Montana Agate Parcel

Montana Agate Parcel.  2 pounds of nice slabs, all suitable for small pendants or ring sets.  This collection was built from odds and ends; pieces too small to list individually or broken pieces from larger slabs.  Each parcel contains between 25 – 30 and is a real bargain at $69.00.

Montana agate has been a long time favorite of the lapidary enthusiast.  Found in the alluvial gravels of the Yellowstone River in eastern Montana it has been collected and worked as a semiprecious stone for nearly a century.  Noted for its clarity as well as its characteristic isolated black, and occasionally bright red dendrites, it makes excellent cabbing material.  The majority of Montana agate pieces show a well-defined fortification pattern of black and brown as well as bright red/orange.  There are also variations of filament and tube patterns and a small percentage display an “iris” band in which minute, regularly spaced layers act as a diffusion grating and, like a prism, break light into a rainbow of color.  It is a relatively easy material to work with, being quite hard, and takes a brilliant polish.