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RANCHO MOCTEZUMA 
OPATA AGATE
FINE MEXICAN STONE
BLONDE, YELLOW, & CREAM
FORTIFICATIONS
WITH CENTER EYE
ALTE FUNDE FIND
1.625" x 1.25" x 1.75"
POLISHED FACE / ROUGH TOP
3.375 ounces
OLD STOCK
from the
BOB & NANCY HICKS RANCH
Inventory # 109

 

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FYI

Agate is a cryptocrystalline variety of silica, chiefly chalcedony, characterised by its fineness of grain and brightness of color. Although agates may be found in various kinds of rock, they are classically associated with volcanic rocks and can be common in certain metamorphic rocks.

Etymology and history
The stone was given its name by Theophrastus, a Greek philosopher and naturalist, who discovered the stone along the shore line of the river Achates (Greek: ??????) in present-day Sicily, sometime between the 4th and 3rd centuries BC. Colorful agates and other chalcedonies were obtained over 3,000 years ago from the Achates River, now called Dirillo.

Ancient use
Agate is one of the most common materials used in the art of hardstone carving, and has been recovered at a number of ancient sites, indicating its widespread use in the ancient world; for example, archaeological recovery at the Knossos site on Crete illustrates its role in Bronze Age Minoan culture.

Formation and characteristics
Most agates occur as nodules in volcanic rocks or ancient lavas, in former cavities produced by volatiles in the original molten mass, which were then filled, wholly or partially, by siliceous matter deposited in regular layers upon the walls. Agate has also been known to fill veins or cracks in volcanic or altered rock underlain by granitic intrusive masses. Such agates, when cut transversely, exhibit a succession of parallel lines, often of extreme tenuity, giving a banded appearance to the section. Such stones are known as banded agate, riband agate and striped agate.

In the formation of an ordinary agate, it is probable that waters containing silica in solution—derived, perhaps, from the decomposition of some of the silicates in the lava itself—percolated through the rock and deposited a siliceous coating on the interior of the vesicles. Variations in the character of the solution or in the conditions of deposition may cause a corresponding variation in the successive layers, so that bands of chalcedony often alternate with layers of crystalline quartz. Several vapour-vesicles may unite while the rock is still viscous, and thus form a large cavity which may become the home of an agate of exceptional size; thus a Brazilian geode lined with amethyst and weighing 35 tons was exhibited at the Düsseldorf Exhibition of 1902. Perhaps the most comprehensive review of agate chemistry is a recent text by Moxon cited below.

The first deposit on the wall of a cavity, forming the "skin" of the agate, is generally a dark greenish mineral substance, like celadonite, delessite or "green earth", which are rich in iron probably derived from the decomposition of the augite in the enclosing volcanic rock. This green silicate may give rise by alteration to a brown iron oxide (limonite), producing a rusty appearance on the outside of the agate-nodule. The outer surface of an agate, freed from its matrix, is often pitted and rough, apparently in consequence of the removal of the original coating. The first layer spread over the wall of the cavity has been called the "priming", and upon this base, zeolitic minerals may be deposited.

Many agates are hollow, since deposition has not proceeded far enough to fill the cavity, and in such cases the last deposit commonly consists of drusy quartz, sometimes amethystine, having the apices of the crystals directed towards the free space so as to form a crystal-lined cavity or geode.

When the matrix in which the agates are embedded disintegrates, they are set free. The agates are extremely resistant to weathering and remain as nodules in the soil, or are deposited as gravel in streams and along shorelines.

Coyamito agate was mined less than 40 miles from the world famous Laguna agate, making its origins in Northern Mexico. Coyamito Agate is known for its wonderful vibrant colors of reds, oranges, violets, and blues.  Rare in most agates, psuedomorphs  are quite prevalent.  Psuedomophs are areas in agate that a mineral crystal has formed. Typically these mineral crystals have been dissolved leaving a hollow cast of the crystal, or filled in with agate creating a unique banded formation.

A pseudomorph is something that takes the form of something else. Pseudomorphs in agate are quite rare but do occur in nodular agates from various locations, usually as a calcite or aragonite replacement. The Coyamito agate deposit in Chihuahua Mexico produces more pseudomorphs than any other agate location.

The formational process goes something like this. First crystals grow in the gas cavity left in the volcanic andesite rock (these crystals are believed to be aragonite in the case of the Coyamito Agate). The agate then starts forming, coating the crystals and the inside of the cavity. The more agate that forms the thicker the coating on the crystals. This process can continue until the gas cavity is filled or, more frequently stops, leaving a hollow portion in the nodule. Like all nodular agates, quartz or agate may form changing from one to the other.

As the agate layer forms over the crystal, the shape of the resulting formation gets smoother, until it becomes roughly spherical in cross section. A solid agate cut across such a formation would show a concentric banded pattern almost spherical on the outside and hexagonal toward its center (hexagonal at the point of first coating the crystal).

Historically, Agate has been discovered with the artifacts of Neolithic people, and was used as healing amulets and ornamentation dating back to Babylon. Its medicinal uses continued through the ancient Greek and Egyptian civilizations, and spread throughout Africa and the Middle East into Russia. Agate sparked a world renowned stonecutting and polishing industry in Germany that flourished from the 15th to the 19th century, and exists today. [Simmons, 6][Mella, 67-68]

Metaphysically, Agate has a lower intensity and vibrates to a slower frequency than other stones, but is highly regarded as a stabilizing and strengthening influence. [Simmons, 6] Fiery Agates, like Laguna Agate, provide a steady, vibrant energy that stimulates a zest for living. They awaken the lower chakras and light the inner fires of Life Force, creativity, and sexuality.

Uses in industry and art
The "Rubens Vase" (Byzantine Empire). Carved in high relief from a single piece of agate, this extraordinary vase was most likely created in an imperial workshop for a Byzantine emperor.
Industrial uses of agate exploit its hardness, ability to retain a highly polished surface finish and resistance to chemical attack. It has traditionally been used to make knife-edge bearings for laboratory balances and precision pendulums, and sometimes to make mortars and pestles to crush and mix chemicals. It has also been used for centuries for leather burnishing tools.

The decorative arts use it to make ornaments such as pins, brooches or other types of jewellery, paper knives, inkstands, marbles and seals. Agate is also still used today for decorative displays, cabochons, beads, carvings and Intarsia art as well as face-polished and tumble-polished specimens of varying size and origin. Idar-Oberstein was one of the centers which made use of agate on an industrial scale. Where in the beginning locally found agates were used to make all types of objects for the European market, this became a globalized business around the turn of the 20th century: Idar-Oberstein imported large quantities of agate from Brazil, as ship's ballast. Making use of a variety of proprietary chemical processes, they produced colored beads that were sold around the globe. Agates have long been used in arts and crafts. The sanctuary of a Presbyterian church in Yachats, Oregon, has six windows with panes made of agates collected from the local beaches.

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