You are likely to find exactly the mandarin garnet cabochon you’re looking for on 1stDibs, as there is a broad range for sale. Every item for sale was constructed with extraordinary care, often using
Gold,
18k Gold and
Yellow Gold. For this particular piece, are consistently popular carat weights. Creating a mandarin garnet cabochon has been a part of the legacy of many jewelers, but those produced by
Goshwara,
Mousson Atelier and
Laura Munder are consistently popular. A mandarin garnet cabochon of any era or style can lend versatility to your look, but a version featuring
Garnet, from our inventory of 18, is particularly popular. See these pages for a
cabochon iteration of this accessory, while there are also
oval cut cut and
cushion cut cut versions available here, too. When shopping for a mandarin garnet cabochon, you’ll find that there are less available pieces for unisex or
men today than there are for
women.
Vintage and antique garnet jewelry has been around for a long time.
Garnets have been used for adornment going all the way back to the Bronze Age. While we will never know if garnets can be used to prevent plagues or heal warriors, as has been suggested, we do know that both the Egyptians and the Romans felt that it was a worthy stone to set in gold for their nobility. In more “recent” times, garnets were ubiquitous in Victorian jewelry. The “G” in REGARD rings, the equivalent of the modern-day engagement ring, implied garnet.
Garnets were also highly valued in the region of Bohemia. The Smithsonian Museum of Natural History has in its collection an antique hairpin with Bohemian pyrope garnets from the Czech Republic. Bohemian pyrope got its name from Bohuslav Balbín, sometimes referred to as the “Czech Pliny,” in 1679. Abundant in the region, it was used often in jewelry during this time. In fact, it became so popular that in 1762, Empress Marie Terezie forbade its export. Stonecutting workshops opened in several regions across Bohemia, and pyrope became the country’s mineralogical symbol. While there was never a decline in its popularity, it was only in the mid-20th century that garnets enjoyed a revival.
Garnets can come in many shapes and sizes — one of the largest ever discovered is a 68.82-carat Tsavorite garnet. This stone is also in the collection of the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History.
According to the Gemological Institute of America, Brazil’s mines are rich in garnets, including spessartine, which can also be found in the Myanmar area, recognized for a specific shade of reddish-orange. While red garnets are the most popular, garnets actually come in a medley of colors.
Find a collection of antique and vintage garnet rings, necklaces and other jewelry today on 1stDibs.
