Garnet takes its name from the Latin for grain, so called because the red crystals of the garnet resembled the kernels of the pomegranate. The almandine and pyrope varieties of the gem were the fashionable stone of the 18th and 19th centuries. These flat cut garnets are set in gilt silver and arranged in an organic foliate design. The 9k ear wires were added to the earrings at some point in history; the original fittings would most likely have had thick back to front closures.