	Home Earth Treasures

	SHELF #1
	SPECIMENS FOR SALE, Priced less than $100.00
	(Work in progress - being updated early 2015)


	Specimens here are representative of our inventory, so if you don't see exactly what you are looking for please email us at wheierman@corunduminium.com and I will try to find it. If you are interested in a particular specimen, please refer to it using the reference in the left column. Pictures are thumbnails - click on images for full resolution photos. We prefer to do business the good, old-fashioned way; but if paying by check or money order we may require clearance of funds prior to shipment. We can take PayPal payments, but are not set up for credit cards. We do combine shipments (or you may pick your stones up) and we can offer reduced prices on multiple orders, depending on whose specimens are involved and how much discretion we have. We prefer to ship by U.S. Mail (First Class, Priority, or Parcel Post). For heavy items or lots, Flat Rate Priority seems to be the best way to ship. Prices mentioned do not include shipping costs. If you are in the area (Medows Place, Texas, just southwest of Houston), you may pick up any purchases for free.

	Last updated December 21, 2010.


	WYOMING BANDED IRONSTONE
	A very attractive "banded ironstone", self-collected in the Rattlesnake Mountains of southeastern Wyoming, resembles petrified wood; but it is really chalcedony stained by iron oxides (hematite, goethite, limonite). Most pieces have a waxy feel and luster, created by the natural sand-blasting which occurs in the windy, semi-desert environment.

	RUDIST BIVALVE FOSSILS
	Near Sun City Georgetown, Georgetown, Texas, there was a locality which produced rudist bivalve fossils, some highly agatized, and some casts lined with quartz. These were collected by a couple of friends who live in Bertram in their spare time. The site is now off limits, meaning its collecting heyday is probably over. In addition to these, there others in the possession of a friend who collected them years ago that are for sale.


	YOGO SAPPHIRE MINE ACCESSORY MINERALS
	The Yogo Sapphire Mine in central Montana produces not only the legendary cornflower blue and violet gemstones but also some interesting collectible secondary minerals and fossils. Iron concretions, clusters of cubic crystals (pseudomorphs of hematite or goethite after pyrite), were picked out of the wash plant and saved by Vortex Mining, and a few of these are still available. As the mine went deeper, vugs were encountered that were lined with calcite, and some of this material is quite striking.

	MISCELLANEOUS CORUNDUM SPECIMENS
	Specimens from our collection or from lots purchased to cherry pick for the collection are offered below. We have more than 1,000 specimens from many World-wide localities, so if you are looking for something in particular please let us know.

	BURMESE PAINITES
	Painite has been listed in the Guinnes" Book of World Records as the World's rarest gemstone mineral. For about 20 years, only two specimens had been identified. Recently a find of painite in situ generated enough specimens that it began to appear on the market (although at exacerbated prices). For more about this rarity, you may see two seminal Internet articles by George Rossman ( http://minerals.caltech.edu/files/Visible/painite/Index.htm ) and Vincent Pardieu ( http://www.aigsthailand.com/(A(KK_21TCYyAEkAAAAZmQ4YTJmYmEtMTQyNS00YzlkLWExNDItMjcwM2EzM2RhNTQ4sK ).

TT-1

This Wyoming turritella specimen was collected in the 1960's by a couple who had a lapidary business in Deer Lodge, Montana. It is some of the most loaded I have seen, and it polishes beautifully! Approximate dimensions are 5-1/2" by 2" by 1-3/4". ($10.00)

TT-2

This Wyoming turritella specimen was collected in the 1960's by a couple who had a lapidary business in Deer Lodge, Montana. It is some of the most loaded I have seen (in the first picture, it is wet to show what polished cabs may look like), and it polishes beautifully! The last picture shows natural relief, probably caused by a flood or something that changed the composition of the bottom. It's a nearly cubic block, having approximate dimensions 3-1/2" by 3-1/2" by 3-1/4". ($25.00)

