Month: April 2016

Where Agates Can be Found in New Zealand

NOTE: 3 July 2019 – The mineralworld website referred below is no longer available currently on the internet. I have therefore included in square brackets below access to this material via the Internet Archive, as it existed in 2016-2017.

Mineralworld [see archive] is a website developed by Klaus Schäfer, [see archive], a German gemstone expert and jewellery-designer, who has done a lot of research and writing about gemstones, especially agates and jasper. He refers to his site as an “agate-almanac” – it is all about agates. An agate can be described technically as a translucent cryptocrystalline variety of quartz, a variegated chalcedony, characterised by colours in alternating stripes or bands, in irregular clouds, or in moss-like forms. Agates may have a wide variety of colour patterns and banding, with the many distinctive styles and patterns virtually making each agate unique. 

There are many pages on Klaus Schäfer’s website about agates worldwide, with a multitude of excellent and beautiful photos from a wide range of collections. Some of the information and articles are in German but there is much English material there as well.

Part of the website is called “Agates Worldwide” and has detailed descriptions of thousands of places where agates can be found. One page is the Index to the New Zealand material [see archive] where 28 locations are listed (such as Birdlings Flat, Hinds River, Nimmo’s Swamp, and Ward’s Beach). Click on a location and you are taken to a page with a description of the location and the agates that have been found there (usually written by NZ experts), illustrated with exquisite agate photos [NOTE: The Internet Archive very unfortunately did not archive these photos, but some agate photos can be found elsewhere on the archived site – click here for examples], four of which are below. The localities of origin of the agates in these photos are, from left to right: Nimmo’s Swamp, near Moeraki in Otago; Rangiatea Station near Mt Somers, Canterbury – this photo is by Malcolm Luxton who has recently published a book on “Agates of New Zealand” (see my comments on Luxton’s book in the section on Stone 11 in “Twelve Stones, Part Four“); Whitecliffs clay pit in Canterbury; and Gawler Downs Station near Mt Somers, Canterbury.

These agates were large enough to slice through so that their banding and internal patterns are shown to best effect. If agates are too small for this, they can be tumble polished like other small stones.

Regarding agates on TumbleStone, see also the following Posts: A) My Visit to Birdlings Flat, Day 2: Gemstone and Fossil Museum; B) Another Visit to Birdlings Flat, Late June 2016 – Part Three: Seven Types of Stones Collected; C) Polishing Agates from Birdlings Flat: Stage One; D) Stone #11 in Twelve Stones, Part Four; E) Milestone #6 in Nine Milestones at Journey’s End; F) The May page in TumbleStone Calendar 2019 – February, March, April and May; and G) Stay-at-Home Day Twenty-Six, Monday 20 April 2020: Stone Twenty-Six. 

“The song that is deep in the soul of all people…”

“Sraidean Na Roinn-Eorpa” by Runrig

Chuir mi mo chul ri Lunnainn
An samhradh air m’aodann
‘S mi air sraidean mor na Roinn-Eorpa
‘S mi le mo run, le m’anam, mo bhratach
Mo ghrian mo ghealach ur
‘S sheas mi’s na aiteachan a sheas m’athair
‘S ioma cogadh a tha ann airson saorsa
Da fhicead bliadhna’s an dileab air fhagail
Briaran do linn’s do sheorsa

Baile beag anns a’ Ghearmailt
Gruagach cho boidheach
Le suilean lan sonas is bron
Thuirt i “am bheil fhios agaibh fhein, an t-sochair
‘tha agaibh Tha eallach eachraidh air mo ghuaillan cho trom”
Chrath sinn lamhan, ‘s dh’fhalbh I a’seinn
An dan tha dcmhainn, ‘s gach anam de dhaoine
Dh’fhag mi i le blas beag de mo dhuthaich
Dh’fhag i mi leis a chompanas ur

Tha na brataich a’snamh
An cuan de dhathan
Do chanan binn an cluas na Roinn-Eorpa
Tha na sraidean beo le cainnt’s togair
Sraidean am Babel ur
‘S thusa mo run, tha cothrom mad choinneamh
Tha do chliu air ‘dhol tarsainn an cuan
Thusa tha meanbh, bi ladir, bi alainn
Taisbean do chanan, bi buan

–oOo–

TRANSLATION

“European Continent”

