Edwardian 15ct Gold Pendant/ Brooch set with Green Garnets & Natural Split Pearls

A fine quality 15ct gold Edwardian pendant that can also be worn as a brooch. it is a beautiful design and has been set with natural split pearls and graduated green garnets with millgrain detail throughout. The effect is stunning. Green garnets or demantoid garnets,which is the correct name for these stones, were not discovered until 1868 in Russia’s western central Ural Mountains. Miners were immediately stunned by the highly refractive nature of the gem material. They began comparing it to diamond and referred to it as “demantoid”, from the French “demant” meaning diamond. The reason is obvious, with its high brilliance and dispersion. These bright apple green stones are comparatively rare and very expensive as they are no longer mined. In the early 1900s they were a celebrated stone and many items of jewellery were set with these beautiful stones.