[Rockhounds] Repairing Herkimer Clusters

[Lawrence Bull]

How about reassembled.....?
 
Larry Bull> From: larryrush at worldnet.att.net> To: rockhounds at lists.drizzle.com> Subject: Re: [Rockhounds] Repairing Herkimer Clusters> Date: Mon, 14 Apr 2008 17:55:08 -0400> > This is true with some Herkimer Quartz crystals, such as Darryl's. Many vug > clusters were never attached to each other (or the vug wall), in the sense > that they were not intergrown structurally or morphologically. When the vug > is opened, and the clay removed, they fall apart from each other. The > cluster is much more aesthetic when replaced in it's original configuration, > but a drop of glue is needed to hold them together.> > Maybe a better label term would be "strengthened", as opposed to "repaired". > I have used glue at times to strengthen a weak crack, not completely broken, > and this is more like that situation than a repaired break.> > For those who have never done this, it approaches extreme frustration to sit > at a kitchen table for hours in the dead of Winter, trying to fit the > cluster back to it's original configuration, especially when there are as > many as 6 separate crystals that fit precisely together. Kinda like a 3-D > jigsaw puzzle!> > Larry> > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Rick Trapp" <rick.trapp at azgs.az.gov>> To: "Rockhounds at drizzle.com: A mailing list for rock and gem collectors" > <rockhounds at lists.drizzle.com>> Sent: Monday, April 14, 2008 3:49 PM> Subject: Re: [Rockhounds] Repairing Herkimer Clusters> > > > >> > I'm going to raise a question here about the use of "repaired" when> > applied to herkimer quartz and the like.> >> >> >> > I found a quartz specimen from Diamond Point, Arizona, a locality with > > many similarities to the Herkimer localities. The quartz crystals occur in > > vugs of all sizes in dolomitic limestone, often attached to the sides of > > the vug, but not always - sometimes they are free floaters with no obvious > > signs of attachment to the sides of the vug. The rind> of the vugs is ordinarily dolomitic (as opposed to dolomitic limestone) and > the quartz crystals normally have an attachment point, large or small, but > characteristic. The rest of the vug is usually filled with yellow calcite, > white calcite, and mud, sometimes lithified sometimes not so much. Some vugs > occur with no quartz, some with no calcite. The apparent paragenetic > sequence is then: dolomite, quartz, calcite.> >> >> >> > I was able to recover a complete vug filling with three amethyst crystals, > > all of which were separate crystals, but they fit together perfectly and > > none showed any broken edges whatsoever. The rest of the vug was a mixture > > of mud and tiny little pieces of calcite. Even when viewed under a > > low-power microscope, there are no signs of breakage on> any of the crystals. The crystals fit together so well, that if you wet the > contact surfaces and press the crystals together a little the crystals will > remain attached to each other until disturbed or until the water evaporates.> >> >> > I used tiny amounts of super glue to make the crystals adhere to each> > other permanently.> > >> > I have been told that this specimen is "repaired".> > >> > My question is: If there is no evidence of breakage on these crystals,> > how can this specimen be considered to be repaired? How is this> > procedure, in this particular case (no evidence of fractures or> > breakage), any different than gluing a specimen to a stand?> >> >> >> >> >> > Rick> > -- > _______________________________________________> Rockhounds at drizzle Mailing List> Subscription Services:> http://lists.drizzle.com/mailman/listinfo/rockhounds> List Home Page, with a link to the List Usage Policy:> http://www.eclecticlapidary.com/Rockhounds/index.html
_________________________________________________________________
Get in touch in an instant. Get Windows Live Messenger now.
http://www.windowslive.com/messenger/overview.html?ocid=TXT_TAGLM_WL_Refresh_getintouch_042008

--- StripMime Report -- processed MIME parts ---
multipart/alternative
  text/plain (text body -- kept)
  text/html
---