Joined: Thu Dec 13, 2007 3:42 pm Posts: 4091 Location: the Netherlands
very freaky indeed! For that current price I'm quite tempted too!! You gonna go for that one J? (don't wanna end up driving that price up for you...)
Nevermind, stupid question, you wouldn't have posted it if it where so...
Joined: Fri Jan 27, 2006 12:27 pm Posts: 764 Location: Western NY
Very good deal -- even with the shipping. The collector in me (who shouldn't even be looking at auction listings) is jealous.
It's a twinned crystal for sure, but the surprising part is that it survived cutting. I would have expected a twinned garnet crystal like that to fall apart in process.
Come to think of it, it's also remarkable that the cutter had the foresight to fashion the stone that way.
I hope ROM notices this post -- maybe he has some more insights on this oddity.
Joined: Tue Aug 01, 2006 3:24 am Posts: 4997 Location: McDonough GA
pt wrote:
It's a twinned crystal for sure, but the surprising part is that it survived cutting. I would have expected a twinned garnet crystal like that to fall apart in process.
Peter, if you look closely at the pics in the auction you can see that there are some fractures in the piece. Certainly the piece is under stress and you are right, its a wonder it didnt explode. It really is a unique and fascinating stone!
Joined: Fri Feb 24, 2006 1:20 am Posts: 2756 Location: Southern California, U.S.A.
pt wrote:
It's a twinned crystal for sure, but the surprising part is that it survived cutting. I would have expected a twinned garnet crystal like that to fall apart in process.
Hi All,
I think it's a so-called "penetration twin," two actual crystals that have intergrown, each one displaying a 4-ray star. I doubt there's much danger of it falling apart since it's structurally a single crystal.
I've cut a fair amount of Idaho star garnet and the stuff can be a little touchy, especially in the sanding stage. It is quite friable and subject to fracturing from heat. I used to do most of the sanding and polishing with diamond compound on a spool polisher similar the one Graves makes. I think the fractures Jason mentioned were either there to begin with and left in the interest of cutting the double star, or were the result of a little too much heat in sanding/polishing.
I'm writing a short article on orienting and polishing Idaho star garnet, mainly to preserve old knowledge that's hard to come by these days. It will explain the theory behind garnet asterism -- from that locality, at least! I hope to post it to my website when my Webmaster shows me how: I'm not computer-smart. Stay tuned.
Post subject: Re: Very odd...cool...star Garnet with double star
Posted: Mon Jul 02, 2012 8:34 am
Established Member
Joined: Thu Apr 21, 2011 11:55 am Posts: 31
Oh that's a bit of a tease, did a search of the forum for star garnets and came up with this thread, only to realise it's a bit old, and the auction is no longer listed, so I can't see it! Sounds like it was an interesting stone
Post subject: Re: Very odd...cool...star Garnet with double star
Posted: Mon Jul 02, 2012 10:37 am
Valued Contributor
Joined: Tue Oct 20, 2009 3:34 pm Posts: 381 Location: Sweden
baobei18 wrote:
Oh that's a bit of a tease, did a search of the forum for star garnets and came up with this thread, only to realise it's a bit old, and the auction is no longer listed, so I can't see it! Sounds like it was an interesting stone
Post subject: Re: Very odd...cool...star Garnet with double star
Posted: Tue Jul 03, 2012 7:32 am
Established Member
Joined: Thu Apr 21, 2011 11:55 am Posts: 31
Tim wrote:
When I come across it I'll post a new pic, I have no idea where that stone went. We're about 5 moves further now so it could be anywhere...
Awesome, would love to see it when you next come across it I was attempting to find info on star garnets from Madagascar (gem assignment) - didn't find anything (have to hit the library at school I think), but found plenty of other cool star garnets
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