Rare Marfa black plume,
flower garden and bouquet
agate cabochons and heels
flower garden and bouquet
agate cabochons and heels
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West Texas Red Agate
from Alpine and Green
agate from Terlingua.
from Alpine and Green
agate from Terlingua.
| Moonlight Gemstones |
Rare west TX plume agate, moss
agate, bouquet agate, pom pom agate,
flower garden agate. Red plume, black
plume, yellow plume, Green moss,
yellow bouquet, red bouquet, pink
bouquet. Heels, slabs, cabochons.
agate, bouquet agate, pom pom agate,
flower garden agate. Red plume, black
plume, yellow plume, Green moss,
yellow bouquet, red bouquet, pink
bouquet. Heels, slabs, cabochons.
West Texas Agate
By Paul Graybeal
West Texas is famous for its wide variety of unique and beautiful agates and jaspers. Some types are highly prized by collectors
world wide. 35 million years ago, volcanic activity in the Big Bend produced the environment for our beautiful gemstones.
Quartz crystallizing as nodules inside gas pockets, or in cracks to form vein type agate, delicate plumes, bands, moss or
bouquet patterns of different colors are actually crystals of impurities such as iron oxide, other oxides, hematite, etc. Agate and
chalcedony is widespread throughout this region, but only a small amount is of lapidary interest. Agate has been found south
of Sierra Blanca, all the way down the Rio Grande, past Del Rio. I would expect many unique varieties to be found throughout
the Big Bend region in isolated pockets, as well as all the agate that was carried down the Rio Grande to form fluvial deposits.
Texas has no public lands to collect on, so there is still a lot to explore if permission can be obtained.
Red plume agate has been made famous by the Woodward Ranch, (432) 364-2271 as they offer agate collecting for a fee
south of Alpine, TX. Terri Smith in Alpine also offers field trips to the Walker ranch for a fee. She can be reached at (432)
837-3881 at the Antelope Lodge. There are several types of agate besides red plume to be found on the Woodward Ranch, as
well on other ranches close by. Black and brown plume being the most common lapidary grade. Banded agate is fairly common
in West Texas, near Alpine it is usually white, nearly clear, but can be shades of red, purple or pink, often surrounding a plume.
Yellow plume can be found, typically with much sugar, (euhedral quartz) sometimes making it difficult to cut. There is
orbicular agate found south of Alpine called peanut agate which can be quite beautiful. Mostly of it a solid orange color inside
the orbs, but peanut agate can also be formed of independent orbs of different colored bands and small plumes in other orbs in
the same stone. This type is difficult to cut as not all the orbs are always cemented together, or some orbs may contain small
geodes.
Most of the lapidary grade agate found south of Alpine is found in biscuit shaped nodules with a dark red skin. All most all types
of agate found in this lava flow can be found in these biscuits. About 10% will have a gemstone quality to them, or only 10% of
the stone will have something worth the labour to cut. It is rare a stone is full of a red/black plume, gem grade orbicular or
colored bands. Many of the biscuits did not fill the entire gas pocket, and had space to crystallize in a shape with bubbles, or
botryoidal crystal. Most agate with this type of form has plume inside the bubbles. Most true biscuits shaped agates have
some euhedral quartz inside them, and some open up to become true geodes. Flower garden agate is formed in cracks in the
host rock, making it a vein type formation. Usually orange and red, made up of small dense microscopic plumes is found in
isolated pockets. This type should be considered as jasper as you cannot see through it, and I have seen other locations such
as in Mexico and Arizona that have similar deposits of flower garden.
Marfa Texas has some of the most beautiful agate in the world, In my opinion, though it does not seem that the best quality is
very common in the agate beds I have been allowed to collect in. Made famous by Andy Burgard in the 1940s, pastel colors in
"bouquet" patterns are the most sought after by collectors. Marfa is host to huge agate fields, all around us are beds of large
white and clear agates, (chalcedony) but few agate beds seem to contain much of the colored material known as "bouquet".
