Chippers’ Chatter Chippers’ Chatter Newsleer of the Chesapeake Gem & Mineral Society Balmore, Maryland <chesapeakegemandmineral.org> Volume 59, Number 5 May, 2015 It’s Show Time! from Bernie & Lynne Emery Save the date: Saturday, May 30th We hope that every member can aend the show and spend an hour or two helping out. Since this is our major outreach to the public each year, please make this a priority on your May calendar. We sll have a few more spots to fill at the informa- on, silent aucon and children’s tables. Some of the peo- ple who have signed up to help with set up may not be able to make it, so we need more volunteers - ideally we should have two people at each spot each hour. We also need help with set up on Friday evening and tear down once the show is over. Tables need to be put in place, electric wires need to be deployed on Friday and everything needs to be taken down and put away on Saturday aſternoon. The more hands we have, the quicker the task will go. Our silent aucons need good donaons – minerals, fossils, jewelry, books or anything hobby related. When you donate, consider that the item should be something that you would like to have yourself! Think about the kids and bring us some of your extra min- erals for the give-away table. If you want, these really can be leaverites! Please label the material if you can so we can edu- cate the young rockhounds who take the specimens. (It would be very nice if you could make enough labels so the kids can take a specimen and a label when they graze the give-aways.) If you can’t aend the meeng, give me a call and let me know when and where you would like to volunteer. Remember, the parcipaon contest allows you to earn points for your contribuon of me. What an easy and fun way to accumulate points and help the club! Program Notes by Richard Hoff An Evening of Fabulous Field Finds With field trip season is upon us it’s a good me for us to review where we’ve been and what we’ve actually collected in the field so we’re going to have a good old fashioned “Show & Tell”. If you’ve been out and found items in a field, quarry, streambed, your own backyard, beach, construcon site etc. and collected a rock, mineral or fossil, our meeng is the ideal place for you to show it off. The only rule is that you must personally have found it somewhere in the “field”. Sorry, but items you purchased are disqualified. Ideally, we’d like you to bring in things that your fellow members have not seen before or that are excing for a special reason, but we know there will be some duplica- on. And if you have an abundance of that good thing, why not bring the extras to give away to other members? We’ll set up tables for you to use, but let’s limit the space to 1/2 table per person. How you display your things is up to you -- a box or flat, a display case, on a cloth you spread on the table, etc. Please be sure to put your name on a card with your things so we know who they belong to. Be prepared to give a brief descripon of your finds and, if you wish, tell us where you found them (i.e. Bal- lard Green, Mt. Pleasant Mills, etc.) The more informa- on you can share with the members, the more we’ll all learn during the evening. As usual, please do not touch any of the items on display unless you have permission of the owner. Our May 8th meeng at Westchester will begin at 7:30 pm. We look forward to seeing you there for a fun evening of “ fabulous field finds”.
Transcript
Chippers’ ChatterChippers’ ChatterNewsletter of the Chesapeake Gem & Mineral Society
Baltimore, Maryland <chesapeakegemandmineral.org>
Volume 59, Number 5May, 2015
It’s Show Time!from Bernie & Lynne Emery
Save the date: Saturday, May 30th
We hope that every member can attend the showandspendanhourortwohelping out. Since this isourmajoroutreachtothepublic each year, pleasemake this a priority onyourMaycalendar.
Westillhaveafewmorespotstofillatthe informa-tion,silentauctionandchildren’stables.Someofthepeo-plewhohavesigneduptohelpwithsetupmaynotbeabletomakeit,soweneedmorevolunteers-ideallyweshouldhave two people at each spot each hour.We also needhelpwithsetuponFridayeveningandteardownoncetheshowisover.Tablesneedtobeputinplace,electricwiresneed to bedeployedon Friday and everything needs tobetakendownandputawayonSaturdayafternoon.Themorehandswehave,thequickerthetaskwillgo.
Our silentauctionsneedgooddonations–minerals,fossils, jewelry, books or anything hobby related.Whenyoudonate,considerthatthe itemshouldbesomethingthatyouwouldliketohaveyourself!
