Important localities include Brazil, California, Mozambique, Namibia, and Rhodesia. The Violet claims, in the Wah Wah Mountains of Utah is the only known home for this very popular mineral. Cut stones are rare due to the small size of the crystals and the cost. If the word garnet is mentioned alone, however, it is implied to be red. The name is Latin for grain because its small crystals look like grains of sand.
Garnets are usually formed by metamorphism, however some have igneous origins.
These useful minerals are used for more than just jewelry. The main deposits of almandine occur in Sri Lanka, India, Afghanistan, and Brazil. One variety, rhodolite, is rose-red or pale violet and occurs in North Carolina, Brazil, Sri Lanka, and Tanzania. It is distinctive from other garnets by the content of chromium instead of iron or aluminum. Slightly heavier than quarts, its hexagonal crystal can be confused with beryl.