Rhodolite is a varietal name for rose-pink to red mineral pyrope

Pyrope

The mineral pyrope is a member of the garnet group. Pyrope is the only member of the garnet family to always display red colouration in natural samples, and it is from this characteristic that it gets its name: from the Greek for fire and eye. Despite being less common than most garnets, it is a...

, a species in the garnet

Garnet

The garnet group includes a group of minerals that have been used since the Bronze Age as gemstones and abrasives. The name "garnet" may come from either the Middle English word gernet meaning 'dark red', or the Latin granatus , possibly a reference to the Punica granatum , a plant with red seeds...

 group. It is found in Cowee Valley, Macon County

Macon County, North Carolina

- Geographic features :Of the in Macon County, are federal lands that lie within the Nantahala National Forest and are administered by the United States Forest Service. Of the of USFS land, lie in the Highlands Ranger District and the remaining lie in the Wayah Ranger District...

, North Carolina

North Carolina

North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...

. The name is derived from the Greek for "rose-like", in common with many pink mineral types (e.g. rhodochrosite

Rhodochrosite

Rhodochrosite is a manganese carbonate mineral with chemical composition MnCO3. In its pure form, it is typically a rose-red color, but impure specimens can be shades of pink to pale brown. The streak is white. Its Mohs hardness varies between 3.5 and 4. Its specific gravity is 3.5 to 3.7. It...

, rhodonite

Rhodonite

Rhodonite is a manganese inosilicate, SiO3 and member of the pyroxenoid group of minerals, crystallizing in the triclinic system...

), but rhodolite itself is not officially recognised as a mineralogical term. This colouration, and the commonly inclusion

Inclusion (mineral)

In mineralogy, an inclusion is any material that is trapped inside a mineral during its formation.In gemology, an inclusion is a characteristic enclosed within a gemstone, or reaching its surface from the interior....

-free nature of garnet from this locality, has led to rhodolite being used as a semi-precious gemstone

Gemstone

A gemstone or gem is a piece of mineral, which, in cut and polished form, is used to make jewelry or other adornments...

. Chemically, rhodolite is an iron-magnesium-aluminium silicate, part of the pyrope-almandine

Almandine

Almandine , also known incorrectly as almandite, is a species of mineral belonging to the garnet Group. The name is a corruption of alabandicus, which is the name applied by Pliny the Elder to a stone found or worked at Alabanda, a town in Caria in Asia Minor. Almandine is an iron alumina garnet,...

 solid-solution

Solid solution

A solid solution is a solid-state solution of one or more solutes in a solvent. Such a mixture is considered a solution rather than a compound when the crystal structure of the solvent remains unchanged by addition of the solutes, and when the mixture remains in a single homogeneous phase...

series, with an approximate garnet composition of Py₇₀Al₃₀.