Ifyoucan’tattendthemeeting,givemeacallandletme knowwhen andwhere youwould like to volunteer.Remember, the participation contest allows you to earnpointsforyourcontributionoftime.Whataneasyandfunwaytoaccumulatepointsandhelptheclub!
We’llsetuptablesforyoutouse,butlet’slimitthespace to 1/2 table per person. How you display yourthings isuptoyou--aboxorflat,adisplaycase,onaclothyouspreadonthetable,etc.Pleasebesuretoputyournameonacardwithyourthingssoweknowwhotheybelongto.
As usual, please do not touch any of the items on display unless you have permission of the owner.
OurMay 8thmeeting atWestchesterwill begin at7:30pm.Welookforwardtoseeingyouthereforafuneveningof“fabulousfieldfinds”.
Page 2 Chippers’ Chatter – May, 2015
Members of the Eastern Federation of Mineralogical & Lapidary Societies
Affiliated with the American Federation of Mineralogical Societies.
The Chesapeake Gem & Mineral Society was established in order to al-low its members to gain knowledge and skills in various phases of the Earth Science field. Through field trips, ex-hibitions, and cooperation with other societies, we endeavor to further not only our own knowledge, but also that of the general public. Meetings are held on the 2nd Fri-day of each month except August at the Westchester Community Center, 2414 Westchester Ave; Oella, MD.. Meetings begin at 7:30 P.m. and visitors are al-ways welcome. Dues are $15 for individuals, $25 for family memberships.
Officers:President - Barb Kays
<chesapeakegem at gmail.com>
Vice President - John Buchleitner<chesapeakegem at gmail.com>
Recording Secretary - Earle Pfetzing<chesapeakegem at gmail.com>
Corresponding Sec’y - Patty Lortie<chesapeakegem at gmail.com>
Treasurer - Steve Weinberger<chesapeakegem at gmail.com>
Directors: 2015 2015-16 Russell Byers Jim Hooper Steve Dyer Richard Meszler
Editor:Carolyn Weinberger
<cscrystals2 at gmail.com>
Deadline is the 15th of each month.
Non-commercial reprint permission granted to non-profit organizations unless
otherwise noted.
ChesapeakeGem & Mineral
Society
A Few Words From Barbaraby Barbara Kays, President
Awarmhello toeveryone. Itwasexciting to seePhyllis Dyer back, even though she is not yet readyfor a night of dancing.We alsowelcomed fourmorevisitorstoourAprilmeeting.Thewordmustbegettingout that we are”the place to be!” Everyone com-mentsonourwelcoming,warmatmosphere.Keepupthose smilesandgreetingsaswego intoour show inlateMay. Weareanactive,alive,andgrowinggroup.
Thismonthisourchancetotryanewformatforaprogram.Digoutthoseself-collectedspecimens,includingfossils,andcomepreparedtobragasyousharenewandunusualcollectingsites.Remember,itwasdecidedtoincludemoreplaces than justBaltimoreCounty. Then, reserve the last Saturday inMaytohelpand/orshopatourshowinTowson.Thismaybeaplacetofindaspecimentoaddtotheprizesforourparticipationcontest. ItwasnicetoseeseveralfamiliarfacesatthefirstPatuxentClubshowonSaturdayApril18th. Thanksfortakingthetimetosupportanothercluben-joyedbysomeofourmembers.Itwasintheirworkshopsthatourfamilyhadourfirstlessonsincabbing. Now,apersonal“Thankyou”toeveryonewhohasmadesurethatnothingisforgottenaswegothroughourclubbusiness.Pleasedon’tstop. WishingyouapleasantendofMayandenjoythedelightfulweatherbe-foretheheatbegins. Besafe, Barbara
Carolyn and SteveWeinberger have some ticketsandwillhavethemattheMaymeeting.Donationsare$5perticketwiththedrawingtakingplaceduringtheAugustEFMLSWildacresWorkshop.Youwillnotneedtobepresenttowin.