Most common in lapidary grade is a black plume or black and yellow plume agate. It can be in a vary clear agate, or in a white
fortification agate, often times calcite is included. Bouquet pattern can be found with black plume in both white skin and black
skin agate,as well as with all other types of agate found in this geological formation. Most of the bouquet is a tan, orange or
yellow color, red and purple colors are quite rare for Marfa. White skin is usually clear background, black skin nodules can be
dark or white banding background. The bouquet pattern is usually on the bottom, but can form on the entire surface and point
towards the center in small clusters. A lot of this agate is egg shell, thin coating of agate lining the gas pocket, often with the
botryoidal crystals. This usually is a good sign of quality plumes or bouquet. Black skin egg shell typically is black or blue and
white banding. In one location the black skin type is a tubes type agate, looking like stalactites inside some of the eggshell
nodules.
Another famous location of agate in the Big Bend is needle peak, south of Terlingua. The Woodward ranch conducts tours
there for green moss and pompom agate. Beautiful pseudomorphs have been found here. Again there are many grades of
agate, and some nice agate replacement in wood and bone in the area.
Balmorhea is famous for their blue agate, banded often with black plumes. The skin is usually black with a white patina on the
surface. It appears to be fairly wide spread in isolated pockets northwest of the Davis Mountains. The Blue Agate Rock and
Gift shop in Fort Davis has a nice collection she is selling. Donna Trammell can be reached at (432) 426-2924. The Davis
mountains has little agate I'm aware of, but does have a lot of chalcedony roses. To the East of the Davis Mountains are
deposits of agate, though not much of interest to serious collectors that I'm aware of. I have seen pretty flower garden from the
Sierra Blanca area.
There are many theories about agate formation. Some suggest a silicon gel, or silicon dissolved as a colloidal solution which
saturates the host rock. Quartz is water soluble at high temperatures, so as it cools It forms inside veins, gas pockets, or can
replace other minerals as pseudo morph, or fossils such as wood, bone and coral. No one theory explains all types of agate,
and some like our "peanut agate" has no theory at all that I have read about.
By Paul Graybeal
West Texas is famous for its wide variety of unique and beautiful agates and jaspers. Some types are highly prized by collectors
world wide. 35 million years ago, volcanic activity in the Big Bend produced the environment for our beautiful gemstones.
Quartz crystallizing as nodules inside gas pockets, or in cracks to form vein type agate, delicate plumes, bands, moss or
bouquet patterns of different colors are actually crystals of impurities such as iron oxide, other oxides, hematite, etc. Agate and
chalcedony is widespread throughout this region, but only a small amount is of lapidary interest. Agate has been found south
of Sierra Blanca, all the way down the Rio Grande, past Del Rio. I would expect many unique varieties to be found throughout
the Big Bend region in isolated pockets, as well as all the agate that was carried down the Rio Grande to form fluvial deposits.
Texas has no public lands to collect on, so there is still a lot to explore if permission can be obtained.
Red plume agate has been made famous by the Woodward Ranch, (432) 364-2271 as they offer agate collecting for a fee
south of Alpine, TX. Terri Smith in Alpine also offers field trips to the Walker ranch for a fee. She can be reached at (432)
837-3881 at the Antelope Lodge. There are several types of agate besides red plume to be found on the Woodward Ranch, as
well on other ranches close by. Black and brown plume being the most common lapidary grade. Banded agate is fairly common
in West Texas, near Alpine it is usually white, nearly clear, but can be shades of red, purple or pink, often surrounding a plume.
Yellow plume can be found, typically with much sugar, (euhedral quartz) sometimes making it difficult to cut. There is
orbicular agate found south of Alpine called peanut agate which can be quite beautiful. Mostly of it a solid orange color inside
the orbs, but peanut agate can also be formed of independent orbs of different colored bands and small plumes in other orbs in
the same stone. This type is difficult to cut as not all the orbs are always cemented together, or some orbs may contain small
geodes.
