Old_Festus
Jr. Member
I recently started panning for gold in eastern Pa.... just for a little recreation in the evenings.
Today I found two small "specimens" buried down on top of a flat piece of shale, mixed in with the magnetic black sand. The first is a completely clear stone (the size is about about 1/4" square) , which I though might be quartz. It's very clear...so clear, it almost looks like a piece of glass...making me wonder if that's exactly what it is. Since I'm in Pennsylvania.... I know that it isn't a diamond but how do I know if its a gem stone or just glass?
The second I found is green in color, which I though might be a beryl stone....but again, it could be the reminiscent of an old discarded green glass beer bottle. Its smaller than the clear one.
When you find stuff like this...how do you go about ruling out it's nothing more than glass bounced around the river for the last 10 years?
If I were up in the mountains o northern PA, where generally less people have traveled (more specifically less glass rubbish finds its way into rivers, etc) it would be easier to conclude these may be semi precious stones but the two specimens I found were in the Delaware river...so that really makes a difference.
I realize a jeweler can certainly tell me, but how do I as a layperson determine what I have.... meaning if it's worth getting something looked at?
Today I found two small "specimens" buried down on top of a flat piece of shale, mixed in with the magnetic black sand. The first is a completely clear stone (the size is about about 1/4" square) , which I though might be quartz. It's very clear...so clear, it almost looks like a piece of glass...making me wonder if that's exactly what it is. Since I'm in Pennsylvania.... I know that it isn't a diamond but how do I know if its a gem stone or just glass?
The second I found is green in color, which I though might be a beryl stone....but again, it could be the reminiscent of an old discarded green glass beer bottle. Its smaller than the clear one.
When you find stuff like this...how do you go about ruling out it's nothing more than glass bounced around the river for the last 10 years?
If I were up in the mountains o northern PA, where generally less people have traveled (more specifically less glass rubbish finds its way into rivers, etc) it would be easier to conclude these may be semi precious stones but the two specimens I found were in the Delaware river...so that really makes a difference.
I realize a jeweler can certainly tell me, but how do I as a layperson determine what I have.... meaning if it's worth getting something looked at?