Volcanoes: Are They Good or Bad?By H. Hoogeterp from Rock Dust, April 2015
The eruption caused global climate anomalies that in-cluded the phenomenon known as “volcanic winter”: 1816becameknownasthe“YearWithoutaSummer”becauseoftheeffectonNorthAmericanandEuropeanweather.CropsfailedandlivestockdiedinmuchoftheNorthernHemisphere,resultingintheworstfamineofthe19thcentury.Notallvolca-noesarethatdramatic.ForexampleLakeNyosisacraterlakeintheNorthwestRegionofCameroon.On8/21/1986,ithadaneventwhichreleasedahugeCO2(carbondioxide)cloudwhichsilentlykilledsome1700peopleintheareaandtheirlivestock.
Nowletstakealookatthevolcanoesanatomy.Therearesome1500ormorevolcanoesthatarelistedasbeingactiveandatleast20ofthemareeruptinginoneformoranother.75%ofthemarelocatedneartheedgesoftectonicplates,andallareformedbysomesortofventtotheearth’scoremagma.Therearefourmajortypesofvolcanoes,classifiedaccordingtotheirshape,compositionoftheirmagma,andthewaytheyerupt.Theyare:CompositeVolcanoes(alsoknownasStratovol-canoes)whicharethemostcommontypeofvolcanoes,gener-ally steepsidedconeshapedmountainsmostofwhichhaveacrateratthesummitanderuptwithdifferentkindsoflava,ash,androck.ThenthereareShieldVolcanoesthatarewidegentle-sloping volcanoes that have low viscosity lava flows.Cinderconevolcanoesaresmallersingle-ventvolcanoes,thathaveshort-livederuptionsandoftenhavebowlshapedcratersatthesummit.Lavadomesareroundedvolcanoeswhicheruptwithveryviscouslavathatdoesn’tflowgreatdistances.
It is estimated that around 80% of the Earth’s surface,above and below sea-level, originated because of volcanicactivity. Themagma,molten rock, and debris from volcaniceruptions have formed some major landforms like islands,mountains, plateaus, and plains. The volcanoes didn’t justcontributetolandmasses,butgaseousemissionsfromvolca-noesoverhundredsofmillionsofyearsarebelievedtohaveresultedinmuchoftheearlyatmosphere.Volcanoesarenotonlydestructivebuttheycreatenewislandsandsomeofthemostproductivesoilsaroundtheworldareintheshadowsof
Therootsofvolcanoeslie40to120milesinsidetheEarthinalayercalledthemantle.Temperaturesthereareashotas4000°F,sohotthatrockmeltslikeachocolate bar on a summerday.Thehotmeltedrockbecomesathick,flowingsubstancecalledmagma.Magmaislighterthanthesolidrocksurroundingit,anditpushesupthroughcracksintheEarth.
Catching the One That Got Awayphotos and text by Bob Farrar
Asmostreadersofthispiecewillknow,Ihavehadtheopportunityoverthelastseveralyearstovisitsomeofthemany famousmineral and fossil localities ofMorocco. IhavewrittenaboutthesetripsonseveraloccasionsinRock&Gemmagazine.Onesucharticlewasaboutcollectingva-rietiesofquartz(agates,jaspers,amethyst,etc.)atalocalityintheHighAtlasMountainsknownasAsniin2010.(Rock&GemDecember2011). Inthatarticle, ImentionedarockthatIcalled“theonethatgotaway”.Thiswasarockthatweighedabout25pounds.Thebaseofitconsistedofwhitequartzandreddishjasper,followedbyalayerofgreenish-yellowquartz,toppedwithalayerofreddishquartzpoints.Having been deposited in a creek bed, the crystal pointswerenotexactlypristine,but Istill founditan interestingpiece.Atthetime,however,Iwassomedistancefromthecar,hadmuchmoregroundtocover,andnogoodwaytocarryit.So,itwaslefthiddenunderabush.AsIwrotebe-fore,IwouldbesuretobringabackpackonanyfuturesuchvisitsoIcouldcarrysomethinglikethatout.
