Hessonite, which is also known by the name “Cinnamon Stone,” is a Brownish-Orange Grossular Garnet that is one of the Nine Maharatnas (Major Gems), or Navaratna (“Divine Gems”), which is connected to the Vedic Astrological sign of Rahu, or “Head of the Dragon.” Hessonite Garnet’s Sanskrit name is Gomedhaka. Source: Kenya, Madagascar, Tanzania, Siberia, USA

The mineral Grossular is a Calcium-Aluminium variety of the Garnet group, whose name is derived from “Grossularia,” or “Gooseberry,” a fruit that closely resembles a Pale-Greenish Grossular variety from Siberia, called “Viluite”.  Grossular is also known by the name “Grossularite.”

Grossularite Composition is a Calcium-Aluminium Nesosilicate with a Granular, Compact, and/or Massive Crystal growth habit, which forms Rhombic Dodecahedra or Cubic Crystals in the Isometric Crystal System. Grossular’s Calcium component may be partially replaced by Ferrous-Iron, and the Aluminium component by Ferric-Iron.

Grossular Garnet occurs in a wide variety of colours from Emerald Green, to Brown, Olive Green, Orange, Pink, and Yellow. Colour varieties of Grossular include: Californite (American Jade), Hessonite (Cinnamon Stone, Gomedhaka), Hydrogrossular, Transvaal Jade, Viluites, and the highly prized Tsavorite.

Identification

Color:                                     virtually all colors, blue is very rare

Crystal habit:                       Rhombic dodecahedron or cubic

Cleavage:                              Indistinct

Fracture:                               conchoidal to uneven

Mohs scale:                          hardness       6.5–7.5

Luster :                                   vitreous to resinous

Streak:                                   White

Specific gravity:                  3.1–4.3

Polish luster:                        vitreous to subadamantine

Optical properties:             Single refractive, often anomalous, double refractive

Refractive index:                1.72–1.94

Birefringence:                     None

Pleochroism:                       None

Ultravioletfluorescence:  variable

Other characteristics:       variable magnetic attraction