[Rockhounds] Leaverites

[Brenda]

well said

On Thu, Sep 10, 2009 at 12:44 PM, Carolyn Reynard <sunstone33 at verizon.net>wrote:

> Just a little word about leaverites...they have gotten a little bit of a
> "bad rap"!  For instance, the rock might not be something you wish to keep
> but it might give you a very good story about the geology of an area.
> Do you remember when you found a really good specimen looking through
> someone else's "leaverites".
> And of course what one rockhound may consider a
> "leaverite" might  be interesting to another.
> The specimen we have all been talking about certainly
> wins no prize for looks but interesting due the indicators of pyrite
> crystals.  I remember seeing contorted slate in Northern Vermont peppered
> with
> the shapes of long gone pyrite crystals, at that early time in my learning
> geology it was a mystery to me what had created those shapes. It all is a
> long term search to discover the mysteries of rocks and minerals and
> certainly worth the trip.
>
> Carolyn Reynard
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: <pmodreski at aol.com>
> To: <rockhounds at lists.drizzle.com>
> Sent: Thursday, September 10, 2009 11:55 AM
> Subject: Re: [Rockhounds] Ashland MA identification help
>
>
> > >From this exchange, I have learned some good things about the Ashland
> Quarry (MA) that I didn't know before!
> >
> >
> >  I mean no offense but the specimen in
> > the photo looks more like a geology reference specimen than what we
> > typically look for when collecting there.  nevertheless I hope this above
> > information has been helpful.
> >
> >
> > But as per Nate's comment--again, no offense intended--your specimen may
> in fact be a very good example of that good old rockhound favorite,
> "leaverite" !
> >
> >
> >
> > :? )
> >
> >
> >
> > Pete
> >
> >
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: Nathan Martin <rocknate at gmail.com>
> > To: Rockhounds at drizzle.com: A mailing list for rock and gem collectors
> <rockhounds at lists.drizzle.com>
> > Sent: Wed, Sep 9, 2009 10:02 pm
> > Subject: Re: [Rockhounds] Ashland MA identification help
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > I'm curious as to why you assume that the specimen is from the Ashland
> > Quarry in MA.  Was it in a flat of other materials from NorthEast US
> > localities?
> >
> > There indeed is an Aggregate Industries Quarry in Ashland, MA.  My local
> > club, the Boston Mineral Club, has run several fieldtrips there over the
> > last ten years (including this year).  In the last 10 years the commonly
> > collected minerals there include epidote, magnetite, ferrohornblende,
> > pyrite, titanite, ilmenite, etc.  I have also collected feldspar & smoky
> > quartz from isolated veins several years ago.  Mindat gives a more
> complete
> > listing at http://www.mindat.org/loc-6846.html.  Most of the mineral and
> > site photos from this locality that appear on mindat were taken by our
> club
> > president, Peter Cristofono.  A few years ago on a club trip one of our
> > members discovered some unknown tan-colored spheres that turned out to be
> > kamphaugite-(Y).
> >
> > The quarry has been operated for crushed stone since it was opened in
> 1948
> > by Bayer & Mingolla Industries and later sold to Trimount and finally
> > Aggregate Industries.  I have been told that operations at the quarry may
> > soon cease.   Oddly enough the mineralogy of the locality is best
> described
> > as an alpine-cleft assembly and some of the best specimens found there
> have
> > been classic alpine cleft minerals.  For example, a 12" x 12" plate of
> one
> > inch chlorite-covered pericline crystals is reputed to be in the
> permanent
> > collection of the Smithsonian.  Also, in 1974, Bill Metropolis and Larry
> > Venezia opened a cleft containing a gemmy greenish-yellow titanite
> crystal
> > cluster, 1.75" x 1.12" x 1" in size
> >
> > It has been a great locality for Massachusetts collectors but I really
> can't
> > say if your specimen came from there.  I mean no offense but the specimen
> in
> > the photo looks more like a geology reference specimen than what we
> > typically look for when collecting there.  nevertheless I hope this above
> > information has been helpful.
> >
> > best regards,
> > Nate Martin
> > Lexington, MA
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > --- StripMime Report -- processed MIME parts ---
> > multipart/alternative
> >   text/plain (text body -- kept)
> >   text/html
> > ---
> > --
> > _______________________________________________
> > Rockhounds at drizzle Mailing List
> > Subscription Services:
> > http://lists.drizzle.com/mailman/listinfo/rockhounds
> > List Usage Policy:
> > http://rockhounds.ning.com/page/list-rules
>
> --
> _______________________________________________
> Rockhounds at drizzle Mailing List
> Subscription Services:
> http://lists.drizzle.com/mailman/listinfo/rockhounds
> List Usage Policy:
> http://rockhounds.ning.com/page/list-rules
>


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