SiS: Rhexoxylon Or Cycad? EXTREMELY RARE 5. 5 " Madagascar Petrified Wood Round
Item History & Price
| Reference Number: Avaluer:44325971 | Country/Region of Manufacture: United States |
OK fossil mystery sleuths! Here's a beautiful and very unusual specimen that is going to take a bit more research to figure out what it actually is! This beautifully colored, beautifully polished slab is one of the newest we've prepared in the Sticks in Stones rockshop as we get back into auction season. I know you've seen over-saturated photos on eBay that only disappointed when you saw a dull, colorless rock arrive in the mail, but I assure you this is a VERY accura...te picture of an unusually colored round from Madagascar with very unique fossil structure! I actually suspect that a cycad trunk might best explain what I'm seeing in this piece, but I'm loathe to toss that out as an identification without a better understanding of what the alternatives might be. I cut a couple of nice Rhexoxylon specimens from this same shipment (both were unexpected to say the least!) but this fossil isn't quite like those. The plant seems to have grown quite distinctly in each of the bands now preserved by different colors. At first I thought it was probably just partially decayed and separating before it was petrified, but on closer examination I don't think that's what's going on. Under magnification I can see growth structure in that almost pineapple pattern of darker colors separated distinctly by the very clearly preserved growth structure in the orange bands. Whatever it is, it's fascinating and very distinct from anything else I've ever examined from this site - and that's a lot! This is a smaller sized, unusual and beautiful round cut from the center of a choice petrified wood log from Madagascar! It's actually the first cut off the log so thickness varies a bit as the back is actually the hand ground finish applied to the log before exporting from Madagascar while the display face is our mirror flat finish. We have all seen the bland, lifeless specimens from this remote island nation that are dully finished and sold cheap, but you haven't really seen what the other side of the world can produce until you've seen one of the premium grade specimens we've prepared in our shop with a mirror finish unmatched by any petrified wood you've ever seen before! The white agate and the pockets near the center suggest a log that may have just started to decay before it was petrified. The other surprise with this piece is the structure of the wood. It's not just colorful, it's finely preserved in many areas and offers enough detail to make an interesting research project! It's a really beautiful piece and if you haven't seen our polish work before then you're really in for a treat on this one! Polished to a mirror finish, this is a great piece to study, admire and enjoy!We purchased some new logs a few years ago from a new miner at the wholesale shows and I'm really excited by the wonderful color in these nicely preserved specimens! The color variations preserved in the wood grain are unmatched by any log I've cut from this forest and that starburst wood grain looks like a celestial wonder! This gorgeous, absolutely choice petrified wood round is the latest in a series of really nice, very colorful rounds that we've cut from some nice, larger logs we obtained this year in Tucson. I met a new miner this year that brought some petrified logs in from this distant island nation and what he had was by far the best I'd seen in many, many years. Very nice, brilliantly colored logs hand selected for wood structure and eye appeal. I bought several and couldn't wait to start cutting. This log is the first in the series and the color really is remarkable! In this case, I cut a smaller sized, short log to produce some of the nicest Madagascar rounds I've ever seen! Since I'm the one that cut it, I was able to apply some of the craftsmanship I've learned over the years to avoid problems with flaked out fracture lines that are common in the imported specimens. I've also polished it to a much higher quality luster than you find on the imported varieties. Even if you already have Madagascar wood in your collection, you owe it to yourself to see how nice these ancient treasures can be when properly prepared! This wood takes an extreme polish that looks just fabulous. It has a ton of detail and some of the nicest colors I've ever seen in petrified wood (and considering what we usually have on hand this is saying a lot). The neutral interior is nicely accented with a huge variety of colors all swirled with other natural tones that preserved the fibrous wood cell structure from this ancient tree fossil very well. The heart is clearly visible and there are several crystal filled cavities that penetrate the surface. It's a striking Madagascar wood round sure to enhance any collection! . It's just amazing how beautiful petrified wood can be and this fine specimen found halfway around the world shows to what lengths people will go to bring these treasures to market! If you don't own a top grade piece form this increasingly important deposit yet in your own collection, this is your chance. This is a perfect round cut from the center of a nice, collectible sized log. This stone has been professionally polished on a special lap that produces a flat face and a mirror perfect shine. It is a perfect slab cut from the center of the log. The polish really is liquid perfect - a difference in the quality products Sticks-in-Stones has built its reputation on! It measures about 5 1/2" in diameter. It's cut about 3/8" thick. Weight is 0.74 lbs. A nice, unique naturally wonderful stone collectible exclusively from Sticks-in-Stones Lapidary - eBay's Original Rockshop!
