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Post by fernwood on Sept 17, 2021 5:54:50 GMT -5
1 At first I thought it was just a hunk of iron. Now, am not too sure. Very heavy. Magnetic in places, not in others. Areas that appear white are actually silver colored. The outer covering was scratched/rubbed off them. Some brownish areas are harder than the silver ones. Knife will not scratch them, but scratches the silver areas. Fist photo has the most accurate colors. Was collected in the 1980’s to early 2000’s by a couple who traveled the USA in search of rocks for specimens and lapidary. They often traveled to MI and MN. Had access to some old Copper mining sites. The piece could have been found next to an abandoned mining smelter. Any ID help would be appreciated. 2 Was in a bin, labeled Petrified Wood. Most of the other pieces in the bin are obviously pet wood, but this one has me stymied. In hand, it appears to be a very dark, milky quartz on the ends. Has some areas of quartz crystals. Collected/purchased by the same couple as above. Thoughts? Thank you.
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mud
having dreams about rocks
Member since May 2018
Posts: 69
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Post by mud on Sept 17, 2021 8:45:17 GMT -5
The first piece is really intriguing! I have no idea.
Your second piece reminds me of fern "wood" that I have found in glacial deposits.
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Post by rmf on Sept 19, 2021 18:15:12 GMT -5
Go to Ace HW, Lowes or home Depot and purchase a piece of white bathroom porcelain tile. On the back (the unglazed part) scratch the stone. Brown = Limonite, Red = Hematite, Black = Magnetite. Usually most Iron ores has one or more minerals.
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rewdownunder
spending too much on rocks
Member since March 2012
Posts: 357
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Post by rewdownunder on Sept 19, 2021 18:48:44 GMT -5
The first one does look some type of slag rather than a natural mineral but it is hard to tell from a photo. Slag is hard to ID because it often contains some normal iron minerals and bits of quartz. Look for grains of sand stuck to the surface. It could also be what is called swamp or bog iron a type of iron concretion.
The streak test provides useful information but you do not need to go to the store. Take the top off your toilet tank and flip it over and you will find a perfect unglazed surface to do the test. Learned that trick in geology lab 101.
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