made. So I am taking the plunge and remodelling my engagement ring! I have a beautiful spessartite and a sunset tourmaline on their way :kiss2:and will post pics in a new thread. Good start to 2020!

Just a thought, as it's difficult to tell from the photo, is there any doubling of the back facets when looked at under a loupe? If not, it's either an isometric mineral such as garnet, or it's glass. If there is doubling, then it could be a green zircon.

Don't take this as gospel though.
 

Bluegemz

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Just a thought, as it's difficult to tell from the photo, is there any doubling of the back facets when looked at under a loupe? If not, it's either an isometric mineral such as garnet, or it's glass. If there is doubling, then it could be a green zircon.

Don't take this as gospel though.
It could be green zircon! I have one in this color range.
 

Niffler75

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Aaaargh, didn't consider green zircon! Good point. I am just getting to grips with using a loupe. The facet junctions are v sharp so likely not glass. Nick, at the risk of sounding really stupid :shock: what would doubling of the back facets look like?
Thanks guys, really appreciate your thoughts.
 

Nick_G

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Aaaargh, didn't consider green zircon! Good point. I am just getting to grips with using a loupe. The facet junctions are v sharp so likely not glass. Nick, at the risk of sounding really stupid :shock: what would doubling of the back facets look like?
Thanks guys, really appreciate your thoughts.

Here's a good pic that I found after a quick Google:

1578858800635.png

That is a cut zircon and you can clearly see the double edges where the light ray is split into two. It's called birefringence, and the higher the figure, the more obvious it is.
 
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Niffler75

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Aaaah thanks Nick_G. That's now crystal clear if you'll pardon the pun. :roll:Will take a look tomorrow when a bit more awake and caffeine levels topped up!
 

Nick_G

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Actually thinking further about this green zircon is often metamict (small amounts of radioactive impurities have destroyed the internal crystal structure) and if this process is complete then the zircon may show no double refraction.

Probably best to get this stone tested by a gemmologist.
 

CaseyLouLou

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Aaaah thanks Nick_G. That's now crystal clear if you'll pardon the pun. :roll:Will take a look tomorrow when a bit more awake and caffeine levels topped up!

Any update on this?!
 
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