Garnet






Perhaps because of their blood-red colour, garnets have long been associated with warriors - both as protective and destructive elements. The crusaders, for instance, decorated their armour with garnets as talismans to prevent harm. In Asia, on the other hand, garnets were used as bullets, in the belief that they would increase the severity of the wound. Although garnets are associated with the colour red, they occur in all colours except blue. Red garnets come in several different shades, including a blackish-red and a brownish-red. However, the most desirable of the red shades is that of rhodolite garnet, which is a vibrant cranberry colour.