I have put London behind me
The summer is on my face
And I am on the big streets of Europe
With my love, my flag
My sun, and my new moon
I stood in the places where my father had stood
Many are the wars of freedom
Forty years and the legacy is still with me
The words of his kind and generation

A small town in Germany
A beautiful young girl
Her eyes full of sorrow and joy
She said “Are you aware of the privilege you enjoy
The burden of history lies heavy on my shoulders”
We shook hands, and she went on her way singing
The song that is deep in the soul of all people
I left her with a small part of my country
She left me with the fellowship of a new age

The flags are swimming
In a sea of colour
My language melodious in the ear of Europe
The streets are alive with conversation and purpose
Possibilities for a new Babel
And you my love have opportunity before you
Your renown has crossed the ocean
You that are small, be strong, be beautiful
Reveal your great language, be everlasting

 

“Australian and New Zealand Gemstones: How and Where to Find Them” edited by Bill Myatt (1972)

This large hardcover book was published in 1972 by Paul Hamlyn – it measures only 24cm by 19 cm but its 511 pages makes for a thickness of 5 cm. It had a nice sized font which makes easy reading, is well-illustrated and well-written, and is a mine of detailed information written for the interested layperson (only some of which is dated).

Aust NZ Gemstones cover

I obtained my second-hand copy, in excellent condition, from K-books in Scarborough, Ontario, Canada, through online retailer Abebooks, for just over NZ$50 (shipping included), with only 2 weeks between ordering and arrival.

The book is made up of four main sections: “General Information” pages 9-59, including fossicking methods, mining law and making jewelry (there is great advice on fossicking in the Australian outback, where safety considerations are significant); “Geology” pages 61-137 (with pages 123-130 being on New Zealand); “Gemstone Identification” pages 139-283 (very readable text on the major types, with only the rare black and white photo but with a 32 colour plate section showing many rock types in their natural form); “Gemstone Localities” pages 286-503 including 35 high quality colour map guides to main gem-bearing areas. New Zealand localities are discussed in pages 430-448 and 497-503, sections written by A. Niethe (“New Zealand Gemstones”), W.F. Heinz (“Gold”) and M. Jepsen (“Thermal Regions”). There are entries on the following areas: Coromandel Peninsula, East Coast, Northland, Canterbury, Dunedin, Greymouth, Invercargill, Nelson, and Oamaru. Detailed comments are made of where certain types of rocks have been found, as well as on very practical topics such as road conditions and accommodation in these areas. Of course, most of this information is now out-of-date, written over 40 years ago, but it provides great starting-points for the contemporary rockhound as well as much interesting historical material.

The publisher aimed to produce “a comprehensive book on Australian and New Zealand Gemstones, suitable for the ordinary reader”, with the Localities section presented as “the most detailed account ever attempted”. Lapidary, Gem and Mineral Clubs contributed significantly to the book, as did academic and technical experts on geology and minerals – the result was outstanding and much of its value has not been lost over the decades.      

Front of dustjacket and front foldover
Contents, first 2 sections
Contents, last 2 sections
Page 168 and part of page 169 – Beginning of entry on “Chalcedony” in “Gemstone Identification” section
Colour plate: “Spotted jasper found near Coober Pedy, South Australia; Inset: An old house on the Coober Pedy Opal Field”
Colour plate: “Agate Creek, Canterbury NZ; Insets: Polished Canterbury agates, and Canterbury agate seen in section”
Part of page 430 and page 431 – Start of New Zealand entry in “Gemstone Localities” section
Map showing main gem-bearing areas of the Coromandel Peninsula, NZ
Map showing main gem-bearing areas of Nelson, NZ

 

 

 

 

“Scatterlings of Africa”

I can see echoes of African landscapes in this polished stone from Riverton…

DSC09222

Copper sun sinking low
Scatterlings and fugitives
Hooded eyes and weary brows
Seek refuge in the night

They are the scatterlings of Africa
Each uprooted one
On the road to Phelamanga
Where the world began

I love the scatterlings of Africa
Each and every one
In their hearts a burning hunger
Beneath the copper sun

Ancient bones from Olduvai
Echoes of the very first cry
“Who made me, here and why? 
Beneath the copper sun”

African ideas, African ideas
Make the future clear, make the future clear

And we are scatterlings of Africa
Both you and I 
We run the road to Phelamanga
Beneath the copper skies

