Green Turquoise?

[Bajahunter]

I found this last week.
A friend cut it a few days ago (the wrong way). I have spent about 20 minutes polishing the cut side with 100, 600, and 2000 grit sandpaper.
Has a hardness between 4 and 6. Streak is grey, might say grey-green. Very porous. Tiny crystals can be seen with a 14x loupe, in some of the vugs.
Any thoughts?

 

[tmodel]

Baja!! newbe on gemstones, would you explain what you mean by cut wrong. Terry

 

[Bajahunter]

I wanted him to cut off the white section, best seen in the second pick. Instead he cut it right through the heart of the green part.
He is an old guy and he did it for free so I am not mad. I will just make sure I am there when I let him cut another rock.
At least this way I know for sure what is in the middle.
Forgot to give the size. About 1-1.5 x 3.5 inches

 

[Eu_citzen]

Looks like Epidote, or maybe even scarn. Keep an eye out for ore minerals if it is scarn.

 

[kkglawson]

not turquose, maybe limestone

 

[tmodel]

thank you

thank you Baja!! Terry

 

[Bajahunter]

kkglawson- This isn't sedimentary. It was found at the base of a black basalt cone that is on top of really old granite. It is most likely metamorphic.
Eu-citizen- I think it is too soft for Epidote. Skarn led me to Hedenbergite, which fits. I still see pictures of green turquoise from Nevada that looks very similar. There are other old Turquoise digs in the general (50 mile radius) area.
I am grinding and sanding it down past all the weathered "rind" and host rock on the outside. I will post another pic. when I get it polished up a little more.
Thanks
Rob

 

[Eu_citzen]

Rob,

Epidote has a hardness of 6, the pyroxene group and Epidote can be quite similar.

A good test is to attach a strong magnet to a string and see if it is weakly magnetic, if I recall right Pyroxenes are often iron rich and do attract a magnet very little.

Skarn definitely fits the bill.

Also, did you find this in the basalt? Basalt consists to a large portion of just Pyroxene.
Metasomatic (hydrothermal) alteration could produce this kind of material.

 

[StoneWhisper]

My best guess, Jadeite w/ white quartz and (the copper colored areas) muscovite..