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Rockhounding and Mineral Collecting

Ask questions about collecting rocks and minerals and their values here.

500 Questions

How are rocks helpful?

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Rocks have many uses economically, such in building and road and wall construction. Rocks are used to make breakwaters, thus improving harbours and beaches. Rocks are used to control erosion and deterioration of slopes and hillsides. Many old buildings in Aberdeen, Scotland are actually roofed with slabs of granite. The poor roofers don't get much work from these buildings since they last centuries.

How much is a crystal worth?

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The value of a crystal depends upon many things. For example; what mineral it is, size, clarity, quality, whether it's attached to matrix, or associated with other crystals, locality, rarity, etc. So to determine value, you must first determine exactly what you have.

What minerals are found in Texas?

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Texas does not have a State Mineral, but the State Rock is petrified palm wood, and the State Gemstone is blue topaz.

Can a rocks break?

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Some rocks can be shattered.

What was the first gem found?

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Short answer is that it's probably safe to say that nobody knows for sure.

Long answer is that jewelry, made of bone, shell, and teeth, was worn as long as 25,000 years BC.

Lapis lazuli has been mined in Afghanistan for the last 5,000 years.

Jade, amber, turquoise, and emerald have similarly very long histories.

How do you know if a rock that you found is jade?

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Jade can be tough to identify; there are lots of things that look exactly like it. Strong suspicion is often warranted. Firstly, did you find the rock in a known jade-producing area? That's a good sign. Second and thirdly, jade is hard, and very tough, a hammer is going to bounce right off it. Lastly, the best way to positively identify jade or any other gem is by consulting an expert. Find a local gem and mineral club, or a museum, or a university earth science department. Or, as a last resort, if you have none of the above, try to find a competent gemologist.

Can you explain why color is not a reliable method for identifying a mineral?

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Colors are not a reliable method for identifying a mineral because different minerals can have the same color. Take Calcite, Halite and Gypsum for example. At first glance, all three of them appear to be the same mineral. All three of them even have the same streak and luster. However, they all have a different hardness. Calcite has a hardness of three, Halite has 2.5 and Gypsum has 2.

Halite is made out of Sodium Chloride, but I wouldn't recommend tasting your mineral samples.

What is Best gold detector for under 800 dollars?

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It depends on what you are detecting!!! As the frequency goes up so does the ability to detect gold. As the frequency goes down you are better equipped to find coins and other metal. The type of coil also makes a difference. Look to well known brands that have been around for a while. Also look at used machines on sites like eBay

What happens to a frozen rock?

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Rocks cannot freeze.There molecular structure doesnt have an adaption to weather.

AnswerTechnically, rocks cannot freeze. There molecular structure doesn't adapt to weather, except by expansion and contraction. However, moisture inside the molecules of rocks can freeze. This causes even greater expansion and contraction within the rocks' structure, which can result in the rock cracking and even breaking apart, eventually. The scientific term for this effect is known as "weathering", and is highly common among rocky structures in cold and even temperate climates.

Is it legal to sell arrowheads?

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Yes of course it is they are sold at glenwood springs and other places in the mountain and eBay and craigslist

What do they call red corundum?

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Red corundum is called ruby.

What does 925 mean on jewerly?

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That means that the silver that it is made of is 92.5% pure; the highest level of purity in jewelry. Silver with higher levels of purity are too soft and are easily scratched and bent to be useful.

What is a lump of gold?

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River-worn lumps of gold are typically called nuggets. They can take a variety of shapes, from very flat to nearly spherical, and can be almost purely gold or contain pieces of the host rock, which is usually white quartz. Nuggets are generally worth more than spot price, but they're not as highly valued as crystalline gold or gold wire.

When was the first ruby found?

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The first ruby was found on June 30th, 1919.

What is quartz crystal worth?

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The pricing is highly variable, according to size, color, luster, locality, lack of damage, etc. A flawless transparent Swiss smoky quartz crystal as long as your arm will fetch thousands, whereas the standard Arkansas colorless point of finger size may go for ten bucks.

How much is a six hundred pound of jade worth?

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You need to read this site, it cautions you about fake Jade:

* http://reviews.ebay.com/WYOMING-NEPHRITE-JADE-MARKET-OF-TODAY-buyer-beware_W0QQugidZ10000000002756872

Example of quartz?

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You could start a fire with quartz, flint, or shert rocks if you are lost in the wilderness and you have a steel pocket knife to strike them with to form sparks. You could buy a quartz countertop for your kitchen.

How do you tell if a rock is a diamond?

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The field test for diamond is 'extreme hardness'.

If you believe that you've found a diamond stone, you can take it to a jeweler, who will apply a probe and verify your find as a diamond stone, or not.

What minerals can be found around your house?

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* Gold or silver in necklaces

How many kinds of ruby gems are there?

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Amorphous

Opal

Beryl

Aquamarine

Emerald

Morganite

Carbon

Diamond

Chrysoberyl

Alexandrite

Corundum

Ruby

Sapphire

Garnet (Pyrope)

Mandarin Garnet (Spessartite)

Rhodolite (Pyrope-Almandine)

Tsavorite (Grossular Garnet)

Olivine

Peridot

Quartz

Amethyst

Ametrine

Citrine

Spinel

Topaz

Blue Topaz

Imperial Topaz

Tourmaline

Paraíba (Cuprian Elbaite)

Tourmaline

Rubellite

Zircon

Zoisite

Tanzanite

Where is silver found in nature?

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Silver is generally found in rocks, and as a constituent of minerals like acanthite. It can also be found near the surface, in soils and sands, in nearly pure masses, or nuggets, from tiny to hundreds of kilograms, which have been torn from their host rock and smoothed and rounded by glaciation or rivers.

What influenced rock?

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Glam rock was influenced by many things. Most of all, 1950s rock 'n' roll. The production values were influenced heavily by late Beatles albums. In essence, Glam combined the driving guitar work of rock with the string arrangements and musical texture of George Martin's arrangements.