Odd paper weight

[2feathers Creative Making]

The wife came out of a store yesterday carrying this paperweight. Being the family "google", she asked me what it was. So I told her.Was thinking maybe @Mike Hill or one of his rock hounding friends might be able to put a little more clarity on it. Thanks if you can. And no worries if you cant, I already did a classifying ID on it. "A rock, dear"

 

[kazuma78]

Looks like Agate, maybe Jasper but I think Agate

 

[vegas urban lumber]

it's onyx, a banded calcite, deposited in geothermal water activity. here's some pictures of the ones we collected 2 weekends ago. this one is called strawberry onyx due to the reddish iron oxide layers. i think the variety your paper weight is made of is from pakistan

 

[vegas urban lumber]

here's a piece sold as pakistan onyx very similar to yours

404 Not Found - Fossils and natural crystals for sale

The Rock Gallery is an educational resource with information about minerals, crystals, fossils and meteorites, and has hundreds of items for sale for collectors and for home decoration.

www.therockgallery.co.uk

 

[vegas urban lumber]

the two big ones above pictured in the yard are about 150 lbs each

 

[vegas urban lumber]

onyx is often made into object like spheres and cubes because it sands and polishes easy, due to the relative softness of the calcite. can be sanded and polished with regular sand paper, grinding can be done with silicon carbide grinding wheels, no diamond required

 

[Mike Hill]

I don't disagree with Onyx! Lots of material coming from the stores is from continents east of here, it could be something from there. Ive seen some onyx from that area that is similar and would likely be inexpensive enough to mine, work and sell here in the states. Actually, Arizona has some red/yellow onyx also - one called Cave Creek Onyx among some others - but I think it is rare. There is a red/yellow rock called Mookaite - that ain't it though - also rare. The yellow looks kinda "jaspery", but most banded Jasper I've seen has more regular layers.

FYI - there is a red/yellow agate kinda in your part of the world. It is closer to Lynchburg than to you, but it is called Tennessee Paint Rock Agate. And that isn't it either - it's real rare. I have a few pieces, but had to buy it. Have not found it on the ground yet.

 

[barry richardson]

it's onyx, a banded calcite, deposited in geothermal water activity. here's some pictures of the ones we collected 2 weekends ago. this one is called strawberry onyx due to the reddish iron oxide layers. i think the variety your paper weight is made of is from pakistan

View attachment 203749

View attachment 203750

View attachment 203751

View attachment 203752

View attachment 203753

View attachment 203754

View attachment 203755

Those are cool Trev! Did you gather those in Nevada? Does in form in veins?

 

[Mike Hill]

Danged - I definitely have a strong yen to come hound in Arizona/Nevada - with WB guides!!!

 

[2feathers Creative Making]

here's a piece sold as pakistan onyx very similar to yours

404 Not Found - Fossils and natural crystals for sale

The Rock Gallery is an educational resource with information about minerals, crystals, fossils and meteorites, and has hundreds of items for sale for collectors and for home decoration.

www.therockgallery.co.uk

Thanks. That sounds right. They don't pay me enough to sand rock for a paperweight all day! And looks right too. Thank you gentle folk (gots to be pc ya know) now I can be the proper know-it-all... with credits to follow after properly impressing ... naw. She knows I done ast somebody.

 

[vegas urban lumber]

Those are cool Trev! Did you gather those in Nevada? Does in form in veins?

location is about 65 miles from my house, not far from nevada test site. huge deposit/seams. many ton plus boulders. those two big ones were in ground seam. dug around and pried out

 

[vegas urban lumber]

probably 50 ton plus smaller ones laying around to be picked up. one area has an crumbly iron seam between the two onyx outer layers, seam deposit about 30 ft wide in total there, vertical orientation that has been mined with about a 30 foot tall open face