Most of the lapidary grade agate found south of Alpine is found in biscuit shaped nodules with a dark red skin. All most all types
of agate found in this lava flow can be found in these biscuits. About 10% will have a gemstone quality to them, or only 10% of
the stone will have something worth the labour to cut. It is rare a stone is full of a red/black plume, gem grade orbicular or
colored bands. Many of the biscuits did not fill the entire gas pocket, and had space to crystallize in a shape with bubbles, or
botryoidal crystal. Most agate with this type of form has plume inside the bubbles. Most true biscuits shaped agates have
some euhedral quartz inside them, and some open up to become true geodes. Flower garden agate is formed in cracks in the
host rock, making it a vein type formation. Usually orange and red, made up of small dense microscopic plumes is found in
isolated pockets. This type should be considered as jasper as you cannot see through it, and I have seen other locations such
as in Mexico and Arizona that have similar deposits of flower garden.
Marfa Texas has some of the most beautiful agate in the world, In my opinion, though it does not seem that the best quality is
very common in the agate beds I have been allowed to collect in. Made famous by Andy Burgard in the 1940s, pastel colors in
"bouquet" patterns are the most sought after by collectors. Marfa is host to huge agate fields, all around us are beds of large
white and clear agates, (chalcedony) but few agate beds seem to contain much of the colored material known as "bouquet".
Most common in lapidary grade is a black plume or black and yellow plume agate. It can be in a vary clear agate, or in a white
fortification agate, often times calcite is included. Bouquet pattern can be found with black plume in both white skin and black
skin agate,as well as with all other types of agate found in this geological formation. Most of the bouquet is a tan, orange or
yellow color, red and purple colors are quite rare for Marfa. White skin is usually clear background, black skin nodules can be
dark or white banding background. The bouquet pattern is usually on the bottom, but can form on the entire surface and point
towards the center in small clusters. A lot of this agate is egg shell, thin coating of agate lining the gas pocket, often with the
botryoidal crystals. This usually is a good sign of quality plumes or bouquet. Black skin egg shell typically is black or blue and
white banding. In one location the black skin type is a tubes type agate, looking like stalactites inside some of the eggshell
nodules.
Another famous location of agate in the Big Bend is needle peak, south of Terlingua. The Woodward ranch conducts tours
there for green moss and pompom agate. Beautiful pseudomorphs have been found here. Again there are many grades of
agate, and some nice agate replacement in wood and bone in the area.
Balmorhea is famous for their blue agate, banded often with black plumes. The skin is usually black with a white patina on the
surface. It appears to be fairly wide spread in isolated pockets northwest of the Davis Mountains. The Blue Agate Rock and
Gift shop in Fort Davis has a nice collection she is selling. Donna Trammell can be reached at (432) 426-2924. The Davis
mountains has little agate I'm aware of, but does have a lot of chalcedony roses. To the East of the Davis Mountains are
deposits of agate, though not much of interest to serious collectors that I'm aware of. I have seen pretty flower garden from the
Sierra Blanca area.
There are many theories about agate formation. Some suggest a silicon gel, or silicon dissolved as a colloidal solution which
saturates the host rock. Quartz is water soluble at high temperatures, so as it cools It forms inside veins, gas pockets, or can
replace other minerals as pseudo morph, or fossils such as wood, bone and coral. No one theory explains all types of agate,
and some like our "peanut agate" has no theory at all that I have read about.
| Website made by Ben Toro |
| | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Custom hand made sterling silver jewelry by Paul Graybeal of Marfa, Texas. 432-729-4526. |
| Moonlight Gemstones was started by Paul Graybeal In 1989. He mainly creates hand made custom silver jewelry for people who come in to his shop (that 's why there is not very many jewelry items currently offered, but we'll make something for you!) such as pendants, earrings, rings, bracelets, bolo ties and belt buckles, or any other type of jewelry . He has also been collecting agates in west Texas since 1985, which he uses in his jewelry. Look around and see if there's something you like. Moonlight Gemstones is currently only a two man operation (2nd person being me, Ben Toro). If you would like more information, e-mail us or call us (432-729-4526). Paul has had his jewelry pictured in Texas Highways (March 1996, vol. 43, no. 3, p. 13), praised by a reader in True West Magazine (July 2004, vol. 51, no. 6, p. 10) and has had articles on him published in The Desert-Mountain Times and The Daily Sentinel. Paul is also the president of the Chihuahuan Desert Gem and Mineral Club. |
| Specializing in West Texas Agates and other rare gemstones |
| Updated July 04, 2008 |