and Aissa Aaronson.Asluckwouldhaveit,we again had the op-portunity to go col-lecting at Asni. Ourguide for the day, asbefore, was Moham-med,ownerofa rockshopinAsni.Iwasex-cited about returningto the site, becauseit had yielded some
niceamethystontheprevioustrip. IwasalsohopingtoperhapsfindasmallerpiecesimilartotheoneIhad leftbehindbefore. Webeganworkingourwayupthesamecreekbedasbefore,andwereindeedfindingamethyst,aswellasagateand jasper. Then,muchtomysurprise,Mohammedpickeduptheverysamerockthatwehadleftunderabushfouryearsbefore.Ihadfiguredthateithersomeonewould have taken it, or itwould havewashedawayinoneoftheflashfloodsthatoccasionallyhappenintheHighAtlasMts.But,thereitwas.AsIhadpromisedmyself,Ihadasmallbackpackthistime,andstartedtopackitup.Thankfully,Aissa,whoisyoungerandstrongerthanme,offeredtocarryitbacktothecarforme.Weagainleft
the rock, and headedon up the creek bed,collectingaswewent.Later,whiletherestofus came back via an-othercreekbed,Aissawentbackthewaywehadcome,andpickedupthebigrock,alongwithafewsmallerthingsthatwehadalsosetaside.
OnceIhadtherock,thencamethehardpart–gettinghomewithit.TherewasnowayIcouldgetonaplanewithit,andmailingitbackwouldhavecostasmallfortune.For-tunately,AdamandAissaareinthefossilbusiness,andeveryyearsendashippingcontainerfulloffossilsandothermer-chandisetoTucson.Adamgraciouslyofferedtosendanythingheavythatourgroupfoundalongwithhisshipment.IwouldthenonlyhavetoworryaboutgettingithomefromTucson.Ourlittlegroupwastravelingintwo4-wheel-driveSUVs,wellsuitedforcarryingtherocksthatwepickedupalongtheway.BythetimewegottothetownofErfoud(acenterforfossilcollectingintheSaharaDesert),though,theyweregettingfull.Wethusleftthebigrock,alongwithvariousbagsandboxesofagatesandotherrocks,atafossildealer’splaceinErfoud.Sometimelater,itwentbytruck,alongwithAdam’smerchan-dise,toAdam’swarehouseinRabat.There,everythingwasputinashippingcontainerandsentbyseatoHouston,andfromtherebytrucktoTucson.InFebruaryofthisyear,ImademyusualvisittoTucson,eagertoretrievemyMoroccanrocks.However,theshipmentwaslate.ItarrivedinTucsonthedayafterIlefttocomehome.Fortunately,afriendofminewhohadalsogonetoMorocco,gemdealerElaineRohrbach,of-feredtodrivemyrocksbackeastwhenshecamethiswayafewweeksaftertheshow.Igratefullyacceptedheroffer.Finally, around theendofMarch,over4yearsafterIfirstsawit,and5monthsafterI retrieved the rockfromthecreekbed,itarrived in Maryland.It is now sitting onthefloor inmy livingroom. I caught theonethatgotaway.
The collecting area at Asni is a mostly dry creek bed running up the
side of a mountain.
Agate, jasper, amethyst, and other quartz varieties occur in veins in a
basalt, as well as in nodules.
The “one that got away” consists of jasper, with white, greenish-yellow,
and red quartz.
Chippers’ Chatter – May, 2015 Page 7
TheEmeraldispartoftheBerylFamilyofMinerals.Itisdoublerefractiveandhasrefractiveindexesof1.577and1.583. Specific gravityofEmeraldis2.72.Thedispersionisquitelow.
Thereisprobablyasmuch lore about Emer-aldsasanyotherstone.Maybemore.Itwasbe-lievedthattheEmeraldcould foretell futureevents. Emeralds couldforestall all enchant-mentsandincantations.Magicians found it im-possibletoworkwithanEmerald in the vicinity.TheEmeraldcouldhelpone tostrengthenonesmemory or become an eloquentspeaker.Itcouldtellifonesloverwastrueornot.The Emerald supposedly had another attribute when itcameto love,whichwastoblocksexualpassion.LegendhasitthatakingofHungaryhadanexceptionalEmeraldsetinaringandwhenheembracedhiswifetheEmeraldbrokeintothreepieces.ItwasalsosaidthatbecausetheEmeraldquickenedthemindandmadeonemore intelli-gentthatitalsomadethemmorehonest.
