There is a lot of carnelian near where I live in Washington state. The problem is finding a piece that is fracture free. I have been collecting it off and on for years and have only come up with small pieces that are clean enough to really be called gem quality. Some of it is of very nice color.
Chehalis, WA is a well known location for natural carnelian. Years ago fine large pieces were collected there. There are many such locations in the U.S. and around the world. There used to be a fee-dig carnelian area near Lebanon, OR and many fine carnelians are still found along the OR beaches after storms near Newport and elsewhere. http://www.oregoncoasttoday.com/agatehunting.html
Carnelian agates and chalcedonies are found at many locations around the world. Improving color by heating and dyeing has been practiced for thousands of years but fine natural stones exist.
Yep, Still lots of Carnelian here! I had a nice trip to Salmon Creek (Toledo) last weekend: None of the people that said they were dying to go collecting went, so it was a very pleasant journey by myself. I nailed just under 30 pounds of combined Carnelian, Jasper, Petrified Wood, and Coprolite. Tried heat treating pieces of it, and it works! The main problem is *slowly* heating and cooling it. If there is iron present, the stones come out a deep red. As the Mythbusters would say, this myth is verified! Now to fine tune the process...
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