Fire Agate (ex Marvin Rockey estate)

Item Description

Most people are familiar with Agate, which is a form of chalcedony or microcrystalline quartz that forms in layers in a remarkable variety of colors and textures. If you go into a rockshop you'll almost certainly see a piece of banded Agate with multicolored layers. One of the rarest forms of Agate - Fire Agate - has been available commercially only in the last 60 years. You only see good material from Mexico and it's quite limited at times in terms of production. Fire Agate is a brown Agate which has a botryoidal or grape-like growth form. What is special about Fire Agate is that it contains layers of plate-like crystals of iron oxide (limonite) in various planes. The iridescent colors of red, gold, green and, occasionally, blue-violet, result from interference between diffracted light rays traveling through and reflecting from these thin layers. High quality Fire Agates can be as impressive in their play of color as fine Black Opal, but Fire Agate is significantly more durable than Opal. Fire Agate is suitable for any kind of jewelry, including rings. This "OVal" Cabochon cut gem is a beautiful example of this well known material, showing flashes of red, orange, yellow, green and a very slight blue/lavender zone. Only a tiny percentage of this material shows the blue/lavender/purple coloring, and it's quite desirable for collectors. Good quality and size, and perfect for any collector who wants an affordable example of this classic material.