TheEmeraldwasusedasanantidoteforpoisonsanddemonicalpossession.Itwassaidtocuredysentery,feverandepilepsy,howeveriftheepilepsywastoomuchfortheEmerald to cure then itwould shatterwhenworn. PlinysaidtheEmeraldwastheonlygemstonethatcoulddelighttheeyewithoutfatiguingit.IfoneweretotireoneseyesbygazingintentlyatotherobjectsthenlookingatanEmer-aldwouldrenewthestrengthoftheeyes.GemengraversweresaidtokeepEmeraldsonhandtolookatoccasionallyinordertoresttheireyesfromthetediouswork.NeroissaidtohavehadanEmeraldsetinasettingthathecouldlookthroughatthesightsofRomebecauseitmadethemlooksomuchbetter.
At the time of the Spanish conquest of Peru, manylarge and valuable Emeraldswere stolen by the Spanishandwere forever lost becausemany of the soldiers be-lieved that a true gemstone would not break, and they
ThisnatalstoneofMayisfoundinmanycountriesoftheworldwithsomedebateaboutwherethebestqual-itycomesfrom.FineEmeraldshavebeenfoundinNorthCarolina, Russia and other places but it is probably truethat themore really fineEmeralds come fromColumbiathananywhereelse.
Trapicheemeralds, the rarest formof emerald found,areformedduringtheberylcrystalsgrowth.Blackcarbonimpurities fill in atthe emerald crys-tal junction whichforms a radial pat-ternwithasix-point-edstareffect.
First, the cen-tral, tapered coregrows under hy-drothermal condi-tions. Growth maythen slow or stopfor some time untilconditions changeagain. At this timeboththeemeraldandfillermaterial(oftenalbite,quartzoracarbonmaterialreferredtoaslutite)growagain.Bothma-terialscontinuetomaintaintheiruniformhexagonalgrowthpatterns,thusproducingacentralcoresurroundedbythesixsectorsofthetrapicheandsixcentersoflutite,etc.
Page 8 Chippers’ Chatter – May, 2015
AFMS Rockhound of the Yearfrom the AFMS Newsletter, May 2015
Quiet,dedicatedandreliablearealltermsthatdescribethe Chesapeake Gem andMineral So-cieties’ Rockhound of the Year, EarlePfetzing. Earlehasbeentherecordingsecretary for years, readily agreeingtocontinueinthejobforanotheryeareachtimehe’sasked. Hisminutesarewell taken and accurate - always!. Hestayslateeverymonthandhelpsclean
Another Way of Looking at Land Useby Martin F. Schmidt, Jr.
IwasabitdisappointedtoseetheAmericanLandsAc-cessAssociationarticleintheApril2015Chippers’Chatter,sowilluseitasaspringboardtodiscussionofthismatter,as thenarrow view in the article needs a reply. This ofcoursebecomesapolitical issue,and thatdoesn’tmeanweshouldavoid it,butdoesmeanweshouldhearbothsides.Itboilsdowntovalues,andIfindmyvaluesaredif-ferentfromthoseoftheALAA.
Forexample,theALAAwebsitementionsacongressio-nalhearinginwhichanALAAspeakerfeelsmultiplelawsincludingtheCleanAirAct,CleanWaterAct,EndangeredSpeciesAct, and TheWildernessAct are all “wrongs.” Idisagree.Theselawswerepassedinresponsetodamagethatpeoplesawbeingdonetotheenvironment,andtheywanted those places & assets preserved and protected,alongwiththepracticalresultofhavinghealthyconditionsforourfamiliesandcommunities.Iwouldsaythesepro-tectionsaremoreimportantthanaccesstomoremineralspecimensforrockhounds-preservingwholeecosystemsandlandscapesisclearlyalargergoodthangettingafewmoremineralstoputinacabinet.
