The "garnet group" refers to the fact that the stone is not actually a single mineral but rather a group of similar minerals. All natural garnets are different in their chemical composition and they can exhibit a wide variance in color. The range of colors can vary from red, orange, yellow, green, purple to even colorless. The red color is the most common in todays garnet jewelry. The ancient cultures believed that, when worn, the stone would protect the wearer from evil, bad dreams, fevers and would prevent diseases of the skin. Its curative powers were widely believed in and accepted. When danger would approach it was believed that the stone would lose its brilliance.

Forms of garnet jewelry are known to have appeared thousands of years BC. During the Victorian Era the reddish-brown colored garnet was used extensively, the stone being mined in Bohemia, which is known today as Czechoslovakia. The era brought about the widespread use of garnet in the making of lower cost jewelry and unfortunately its image as a high quality gem was cheapened. Even today, the reddish-brown stones are quite inexpensive. Garnet jewelry made with the dark red, violet and purple gems can be somewhat more costly especially in the larger stone sizes. The gem is perhaps one of the most underrated in quality. The fact that it has a consistent hardness, is very brilliant in appearance and exhibits a rich coloration makes the garnet very suitable for almost any type of sterling silver jewelry.