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Locality Garnets from Namibia19 Dec 2006 By Robin We have recently posted a selection of interesting locality specimens of Garnet from Spitzkopje,
Swakopmund, Erongo Region, Namibia. Here is some background on the specimens:
The Garnets are all deep red, and often translucent with a waxy lustre, and
range in size up to 1.5cm. The Garnets were all enclosed with a milky Quartz
matrix, which has been opened to partially expose the Garnets, forming
attractive miniatures.
The Spitzkopje is a dome shaped mountain 1728m high, which rises above the flat
gravel peneplains of the Namibian Desert. It is an isolated Biotite-rich Granite
massif, weathering to rounded red Granite boulders. Nearby is the Kleine
Spitzkopje Granite, approximately 400 Ma younger, which is the remnant of a ring
complex. This Granite stock is abundant with Miarolitic cavities. These are vugs
formed from the volatiles (gases) trapped in the solidifying magma as the
Granite (or a Pegmatite) forms. The volatiles typically contain elements that
are not compatible with granitic (silicate) mineralogy. This often leads to the
formation of rare and unusual minerals within the cavities from these elements.
This was a small new find, and these specimens are amongst the best found.
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