Andnotice that preservingmineral samples is “lock-ingthemup”-sotheydon’tgetusedforanything-justasmuchaslandusedesignationsare“lockingup”land.Ifweneedtoconsumealllandandwildernessforhumanuses,theneverymineralspecimenneedstogointhecrushersoit’snotwasted.Andifsomeonerepliesthatsavingmineralspecimensis“preservingbeautiesandwondersofnature,”Iwouldagreebutpointoutthatpreservingawildernessisdoingexactlythesamethingonamuchlargerandmorevaluablescale.
Idon’tagreewitha“use itallupnow, formybene-fit”viewpoint,whichseemstobethephilosophybehindthoseseekingopenaccesstoFederallands.I’mnotwor-riedifafewmineralspecimensremaininthegroundforthefuture-wedon’tneedtodigthemallupnow.AndtheALAAwebsitereferstothelargeamountofmaterialswegetfromtheEarthformodernlife-that’sacorrectthingtopointoutandIdothatintheclassesIteach.However,thisamountofmaterials is significantly increasedbyourunsustainablelifestyles-asmanyhavepointedout,we’dneed5EarthsforallhumanstoliveaswedointheU.S.Soaswerunintolimits,itwouldbesmarttobegintothinkhowwecanlivewithinthelimitsratherthanconstantly
demandingmoreanddegradingtheplanetintheprocess.In time the Earthwill recover fromanythingwedo, buthumansmightnot.
CallsforlocalcontrolIfeelareoutofplaceinthissitua-tion.TheFederallandsbelongtoeveryoneinthecountry,andsoverymuchshouldbecontrolledbyeveryoneinthecountry, not just the locals. Cooperation is of courseofvalue,butlocalpeoplehavealwaysfoundwaysofprofitingfromlandusedesignations,includingwilderness.
So I certainlywill not sendmoney to theALAA, andencourage everyone to consider the issues before doingso. Also consider supporting instead organizations suchas the National Parks Conservation Association (www.npca.org),theNatureConservancy(www.nature.org),theWilderness Society (wilderness.org),whichhavebroadergoals. Iadmiremineral samplesbut there’smore in theworldtopreservethanjustmineralsamples,andtherewillbeplentyofmineralsamplestogoaroundforalongtime.Preservingecosystemsandlandscapesismoreimportant.
Chippers’ Chatter – May, 2015 Page 9
Did You Know?from sources as indicated
Did you know that the first recorded use of tur-quoisedatesback to6000BC inMesopotamia,wherepeopleusedthegemstonetomakebeads?
Did you know that jade, becauseof its toughness,has been used formany cultural things like hammers,fishhooksandstoneaxes?
Didyouknowthat the firstgeologiston themoonwasHarrisonSchmittwhowaspartoftheApollo17mis-sion? From rock samples he collected, scientists havebeenabletolearnmanythingsaboutthemoon.
Didyouknowthatspecificgravityisnotanewcon-cept? Archimedes used it to determine if his ruler’scrownwasmadeofgold.
Didyouknowthattheworld’sstrongestadhesiveisbarnacleglue...whatthebarnacleusestostickitselftothe sideofa shiporwhatever.Chill it to zerodegreesF and it still won’t crack. No solvent known breaks itdown.Theholdingpowerofatinyspeckofitisratedatthreetonspersquareinch.Nowthat’ssomeglue,butitisnotonthemarket.
Bring Out Your Creative Juicesby Steve Weinberger from EFMLS News, May 2015
Unless you’vehad your head in the sand thesepasttwoweeks you’ll have noticedthat the forsythia, daffodils,fruit trees and even the tulipswereinbloom. Allof that“new life”gotourjuicespumpingforthetripthatwe and several other Chesa-
We’ve not been to an AugustWildacres session formanyyearsnowandare looking forward to thewarmthandsunshinethatAugustusuallyhastooffer.Speaker-in-Residence isDeniseNelson,aGIAgraduate,diamantolo-gistandjewelrydesigner.SheandhusbandDennisareadelightful andknowledgeable couplewhohave travelledtoEurope,SouthAmericaandAfricaplusmanyplacesintheUnitedStates,alwayslearningmoreaboutthecultureoftheplacesvisitedaswellasthegeology,scenery,jew-elrygemsandmineralsoftheseplaces.DenisedeliversanoutstandingtalkasyouknowfromhervisitstotheGuild...andwillgiveussixofthemduringourweektogether.
