Need Help Identifying this Stone Material

WindWalker66

Tenderfoot
Aug 27, 2019
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Hello
Ive been told that this Native celt is possibly made of, basalt. gneiss or diorite. Not sure if its any of these...would appreciate the help. Had these celts for 50 yrs and always wondered of the material used. Some of the celts with less of a polished black , appear to be a greyish color under the high polish. Almost seems like it started off as a grey color as was polished to a black. Ontario Canada finds . Thank you IMG_20190802_110438274.jpg IMG_20190802_110216989.jpg IMG_20190802_110426698.jpg T,
 

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Toecutter

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Nov 30, 2018
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I have no idea but they sure are gorgeous, welcome to Tnet from the Thumb of Michigan
 

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ToddsPoint

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Mar 2, 2018
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That's diabase. Finer grained than diorite and the preferred material for celts, axes and the like. The glacier brought lots of this material to my area and it is pretty easy to find. Very nice piece. Gary
 

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WindWalker66

Tenderfoot
Aug 27, 2019
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Thanks for the info Gary.
Do you know if it was lighter grey first and then polished to a black. I have some celt where the entire body is grey and the bit is polished to a dark black?
 

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Bigdob

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Post a pic on North American Indian Artifacts, lots of knowledge there
BT
 

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ToddsPoint

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Mar 2, 2018
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This is what we call diabase around here. It has a finer grain than diorite, which is also common here. If I had to describe the color I'd have to say green most of the time but yeah, grayish green as well. It will polish much darker than when raw. Some will polish to almost black. Also tiny silver inclusions that look like metal. Iron or pyrite maybe?

DSC09411.JPG
 

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WindWalker66

Tenderfoot
Aug 27, 2019
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I don't have any with green in them. If they're not black, then they are grey. Yes these seem to have been a lighter colour and then polished to a black. The pecking on some of the pole ends are grey with the rest of the celt polished to black. Thanks for the info
 

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