Miners Dollars

fossis

Gold Member
Jan 5, 2007
7,837
96
eastern Oklahoma
Detector(s) used
Whites Prizm 11 & White's XLT
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting

Attachments

  • Picture 001.jpg
    Picture 001.jpg
    45.1 KB · Views: 1,796
OP
OP
fossis

fossis

Gold Member
Jan 5, 2007
7,837
96
eastern Oklahoma
Detector(s) used
Whites Prizm 11 & White's XLT
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
irbaddadjoe said:
Very neat fossis. I have lots of pyrite but have never seen disks like that.

Yeah Joe, they are pretty neat.

Fossis..............
 

Upvote 0

Old Dog

Gold Member
May 22, 2007
5,860
397
Western Colorado
Fossis,
Is your "dollar" irridescent?
sometimes they are coated with a microscopic coating of calcite that makes them look irridescent.

I have seen some of these as big as hubcaps.

Yours is a very nice size,
The location on these is Illinois.

OD
 

Upvote 0
OP
OP
fossis

fossis

Gold Member
Jan 5, 2007
7,837
96
eastern Oklahoma
Detector(s) used
Whites Prizm 11 & White's XLT
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Old Dog said:
Fossis,
Is your "dollar" irridescent?
sometimes they are coated with a microscopic coating of calcite that makes them look irridescent.

I have seen some of these as big as hubcaps.

Yours is a very nice size,
The location on these is Illinois.

OD


I don't think this one is, I wasn't sure which state,
thanks for the info.

Fossis..............
 

Upvote 0

Old Dog

Gold Member
May 22, 2007
5,860
397
Western Colorado
Fossis,
The location on these ia a classic because it is one of the only places in the world where pyrite takes this form.
This habit is usually taken by Marcasite which can be mistaken for pyrite in some cases.
Hope you get a lot of enjoyment from your piece my friend.

Be the collector first, the investor second. the collector will spend the time it takes to enjoy each piece..... before he researches the value.

OD
 

Upvote 0

Old Dog

Gold Member
May 22, 2007
5,860
397
Western Colorado
Superduty,

Not a fossil!!!
These things form in between layers of coal and shale and are commonly coated with a microscopic druze of calcite that gives them an iridescent appearance.

There are pictures of them in the Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Rocks and Minerals. Picture numbers are 616, 617, 618 respectively.
The mineral description is on page 374.

They are really neat and if you are from Illinois you should get a couple for your collection.
They are kind of unique to your area.

OD
 

Upvote 0

Old Dog

Gold Member
May 22, 2007
5,860
397
Western Colorado
Superduty,

Sorry to let you down Buddy,
They are concretions that form in the layers of coal shales.
Not fossil echinoderms - sand dollars.

And the Sparta Illinois location is famous for these.
They test out as Pyrite and are a classic.
They have the crystal habit of a mineral called Marcasite, and a few un educated collectors will try to argue that they are in fact Marcasite. Where chemical testing proves them wrong every time.

Enjoy
OD
 

Upvote 0
OP
OP
fossis

fossis

Gold Member
Jan 5, 2007
7,837
96
eastern Oklahoma
Detector(s) used
Whites Prizm 11 & White's XLT
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
superduty said:
Old Dog said:
Superduty,

Sorry to let you down Buddy,
They are concretions that form in the layers of coal shales.
Not fossil echinoderms - sand dollars.

And the Sparta Illinois location is famous for these.
They test out as Pyrite and are a classic.
They have the crystal habit of a mineral called Marcasite, and a few un educated collectors will try to argue that they are in fact Marcasite. Where chemical testing proves them wrong every time.
Enjoy
OD
I was wrong! Ohhh Jeeesssshhh...... Thats NEVER hapen before!!!!!!!! j/k Thanks for the good info .... BTW I live very near Sparta...

That's okay Superduty, I was only wrong once
last year, (thats when I thought I was wrong). ;D

Fossis.............
 

Upvote 0

Top Member Reactions

Users who are viewing this thread

Top