two jade pendants

[larson1951]

here are both of them
the smaller one was found a few years ago
the other one is the same one I posted yesterday
are they both jade?
someone mentioned flourite

 

[uniface]

Nice !

There's got to be someone at your state university who'd be happy to ID the material for you.

(Even if the professor wouldn't be actually happy to, since keeping good public relations is generally a priority to state-level outfits subsidised by taxes, you're likely to get your answer anyhow without much fuss).

 

[Cappy Z.]

Somehow acquire some form of 'provenance' and I believe you could sell that for big bucks. Seems awefully rare to me.

HH

Cap Z.

 

[The Grim Reaper]

It could possibly be Fluorite larson. The top picture is of a fluorite crystal and the bottom is a piece of jade. Your pendants seem to resemble the color of the fuorite more that the jade.

 

[Mooch]

FLourite or Flourspar as it is sometimes called is a super soft material while on the other had Jade is a super hard material so if the material is scratched or scratches I would say that it is not jade. There was a article in the last Prehistoric American on nephrite artifacts from the North West Coast that looked similar in material to your piece. That could be another possiblitly but like jade it is also very hard. Mooch

 

[larson1951]

I tried to scratch them with the end of a scissors

I can't scratch either one

does this mean that they are jade?

 

[Road Dog]

Jade should feel cold to the touch.

 

[coalfire]

My personal opinion would be to find a college (state is good) Geologist. I did here in West Virginia for a front half of a Celt. She (the Geologist) was able to tell me that my Celt's material (Basalt) is not even from West Virginia but (most likely) from a small outcrop in Maryland. Shown are the front half of my Celt plus a few finds from that day January 2007.
Good Hunting,

Stan

 

[JimBeHuntin']

Those are two very cool and beautiful artifacts regardless of material type ~ big congratz on those pieces ~ Jimmy

 

[uniface]

Flourite would have scratched easily.

Jade averages (as I recall) around 6.5 on the Mohs' scale (just a bit less hard than quartz), so it looks like that's what you've got. Pretty important finds, I'd think, seeing as it probably came from the Pacific Northwest.

This, in turn, would seem (?) to narrow the time frame down to when the Hopewell culture was in high gear, bringing in stuff from all over the country (shells from Florida, obsidian from Wyoming) and trading just as far for it. Neanderthal could tell you better, since he knows your area and that time.

 

[coteau]

Flourite would have scratched easily.

Jade averages (as I recall) around 6.5 on the Mohs' scale (just a bit less hard than quartz), so it looks like that's what you've got. Pretty important finds, I'd think, seeing as it probably came from the Pacific Northwest.

This, in turn, would seem (?) to narrow the time frame down to when the Hopewell culture was in high gear, bringing in stuff from all over the country (shells from Florida, obsidian from Wyoming) and trading just as far for it. Neanderthal could tell you better, since he knows your area and that time.

In the Dakotas, Besant/Sonota groups traded with the Hopewell cultures to the east. That was around 2000 years ago.

The majority of larson's finds are from the Plains Village culture (AD 1000-1800s). And a high percentage of his finds are post 1500s. Trade with the Pacific Northwest was typical of this period.

 

[uniface]

That's why I put the question mark in my post

 

[coteau]

I agree with you Uniface that trade was in high gear around 2000 years ago. And it's possible that those pendants are from a Woodland culture rather than a later culture. I just assume that they're from the farming Plains Village culture because that's what larson finds most of the time.

I would really like to know where that "jade" originated from. I have never heard of jade being found in the Dakotas before.

 

[larson1951]

these Mandans had so many items for trade
KRF was the Dakota's first export trade item
in addition they had always a few years worth of food on hand
I would think between all the fish, squash,corn, and buffalo,elk & deer meat and mussel shell they
must have had a lot of trading power