Purple garnet is a rare color variant typically belonging to the pyrope-almandine series, often enriched with trace amounts of vanadium or chromium. These stones are prized by collectors for their intense, deep violet hues and high brilliance. They are most frequently found in metamorphic terrains as well-formed dodecahedral crystals.
Is this purple garnet?
5-step field checkRun through these checks against the specimen in your hand. The more boxes tick, the more confident the ID.
- 1Test the hardnessTry to scratch purple garnet with a known reference. Purple Garnet sits at Mohs 6.5-7.5 — softer than the next harder reference, harder than the previous one.
- 2Check the streakDrag the specimen across an unglazed porcelain plate. Purple Garnet leaves a white streak.
- 3Read the lusterHold the specimen under a strong light. Purple Garnet typically shows a vitreous luster.
- 4Match the color rangeCompare against the expected color range: purple, violet, reddish-purple.
- 5Look at form & habitCrystal system: cubic. Typical habit: dodecahedral crystals.
Often confused with
Purple Garnet vs. its common look-alikes — and how to tell them apart in the field.
Often found alongside purple garnet
Minerals reported to co-occur with purple garnet. Spotting these in float or country rock is a strong cue you are in the right ground.
All properties
- Chemical formula
- Mg₃Al₂(SiO₄)₃
- Mohs hardness
- 6.5-7.5
- Density
- 3.5-4.3 g/cm³
- Streak
- White
- Luster
- Vitreous
- Transparency
- Transparent
- Crystal system
- Cubic
- Crystal habit
- Dodecahedral Crystals
- Cleavage
- None
- Rarity
- Rare
- Uses
- Gemstone, Collector
- Host rock
- Metamorphic Rocks
- Typical price
- $50-500 per carat depending on saturation and clarity
Where rockhounds find purple garnet
1 mapped spotsClassic worldwide localities
- Tanzania
- Sri Lanka
- Mozambique
- USA
Field-hunting tip
Look in metamorphic rocks country — that is the host setting where purple garnet typically forms. If you start seeing zircon, kyanite, graphite in float, you are in the right ground. Field specimens usually show a dodecahedral crystals habit, so train your eye for that shape before scanning the outcrop. In the U.S., the densest reported localities are in Idaho — start trip planning there.
Common questions
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Find purple garnet on the map
RockHoundR shows mapped rockhounding spots, access rules, and lets you log every find.