And we are scatterlings of Africa
On a journey to the stars
Far below we leave forever
Dreams of what we were

“Scatterlings of Africa” by Johnny Clegg and Juluka

As an adolescent in Johannesburg’s northern suburbs, Johnny Clegg encountered the music and dances of the city’s Zulu migrant workers. He learned the Zulu language, the maskandi guitar and the dance styles of the migrants. Clegg’s involvement with black musicians often led to arrests for trespassing on government property and for contravening the Group Areas Act. He was first arrested at the age of 15 for violating apartheid-era laws in South Africa banning people of different races from congregating together after curfew hours. He went on to record and perform with his bands Juluka and Savuka. Once, Savuka drew such a large crowd for a concert in Lyon, France, that Michael Jackson cancelled a concert there, complaining that Clegg and his group had stolen all his fans. “Scatterlings of Africa” was Clegg’s most popular international hit. I used to show the video of it in a lecture to raise questions for New Zealand about the difficulty of understanding an African setting and the meaning of an African dance, and the type of research methods needed to overcome those difficulties.

“Day in a Boat: The other world was here…”

A polished andesite stone, from a Riverton beach… Of this earth but other-worldly…

Runrig is a recently-retired Scottish Celtic rock band formed on the Isle of Skye in 1973. Their name is taken from a historic furrow-and-ridge system of farming that was used for hundreds of years in the Highlands and Islands. The land was divided into towns or townships, comprising an area of cultivable “in-bye” land and a larger area of pasture and rough grazing. The in-bye was divided into long narrow strips – “rigs” – which were periodically reassigned among the tenants of the township so that no individual had continuous use of the best land. The music of Runrig is often described as a blend of folk and rock music, with lyrics often focusing upon the locations, history, politics, and people that are unique to Scotland. They are one of the few rock bands whose songs have often included Gaelic. They disbanded in 2018.

Early Runrig. Source: https://www.allmusic.com/album/all-the-best-mw0002480176
Traditional Scottish run-rig system of farming. Source: http://theindepthgenealogist.com/lowland-clearances
Google Maps view of old run-rig strips, Port of Ness, Isle of Lewis. Source: https://www.google.co.nz/maps/@58.4943964,-6.2236151,257m/data=!3m1!1e3
Remains of old run-rig strips, Isle of Skye. Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Run_rig#/media/File:Runrigs_-_geograph.org.uk_-_308174.jpg
The end of Runrig’s final concert, August 2018. Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Runrig#/media/File:Runrig,_farewell_at_Stirling,_18-08-2018.jpg

On sun soaked seas
Baiting the hand lines
Neoscan at the oars
Turning the bows into the Morea wake
For the thrill of it all
Across the middle of the bay
A line of faces in the waiting hour

And I could see
The other world was here
Can you hear it now?
We’re just on the brink

Returning homewards
Together on
Alone

O mollaidh sinn
An gaol ‘s an gras
A thug dhuinn bith
Cho umhail fo ghrein
‘S i dealradh sios
Air reultan cein

It was all there waiting
Just as we reached the door
Just as we reached the door

“Day in a Boat” by Runrig

NASA astronaut Laurel Clark, who died in the Columbia space shuttle disaster in 2003, came across Runrig’s music while stationed at Holy Loch on the Firth of Clyde. While she was in space, a Runrig song called “Running to the Light” from the Album “The Stamping Ground” was played as a wake-up call. She told Mission Control in Houston that it reminded her of her husband Jon and her time in Scotland. Columbia broke up as it returned to Earth, killing Clark and her six fellow astronauts on board. The two Runrig CDs she had brought with her into space, “The Stamping Ground” and “The Cutter and the Clan”, were found afterwards in different parts of the wreckage and later presented to the band by her husband and son.

“Maralitja” (Crocodile Man)

 

This stone reminds me of the rough tough skin of the crocodile.

This is a song by the Australian group Yothu Yindi , most well-known for “Treaty”. Their influential lead singer Mandawuy Yunupingu sadly died in 2013. I used to play Treaty in a lecture on using research to understand other cultures than our own. “Maralitja” is a creative blend of western and aboriginal music styles. I have not yet found a translation of the lyrics, but the saltwater crocodile was the totem of Mandawuy Yunupingu. A comment on the significance of the Album from which the song comes, “Tribal Voice”, states that the song “establishes the Gumatj clan’s descent from Maralitja, the Saltwater Crocodile ancestor”. 

