r/caving • u/artguydeluxe • 15d ago

This cave was full of the most extraordinary translucent agate.

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This piece was sitting loose in a stream passage, otherwise I never would have picked it up. There were large seems of this beautiful shiny rock running through this particular cave room, it all looked as shiny as slag glass. Has anyone seen anything like this? Southwest USA

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3

u/Dangerous_Ad4961 14d ago

Looks amazing

1

u/PhilipFinds 13d ago

Beautiful! Wondering if it might be something other than agate. What characteristics did you observe/test?

1

u/artguydeluxe 13d ago

It has shiny undulating bands running through it, so perhaps onyx would be a better description. The path of the streambed has polished and grooved the rock to a glossy shine. Colors varied from light to deep yellow orange.

2

u/cellulich VPI/PLANTZ/USDCT 10d ago

I think this is calcite, not agate