Tuition, which includes room and board, is $390.That’squiteabargain for lodging inmotel style rooms,threegoodmealsperday,sixtalksbyDeniseandinstruc-tiongivenbyexcellentandexperiencedprofessionalsandsemi-professionals.Inaddition,allthefunoftheauction,rockingchairsandcanteenschmoozing,andmuch,muchmoremakesanEFMLSWildacresWorkshopa“mustdo”experience.Ihopetoseeyouandtheresoyoucanexpe-riencethefunforyourself.
Page 10 Chippers’ Chatter – May, 2015
Mineral of the Month by Jim Hooper
Malachite
Malachitehastobeoneofthemostcollectedmin-erals, ever. This perennial favorite has enjoyed widepopularityfromancienttimestopresentday.Andwiththingsgreeninguparoundus(nowthatwe’regettinga little sunlight) it seemed like amineral so throughandthroughgreenitwouldbeworthyofaMineralofaSpringMonthstudy.Itwasalsoarequestedmineralofthemonthtoboot.
Ancient Egyptians and Greeks favored this fairlysoftandverycarve-ablemineralforjewelry,ornamen-tation, and ritual events and it is still popular to thisday. There seems to be some agreement among his-toriansandothersthatthere isevidenceof itsuse insocialtransactionsgoingbackatleast4,000years!
ThenameappearstocomefromtheGreekdescriptionofitas‘molochitislithos’or‘mallowcoloredstone’asthegreenremindedthemofmallowplants.Typicallynotseensomuch fashioned into small jewelry, itmakesbeautifulcabochons for largerapplications.Oneof the largestde-positswasintheUralmountainsofRussia.Therewasmin-ingenoughtocoverwallswithitinpalacesandhousesofnobility.Itwasfoundtoverydesirableforcarvingobjectsanditpolishesbeautifully.Itdoesnotgetusedforkitch-en,drinkingordiningfareasit’sbeingacoppercarbonatemeansit’stoxictousifingested.LapidariesareadvisedtowearamaskorotherwisekeepgroundorpowderedMala-chiteoutoftheairwheretheyareworking. TheworldwideavailabilityofMalachitekeepsitreasonably
pricedforcollectorsthoughsomeformsandlargecarvedobjectswill get pricey. Significant lo-calities producing Malachitethese days include Russia,Brazil,theUSA,Africa(Ugan-da, Zaire, Katanga,Dem. Re-public of Congo, Namibia),Mexico (Milpillas), Morroco,andSouthAustraliatonamebutafew.IntheUSgoodfind-ingshavebeeninArizona(Bis-bee,Mt.Morenci,Bingham).WheredepositsofMalachitewere found the connectionwith copper orewas quicklymadeandsomeofthosemin-ingsitesareoperatingtoday.Intheoxidizedzonesofcopperde-positsitisthemostcommonsecondarymineralfound.
