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 Post subject: Cabochon ID
PostPosted: Sun Aug 23, 2009 12:50 pm 
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Can anyone give me any idea at all what gemstone this is? I have had these pieces in my stock for some time, my supplier told me it was called 'Eclipse' but this is not the correct name and I have no idea what it is at all!

I have been told it could be a Jasper but I know quite a lot of Jaspers and have never seen anything like this before.

All clues or ideas would be gratefully received

Thanks!

Here is a link to three pics of the stone in question, I'm not sure how to include it in this post.

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PostPosted: Sun Aug 23, 2009 1:31 pm 
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It's always difficult (see also, impossible) to identify a stone from just a picture. That said, it looks like it could be some sort of jasper, maybe a weird flavor of Mookaite or something. The other thing it reminds me of is "Fordite", so maybe it's artificial.

I added the pics to your post. Also, when I look at the larger ones, the top image has some areas which look like there's some depth... maybe a transparent or translucent section? That reminds me of some opal in matrix I have.


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PostPosted: Sun Aug 23, 2009 3:42 pm 
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Could it be turtle shell or something like that?


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 Post subject: Unknown stone
PostPosted: Sun Aug 23, 2009 5:24 pm 
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I can appreciate how difficult it is to identify stones just from a picture but as this one was SO distinctive, I thought I may have a chance!

This stone is NOT transparent or translucent AT ALL in any place, it is completely opaque. It is def a genuine stone as my supplier is a stone dealer and doesn't deal in anything synthetic but he had picked these stones up as he too had never ever come across them!

The stone in the top pic has a waxy lustre and the bottom two are very highly polished IF that's any help, not that I imagine it would be!!!!

Thanks for adding my pix in for me, I'm pretty new to the forum so still getting used to it also thanks for your reply, I'll sit tight and see what else comes back.

Laurence


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 Post subject: Re: Unknown stone
PostPosted: Sun Aug 23, 2009 6:50 pm 
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stonemania wrote:
The stone in the top pic has a waxy lustre and the bottom two are very highly polished IF that's any help, not that I imagine it would be!!!!


Hello Laurence,

Actually that difference is a bit of a clincher I would say. The top picture shows an agate like fortification but the polish shows undercutting or as you say a waxy lustre. Agate doesn't do this, Jasper does. The other stones have far less distinct demarcation and so take a more consistent polish.

I admit that the colour is quite unique but it's still essentially a rockhound material with appropriate value, whatever the cost. It seems to me this is a fairly recent find with commercial quantities available as it is has found it's way onto various web sites. Europe and mostly the U.K. seems to be where it all is.

Tony.

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 Post subject: unknown stone
PostPosted: Mon Aug 24, 2009 5:02 am 
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Thanks Tony, my supplier did tell me that it was quite a new find when he initially showed it to me hence he knew so little about it!

I have scoured the net and seen it on a few sites and it's always called Eclipse, but there is no factual information written on it hence I was beginning to doubt this name.

Is is possible that such a new and unusual gemstone could have surfaced and yet remains in the hands of so few and nobody has researched it yet!!

Well I appreciate the information that I'm getting on it anyway.

Thanks all.


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PostPosted: Mon Aug 24, 2009 5:57 am 
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Lol noob,
if that's mookaite maybe there was a cow standing by. :wink:

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PostPosted: Mon Aug 24, 2009 6:17 am 
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mehoose wrote:
Lol noob,
if that's mookaite maybe there was a cow standing by. :wink:


:smt046 thanks, mehoose, i needed a good laugh this morning.

i like the name of it, whatever it is, "eclipse."


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PostPosted: Mon Aug 24, 2009 9:15 am 
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The stone looks similar to a material being sold by the names Bumblebee or Mustard jasper. There seem to be two variations with one being more silicated and harder than the other. The last pix below shows the softer variety while the first three pixs show the harder ones. The distinct yellow and black banding seems to be a result of how the rough was oriented for slabbing.

Image
Image
Image
Image

Now this is where things get interesting. Last year I bought a small piece of rough from a vendor who claimed the material was wulfenite from Indonesia. After checking mindat.org and seeing that wulfenite isn't found in this locale I became more curious.

So I had a piece of the rough tested at the Denver Gem & Mineral show. This was one of the local club booths and I figured what the heck. The guy narrowed down to being a carbonate and not a silicate (i.e. jasper). Through a process of elimination we thought it might be some ankerite.

Now fast forward to last week.

I was at another small gem show and one of the vendors I know brought up the subject of this stone. He quickly mentioned that the original vendor had it tested also and had stopped selling it. They were claiming that it contained a high amount of arsenic. I asked for more documentation and/or information yet no one had any real data or even a source for the test results. Since my philosophy is "Without data, it's just another opinion." I'm still a little skeptical. However, I did take all the cabs I have and put them in a plastic bag!

I CERTAINLY don't want to start rumors or a campaign of misinformation about this stone. I just want to share what has been communicated to me - whether it is accurate or not. I was intending to post a message and hope someone who was more knowledgeable would be able help.


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PostPosted: Mon Aug 24, 2009 11:31 am 
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:lol: can't blame you one bit for placing the cabs in a plastic bag, skycritter, i would've done the same. :wink:


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PostPosted: Mon Aug 24, 2009 12:43 pm 
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mehoose wrote:
Lol noob,
if that's mookaite maybe there was a cow standing by. :wink:


I've alerted the punthorites. The punlice will be by to speak with you shortly.


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PostPosted: Tue Aug 25, 2009 5:01 am 
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:smt085 :smt077

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PostPosted: Tue Aug 25, 2009 7:01 am 
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Hello,

This looks quite similar to what a French gem dealer sells as "pierre éclipse".

He also said that the stones come from Indonesia but that the yellow stuff is orpigment which is fixed by a colorless resin to allow polish and use as jewellery.


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PostPosted: Tue Aug 25, 2009 12:40 pm 
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We have jasper that looks similar (color-wise) to that here in Minnesota, from up on the iron range.


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PostPosted: Tue Aug 25, 2009 2:03 pm 
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Hi Skycritter,

No no no!!!! You put them in a plastic bag !!!!!!!!!!!!!

I think my mother inlaw would think they are breathtaking beautiful. :smt096

Where did you say you got them? :smt046


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