Hessonite

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Hessonite or Cinnamon Stone is a variety of garnet, belonging to the calcium aluminium grossularite type, Ca₃Al₂Si₃O₁₂. The name is from the Greek hēssōn, inferior, in allusion to its lower hardness and density than most other garnets.

It has a characteristic red color, inclining to orange, much like that of gem zircon. Indeed it was shown many years ago, by Sir A. H. Church, that many gems, especially engraved stones, commonly regarded as zircon, were really hessonite. The difference is readily detected by the specific gravity, that of hessonite being 3.64 to 3.69, whilst that of zircon is about 4.6. Hessonite is rather a soft stone, its hardness being about that of quartz or 7, whilst the hardness of most garnet reaches 7.5.

Hessonite comes chiefly from Sri Lanka, where it is found generally in placer deposits, though its occurrence in its native matrix is not unknown. It is also found in Brazil and California.

[edit] References

• Mineral galleries
• This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.