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Post by Bluesky78987 on Feb 1, 2015 21:16:16 GMT -5
Today a dealer showed me some stabilized purple rocks. The polished end of the one he showed looked a lot like sugilite - deep purple with a bit of brown and blue and a little bit of black. He also had a more red-ish variety. He said it was one of the rocks found near a Copper mine, along with the other copper compounds I'm more familiar with. Due to language barriers and pronunciation issues, however, I did not understand what the heck this rock is. The name he said sounded like it would be spelled "Olanite" or "Allanite". It is definitely not allunite - does not look at all like it.
Any ideas of what he could be talking about? I will be back there in a day or two and can take a picture of his sample. The rocks had a low density (light for their size), and were stabilized.
It is definitely not the man-made Mohave turquoise that we are familiar with. It is a natural rock, from all appearances.
Any ideas? The dealer was not Mexican I do not know where he got it.
Thanks!
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Post by gingerkid on Feb 2, 2015 7:51:51 GMT -5
Bluesky78987, phil works a lot with turquoise, maybe he'll see your post and provide an answer for you.
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Sabre52
Cave Dweller
Me and my gal, Rosie
Member since August 2005
Posts: 20,456
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Post by Sabre52 on Feb 2, 2015 22:26:27 GMT -5
If it weren't for the purple and the light weight, I'd think maybe he was saying llanite or llanoite, a local Texas material. It has red/brown feldspar, black, and blue quartz pockets. Comes in light and dark varieties. Sort of a fancy granite like rock and takes a good polish. Natural material though and not stabilized at all.....Mel
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Post by phil on Feb 2, 2015 23:06:18 GMT -5
Only way we can guess is if you post a pic. There has been some purple "opal" coming up from Mexico lately, but even tho they call it opal, it's hard as an agate....
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Post by Bluesky78987 on Feb 4, 2015 4:37:21 GMT -5
Yeah I have to go back and get pics. Definitely not llanoite. Might be somebody's attempt to copy Colbaugh's "Mojave Turquoise" . What's weird tho is that stuff is compressed in machines and the rough is a rectangular block. This stuff looks more like some natural stone chunks that have been impregnated with dye and resin, but not compressed. More pics are definitely on my list tho. Thanks.
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Post by phil on Feb 4, 2015 15:50:43 GMT -5
Look like the purple ones here? and OR like this agate?
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Deleted
Deleted Member
Member since January 1970
Posts: 0
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Post by Deleted on Feb 9, 2015 19:30:47 GMT -5
Susan, have a google session around bornite. It's copper iron sulfide and is purple. Apparently there is a lapidary stone called peacock that includes bornite.
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Post by phil on Feb 9, 2015 23:45:28 GMT -5
Shotgunner - that looks like peacock pyrite. A most excellent specimen!
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Post by Bluesky78987 on Feb 20, 2015 16:54:51 GMT -5
I think it's just dyed stabilized chalk chrysocolla. I got a couple of little pieces for sh*ts and giggles, will post pics when I get around to cutting them. Looks a little like Phil's "Mohave (not) Turquoise", but no metallic. Another dealer later told me that Allanite is a name for dyed copper compounds.
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Post by phil on Feb 20, 2015 21:23:15 GMT -5
There's also phosphosiderite that's purple...
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Post by Pat on Feb 20, 2015 21:33:49 GMT -5
… and sugilite
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Post by snowmom on Feb 21, 2015 5:23:51 GMT -5
covelite?
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Post by phil on Feb 21, 2015 13:07:46 GMT -5
Colbaughs, who make that Mojave "turquoise" (hah!) with the gold colored plastic filler also make it without the gold colored filler. Perhaps that's what you have?
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