Malachiteformsinthe‘oxidationzone’whereweath-eringandchemicalinteractionsresultinanumberofsul-fide minerals including Malachite’s first cousin, Azurite.The amount of carbon dioxide and water in the oxida-tionzonedetermineswhetheryougetMalachite,green,orAzurite,blue.ThechemicalsignatureforMalachiteisCu2CO3(OH)2.Coloringtendstobebrightgreen,darkgreen,blackishgreen,commonlybanded inmasses. Itappearsinanumberofcrystalhabitsincludingbotroydal-reniform(smooth and lumpy),massive, botryoidal, stalactitic,(cutin cross sections they make dramatic concentrically cir-cledcrystals),and acicular totabularprismatic. Round-edmasses,finger-likeprojectionsofstalactitics,andvugscanformandtheacicularformscanmasstoform‘Velvet
MalachiteShaba ProvinceDem. Rep. of CongoWikimedia CommonsPhoto: Giovanni Dall’Orto
MalachiteKolwezi Mine
Katanga, Dem. Rep. of CongoPhoto: Wikimedia Commons
continued on page 11
Page 11 Chippers’ Chatter – May, 2015
Auctions - Bernie and Lynne Emery
Directory (address changes) Patty Lortie Field Trips - Russell Byers
Greeters - Barbara Buchleitner
Hospitality - Liz & Wendy Stanne
Committee Chairpersons
Mineral of the Month - Jim Hooper
Personals/Announcements/ Sunshine - Lynne Emery and Patricia Smith
Programs - Richard Hoff, Keith Kaneda & Tony Wilner
Safety - Johnny Johnsson
Show - Bernie Emery & Lynne Luger
Showcase - Steve Dyer
Telephone Chain Lynne Luger Phylllis Dyer Dawn Johnsson Mary Chandler Liz Stanne Wendy Stanne
Malachite’. ‘Velvet Malachite’ forms surfaces of fibrouscrystals that reflect light in away that produces a fasci-nating,fuzzy,greensurfacethatchangeswiththeangleoflighting.Speakingofchanges,theAzurite-Malachitetran-sitionscancontinueafterthemineralhasbeenremovedfromadepositandcutorgroundtopowder.Earlypaintersofancienttimes(andlater)usedpowderedAzuritetogetbeautifulbluesforskiesandsuchintheirworks.OvertimetheAzuritewouldtransitiontoMalachiteandthebeauti-fulblueskiesturnedgreen,anunexpectedbutrevealingcluetowheretheartist’spigmentscamefrom.
It’s hardnessmeasures 3.5 – 4. Good for carvingcabochonsandlargerpiecesbutdifficultforsmall,in-tricate jewelry. The crystal habit is described as pris-matic and the system ismonoclinic. Asmentioned itcan appear in different forms and has the ability toformpseudomorphsafterAzurite.
Diaphaneityor lightpassage ranges from translu-centtoopaque.AssociatedmineralsoftenfoundwithMalachitemayincludeAurichalcite,Azurite,Brochan-tite,Cuprite,Calcite,Chalcedony,Limonite,andChrys-acolla.AndmicrocrystalsofMalachitearesaidtohavebeen foundat thePortland-LehighCementQuarry inUnionBridge,Maryland.Doyouhaveaniceexampleyou’reparticularyproudof?ByallmeansbringthemtothemeetingfortheMineraloftheMonthdisplaysoallmightseethoseamazinggreensthatarebelongingtoMalachiteandMalachitealone.
Mineral of the Monthcontinued from page 10
More From Rochester
Chesapeakemembers Al Pribula, LindaWatts, SteveandPhyllisDyerandSteveandCarolynWeinbergermadethe weekend trip to attend the 42nd annual RochesterMineralogicalSymposiumthelastweekendofApril.Inad-dition to awonderful scheduleof speakers and a variedselectionofretaildealers,thesymposiumalwaysfeaturesaroomofwonderfulmineraldisplays.
Carolyn Weinberger PO Box 302 Glyndon, MD 21071-0302
Upcoming Events
May: 8: “Fabulous Field Finds” program at Westchester.Meetingbeginsat7:30pm.Seepage1fordetails.
9: SouthMountainSwapandSalesponsoredbytheFranklinCo.CentralPARockandMineralClubs.So.Moun-tainFairgrounds,615NarrowsRd;Biglerville,PA(1.5mileswest of Arendtsville on route 234). 8:00 am - 3:00pm.Admission$1.00peradult,kidsfree.
![for brule^ [sp?] banquets [pronounced bahn-kays] on ...](https://static.documents.pub/doc/80x56/619c26e075b62f70e14b00b3/for-brule-sp-banquets-pronounced-bahn-kays-on-.jpg)
