what is this rock

[oldtimer82]

folks i'm counting on you to answer my question. found this while walking through a large corn field.
its not magnetic,nor can be pickedup by my metal detector. also i tried a file on it and it seemed very soft.and its not sandstone.
thanks before hand
h.h.
oldtimer

 

[doublet2a]

Petrified cow poop

Tim

 

[aka da Prof]

does it rattle inside- are you in a geode area??

 

[goverton]

Elephant Poop Poop
Circus must have camped out here!

 

[High Plains Digger]

Limonite concretion with some pretty nice prairie polish. Can you get prairie polish in Vermont? Sometimes these will have fossils inside, usually a lump of clay. If not, giraffe poop.

 

[oldtimer82]

well folks i don't know what you guys have been sniffing,but get some fresh air,
1 no never a circus stayed there
2 yes the area does have lots of sand
3 no it doesn't rattle,or is hollow
petrified poop,maybe
it has some weight to it but not much compared to iron ore type rocks
next/lol
h.h.
oldtimer

 

[High Plains Digger]

I don't know what your geology is. If it is in an area of sedimentary rocks, then I stick with limonite (a form of iron ore, but not the richest). If not, I don't know. It would be fun if you put it on it's side and tried to split it with a chisel and hammer. If it looks like it would split along that axis. Limonite is not necessarily heavy, but it is "heavier". Does that make sense? Maybe I do need some air.

 

[oldtimer82]

first so you guys know,i was just being a funny guy,as splitting the rock i rather not
as for the geography of this area it is mainly granite,some iron ore and very hilly.
the field is quite sandy,but last year a guy baught the land and cut the pines that were growing there.now it the field of corn.
where im living is just a few hundred yards from that field,its all up hill to get to them.

 

[oldtimer82]

ok guys your right its a piece of lemonite,thanks for the help
you guys are the best detectives
h.h.
oldtimer
ps. heres a pic of lemonite.

 

[High Plains Digger]

Whew! I was sweating that one. When ever it is a brown rock, I say limonite, and get away with it about 30% of the time. Ok, I'm joking. But I think I read once where limonite is the most abundant form of iron ore. The prairrie where I go arrowhead hunting is covered with it, and sometimes it is like in a mound. A lot is a flat rock, but there are a lot of balls--about .36 caliber. About the size of rabbit turds. Some of them are rabbit turds. Then there are pieces like the subject and pieces like the photo. I have a piece I kept that is like a tangerine in size, and is somewhat shaped like an acorn, cap and all. In Fossil Creek, south of Ft. Collins Co., one used to be able to find concretions, occasionally with a clam inside. No luck here, but I once sent a piece to a friend that for all the world looked to be a chunk of Borman shell. Not significantly heavy like iron, though. Color and texture were pretty much a dead ringer, and definately "round" shaped.