Help with identifying stones

[Emerald Isles]

Hello! I've had a sizable collection of stones that I collected from Chesapeake Bay when I was a kid. Now I'm not sure about how "real" or "natural" some of these are. I've already confirmed having amethyst, aventurine, different colors of quartz, etc. The ones in the picture are the ones that I really have no idea about. Could any of you help me identify these stones? Thank you!

http://i47.tinypic.com/m82nbt.jpg
http://i47.tinypic.com/107nfjn.jpg
http://i48.tinypic.com/2ik31c2.jpg
http://i46.tinypic.com/34eaqvt.jpg
http://i47.tinypic.com/jsbx4g.jpg

[PathWalker]

First picture contains a banded agate - the lovely swirling grey lined one. And the two mottled rich blue ones are probably Sodalite? That'd be my guess on them anyway.



ETA - the last picture - there's two like that right? Either Sodalite, or Lapis if it contains flecks of metallic gold - don't know if that's likely in the area you found it though.

[earl]

On the first picture (from top left moving clockwise): Eye agate, Sodalite*, Sodalite*, Sodalite*, Blue agate(?), Blue Agate(?).

Second photo (from top left moving clockwise): Blue agate(?), Sodalite*, Blue agate(?), Blue agate(?), eye agate, Sodalite*.

The orange stone on the third and fourth picture looks like brecciated jasper to me. And I'm not sure as to what the last stone is. Unless you post a higher quality photo of it.

The last picture is of a Sodalite.

Marker: *=if they have gold flecks on them, they could be Lapis Lazuli. If they don't, then they are Sodalite.
(?)= I'm not sure.

[Emerald Isles]

Thanks a lot to both of you! The stone in the last picture is just a close up of the same one in the first two pictures. It's more purple than blue and it has some brownish-gold spots on it. That one boggles me the most because I haven't seen anything like it. Then again, I'm not well-versed in crystals and geology in general.

[LRichard]

Originally Posted by Emerald Isles

Thanks a lot to both of you! The stone in the last picture is just a close up of the same one in the first two pictures. It's more purple than blue and it has some brownish-gold spots on it. That one boggles me the most because I haven't seen anything like it. Then again, I'm not well-versed in crystals and geology in general.

That's Lapis Lazuli, I'm 99.9% positive. It looks almost the same as my Lapis samples. ETA. Pardon the crappy picture. It's actually a scan. My camera is out in the truck.

[shelikes2read]

Since most of the stones have had at least one ID posted here, I just want to add that some of the super-duper blue agate stones here (banded markings) might possibly have been dyed blue.

Blue Lace Agate is naturally blue, but it's not as deep of a hue as the ones in these photos. If I am not mistaken, undyed agate is normally more in hue like the first agate stone in the first picture.

[Emerald Isles]

LRichard: Thanks for sharing that photo! Your lapis sample does look a lot like mine, though yours seems more intense in color. It's beautiful!

shelikes2read: Yeah, that's been a suspicion of mine since some of them don't exactly look too "natural". I've looked up blue lace agate and from what I can see, it looks to be a very pale blue color. Thanks for the advice!

[shelikes2read]

Originally Posted by Emerald Isles

LRichard: Thanks for sharing that photo! Your lapis sample does look a lot like mine, though yours seems more intense in color. It's beautiful!

shelikes2read: Yeah, that's been a suspicion of mine since some of them don't exactly look too "natural". I've looked up blue lace agate and from what I can see, it looks to be a very pale blue color. Thanks for the advice!

When I encounter a stone that I'm reasonably sure has been dyed, I normally use it as though it's got the natural properties of the stone itself, plus I engage in a bit of "color therapy" and match it to the color of the corresponding chakra. So even the crystals that have had some man-made enhancement are still usable for therapeutic purposes, IMO.

If you REALLY want to get dyed stones, it seems that science museum gift shops are the place to go. It's a little frustrating for me, as I normally prefer stones that haven't been color-enhanced, and I used to find that these gift shops were good places to pick up samples. Now, however, someone has hit on the idea of giving stones bright colors. I guess they have more appeal to kids that way.

So I've found it useful to try and determine what color a given stone is naturally, so I can spot the dyed ones more easily.

Having said that... if I find a rock that really calls out to me, I'm not going to let a little thing like dye stand in my way.

[baylys]

The crystal that is next to the jasper in the 3rd and 4th photo, is it a pale lilac/purple colour, very pale with silvery "flakes" to it? From the photo it looks like lepidolite to me, but hard to see.

[Emerald Isles]

It's actually a pale blue/gray stone covered with silver and deeper blue specks. It was definitely hard to take a decent picture of it and I admit I gave up on it after a few tries ^^;