Spessartine is a manganese-rich garnet prized for its vibrant orange to reddish-orange color, often marketed as mandarin garnet. It typically forms as sharp, well-developed dodecahedral crystals in pegmatites and metamorphic environments. Collectors should look for high-luster, gemmy crystals, especially from the famous pockets of Namibia and Brazil.
Is this spessartine?
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 spessartine with a known reference. Spessartine 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. Spessartine leaves a white streak.
- 3Read the lusterHold the specimen under a strong light. Spessartine typically shows a vitreous luster.
- 4Match the color rangeCompare against the expected color range: orange, red-orange, red, brownish-red.
- 5Look at form & habitCrystal system: cubic. Typical habit: dodecahedral or trapezohedral crystals.
Often confused with
Spessartine vs. its common look-alikes — and how to tell them apart in the field.
Often found alongside spessartine
Minerals reported to co-occur with spessartine. Spotting these in float or country rock is a strong cue you are in the right ground.
All properties
- Chemical formula
- Mn₃Al₂(SiO₄)₃
- Mohs hardness
- 6.5-7.5
- Density
- 4.12-4.20 g/cm³
- Streak
- White
- Luster
- Vitreous
- Transparency
- Translucent
- Crystal system
- Cubic
- Crystal habit
- Dodecahedral or Trapezohedral Crystals
- Cleavage
- None
- Rarity
- Uncommon
- Uses
- Collector, Gemstone, Lapidary
- Host rock
- Granite Pegmatites, Metamorphic Rocks
- Typical price
- $10-100 per gram for gem quality, $20-200 per specimen
Where rockhounds find spessartine
1 mapped spotsClassic worldwide localities
- Brazil
- Madagascar
- Namibia
- USA
- Pakistan
- Nigeria
Field-hunting tip
Look in granite pegmatites, metamorphic rocks country — that is the host setting where spessartine typically forms. If you start seeing quartz, microcline, albite in float, you are in the right ground. Field specimens usually show a dodecahedral or trapezohedral crystals habit, so train your eye for that shape before scanning the outcrop. In the U.S., the densest reported localities are in Colorado — start trip planning there.
Common questions
How do you identify spessartine?+
Where is spessartine found?+
Can I find spessartine in the United States?+
How much is spessartine worth?+
What rocks look like spessartine?+
What minerals are found with spessartine?+
What kind of rock does spessartine form in?+
What is spessartine used for?+
Find spessartine on the map
RockHoundR shows mapped rockhounding spots, access rules, and lets you log every find.