“Maralitja”(Crocodile Man)

Nhina ngilimurru yolngu maralitja wanga lamiwuy
Gudurru mulka nawayngu bulupinydjin manggurrtji biliwili
Marrkapmirri wanga dhuwala ngilimurrunggu
Nhungu ga ngarraku
Ngilimurru nhina wangganyngurana dhiyala bayma
Maranydja Yothu Yindina

Maralitja galimindirrk
Gokarrngu lamiwuy

Ga ngunhi ngandi wulma murryun yambatthun djarimi
Ga murryun wngangupann ngatha lakarama miltjuntjun
Dhakay ngatha ngunhinydja lami warray dhiyakuwuy nglimurrunggu
Ngilimurr wangganyngurana dhiyalana bayma
miyaman manikay ga bunggul giritjirri

Maralitja galimindirrk
Gokarrngu lamiwuy
Way maralitja dhukulul dharyuna ngunbungunbu

Nhina ngilimurru yolngu maralitja wanga lamiwuy
Gudurru mulka nawayngu bulupinydjin manggurrtji biliwili
Marrkapmirri wanga dhuwala ngilimurrunggu
Nhungu ga ngarraku
Ngilimurru nhina wangganyngurana dhiyala bayma
Maranydja Yothu Yindina

Maralitja galimindirrk
Gokarrngu lamiwuy

Seven Misleading Impressions from a Video Clip on Stone Tumbling

There are a number of video clips on YouTube about tumble polishing stones. This one, “The art of stone tumbling and polishing”, two minutes long, while it includes some good advice and shows the main steps involved, also conveys some misleading impressions:

1) This guy does it one-handed – you actually need both hands to do it well! (So when you make a video of it, it’s a good idea to get someone else to film you doing the demonstration.)

2) The number of stones he puts in the barrel, and the amount of water poured into it, is probably too much – most guides say fill the barrel about 2/3 to 3/4 full.

3) It’s not a good idea to let silicon carbide grit blow about in the breeze. It’s tiny and hard and sharp and you don’t want it to get into other stuff. It can do damage to a washing machine if it gets onto your clothes which are then washed.

4) He puts about one tablespoon of grit into what looks like a standard 3 pound barrel – there are different views about how much grit to use – a reasonably standard view is that you should use four tablespoons for this size barrel, some say half that, others say weigh the stones and put in a certain amount per pound of stones, and so on. You need to do your own research on this and maybe experiment with the amount.

5) “Secure lid on drum” – excellent advice, but this is not well demonstrated visually, given the one-handed approach. An insecure barrel lid is asking for disaster and the need for a clean-up.

6) “Pour off waste” after tumbling for seven days – yes, but make sure the waste does not end up down the drain where it is likely to accumulate in plumbing s-bends due to its weight and then set like concrete due to its composition! This is deemed by all leading instructors to be the most important piece of advice about tumble polishing stones.

7) “Tumble and wash each grit as before” – though sometimes you need only 3-5 days with the stage with the finest grit or a pre-polish powder, and the last stage involves a polish like tin oxide or cerium oxide.

It’s actually a great little video clip and gives me the opportunity to raise these points, all of which I am sure are well-known and appreciated by the video-maker. 

 

 

 

“A Photographic Guide to Rocks and Minerals of New Zealand” (2011)

This book, published in 2011, has been written by three employees of GNS Science, Nick Mortimer (a geologist), Hamish Campbell (a palaeontologist) and Margaret Low (a science photographer). GNS Science is a Crown Research Institute, New Zealand’s “leading provider of Earth, geoscience and isotope research and consultancy services”. According to the GNS Science website, the Institute’s role is “to understand natural Earth system processes and resources, and to translate these into economic, environmental and social benefits” for the nation.

This book measures 19 cm by 10 cm, has quite a small font size, and consists of 143 pages, in what is referred to on the back cover as a “compact field-guide format”, able to be carried in a knapsack or even back pocket. It sells for NZ$25.99 on the GNS publications web-page but can be purchased in many other places online and off.   

The first 21 pages contains an overview of minerals and rocks. This is followed by a large section of 112 pages of descriptions and photographs of different minerals and rocks to be found in New Zealand. The photographs are numerous and excellent. The text is to the point, readable, and often refers to places in New Zealand where various minerals and rocks are to be found.