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Iridescent 'Rainbow' Andradite Garnets - Japan

By
BlueLiquorice
Published:
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andraditecrystalcrystalsgarnetgarnetsgemgemsgeologyjapanjapanesemineralmineralogymineralsminingrarerockhoundrocksspecimengrossularmineralspecimenprospectingrainbowgarnethonshuislandirridescenceirridescent

Description

Japanese Iridescent 'Rainbow' Andradite Garnets. These were found near an abandoned Magnetite mine called the Kohse Mine, located in Tenkawa Village, Nara Prefecture, Honshu Island, Japan. First recovered in 2004 by local collectors... however, by 2005 the authorities put a stop to the digging. In all, only a few hundred kg of these exist and are quite sought after. The iridescent appearance is the result of light diffraction that arises due to repeating microscopic layers of slightly different chemistry in the garnet crystal (basically one layer is nearly pure Andradite garnet, the next layer is Andradite-Grossular garnet, and this continues repeating). These were a much appreciated gift from geode80.
Image size
2000x2000px 1.98 MB
Make
SAMSUNG
Model
SPH-L720
Shutter Speed
1/60 second
Aperture
F/2.2
Focal Length
4 mm
ISO Speed
50
Date Taken
Jan 30, 2015, 10:37:27 AM
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Comments2
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bmah's avatar
bmah
Really amazing. Have only seen a few online, never seen any irl.