Gentlemen,
I have some new material that we found near a metamorphic limestone
deposit. This appears to be silicified, but not limestone. It is a
hardness of 7+ and highly abrasive. However, it takes a beautiful
polish. The interesting thing is there are several colors that streak
through it in a small block of several inches in a cube shape. We have
sent for a spectrograph but it’s not back yet. This material comes
out in blocks that are up to about 3 feet square and maybe 8 feet
long. Another peculiarity is that we can cut a slab about 2 feet
square by 1/8 inch thick which has a lot of translucence.
I don’t know if you all have any indentification possibilities, but
if you do, I would like to know how I could get this identified. I
would be glad to send some pictures (although I am not a professional
photographer but have a digital camera). Also, I could send some
samples. I am a geologist but we have not had this out long enough
to figure out its formation or the mineralogy. It’s just a very
unusual rock. It comes from Western NC near the western edge of the
Piedmont. It appears to be a metamorphic sedimentary rock, but being
near a silicified limestone deposit is what makes it peculiar. If you
could help any, I would greatly appreciate it.
Many thanx,
Charlie DeVoto
@Charlie_DeVoto
Hickory.NC