TT-3

This Wyoming turritella specimen was collected in the 1960's by a couple who had a lapidary business in Deer Lodge, Montana. It is some of the most loaded I have seen (in the last picture, it is wet to show what polished cabs may look like), and it polishes beautifully! The second picture shows the edge of this platy specimen, covered with what is probably lime, removable by acid. Approximate dimensions are approximately 8" by 5" by 2". ($35.00)

BI-1

This "banded ironstone" is from the Rattlesnake Mountains in southeastern Wyoming. It has a waxy luster and feel due to the constant bombardment by wind and sand in this semi-desert environment. Needless to say, Cabochons and carvings polish beautifully! It's a chalcedony, colored various shades of brown by inclusions of iron oxides hematite, goethite, and limonite. This is a fine example of the layered material that some swear is petrified wood; but it isn't! Approximate dimensions are 4-1/2" by 2-1/2" by 2-1/2". ($25.00)

BI-2

This "banded ironstone" is from the Rattlesnake Mountains in southeastern Wyoming. It has a waxy luster and feel due to the constant bombardment by wind and sand in this semi-desert environment. Needless to say, Cabochons and carvings polish beautifully! It's a chalcedony, colored various shades of brown by inclusions of iron oxides hematite, goethite, and limonite. The purplish color evident in the second photo is quite unusual! Approximate dimensions are 3-1/4" by 3" by 2". ($35.00)

BI-3

This "banded ironstone" is from the Rattlesnake Mountains in southeastern Wyoming. It has a waxy luster and feel due to the constant bombardment by wind and sand in this semi-desert environment. Needless to say, Cabochons and carvings polish beautifully! It's a chalcedony, colored various shades of brown by inclusions of iron oxides hematite, goethite, and limonite. This one is mustard-colored, lighter than most, Approximate dimensions are 2/1/2" by 2-1/2" by 1". ($18.00)

RB-1

Fossilized rudist bivalves, Georgetown, Texas: This specimen contains a partial agatized shell, lined by small, gemmy quartx crystals where the flesy body used to be. Approximate dimensions: 5/1/4" by 3-1/2" by 3" ($20.00)

RB-2

Fossilized rudist bivalves, Georgetown, Texas: Specimen contains shell sections and fragments, cemented together and filled with silicified clay. Some of the shells are highly agatized. Approximate dimensions: 5" by 4" by 3" ($25.00)

RB-3

Agatized rudist bivalves, Georgetown, Texas: Specimen contains shell sections and fragments, cemented together and filled with silicified clay. It is perhaps the most aesthetic of the group. It sits nicely on a natural "base", shown in the last image. There are a couple of small vugs, lined with tiny quartz crystals. Approximate dimensions: 4" by 4" by 3" ($30.00)

RB-4

Agatized rudist bivalves, Georgetown, Texas: The largest shell, which has a milky appearance, is exposed for almost 5 ". Much of the specimen (see last photo) is comprised of hundreds of broken fragments cemented in brown silicified silt. Approximate dimensions: 8" by 6" by 4" ($65.00)

RB-5

Agatized rudist bivalves, Georgetown, Texas: Most of this specimen is a section of a large shell, partially lined with small, gemmy quartz crystals. Other, smaller partial shells are cemented to it by silicified silt. There are a couple of small vugs, lined with tiny quartz crystals. Approximate dimensions: 5" by 4" by 2-1/2" ($30.00)

RB-6

Agatized rudist bivalves, Georgetown, Texas: This specimen is comprised mainly of a series of parallel somewhat hollow tubes, often lined with tiny quartz crystals. Approximate dimensions: 4-1/2" by 3" by 2-1/2" ($20.00)

RB-7

Agatized rudist bivalves, Georgetown, Texas: I like this silicified silt specimen because of its arrowhead shape and rich seam of agatized shells whose interiors are lined with tiny quartz crystals. Approximate dimensions: 6" by 3" by 1-1/4" ($30.00)