Since 2002, tsavorite and other grossular varieties have been recovered from a primary deposit at Itrafo, a village in the Andrembesoa area of central Madagascar. Twenty-two samples from this locality were investigated by classical gemological methods, chemical analysis, and UV-Vis-NIR and mid-IR spectroscopy. The garnets’ chemical composition was nearly pure grossular (92 mol. %), with iron and vanadium as the main chromophores. Their iron content and Fe 2 O 3 :V 2 O 3 ratio were higher than those generally found in tsavorite from well-known deposits. Although the Itrafo deposit is relatively large, and new veins could be discovered, future production will be limited by access difficulties and security concerns.
Since 2002, tsavorite and other grossular varieties have been recovered from a primary deposit at Itrafo, a village in the Andrembesoa area of central Madagascar. Twenty-two samples from this locality were investigated by classical gemological methods, chemical analysis, and UV-Vis-NIR and mid-IR spectroscopy. The garnets’ chemical composition was nearly pure grossular (92 mol. %), with iron and vanadium as the main chromophores. Their iron content and Fe 2 O 3 :V 2 O 3 ratio were higher than those generally found in tsavorite from well-known deposits. Although the Itrafo deposit is relatively large, and new veins could be discovered, future production will be limited by access difficulties and security concerns.
