Name the inclusion

[Proteus]

Ok everyone, here''s a game of "name the inclusion."

#1: This looks very alien, doesn''t it?

 

[Proteus]

#2: This looks like some kind of claw. There''s a dividing line which determines what it is.

 

[Proteus]

#3: A real mess, isn''t it? It''s pretty, though. This type of inclusion used to confuse people into thinking it was an opal.

 

[Proteus]

#4: This is a cool inclusion. I guess it''s pretty obvious what it is. Any guesses on what kind of stone it''s in?

 

[coatimundi_org]

John Koivula look out!

These photographs are incredible. The claw(#2) is amazing--I love the composition of that photo. Really great work, Proteus! Thanks for posting!

1--rutile?
2--liquid/gas--two phase?
3--looks like some sort of fracture iridescence.
4--discoid fracture in heat treated corundum?

 

[Proteus]

Date: 9/27/2008 10:35:02 PM
Author: coatimundi
John Koivula look out!


These photographs are incredible. The claw(#2) is amazing--I love the composition of that photo. Really great work, Proteus! Thanks for posting!


1--rutile?

2--liquid/gas--two phase?

3--looks like some sort of fracture iridescence.

4--discoid fracture in heat treated corundum?

HAHA! - your Koivula comment about cracked me up

Thanks! I''m glad you like the photos so much. The claw-like inclusion is really something, isn''t it? You got it right, it is a 2-phase in a morganite.
#3 is an iridescent fracture, you got that right, too. It''s in an iolite.
#1 isn''t rutile. This is a sort of flow structure.
#4 isn''t a discoid - it''s just a crystal inclusion. It''s in a gem that is not typically heated.

I''ve got plenty more bizarre inclusion photos.

I''ll be able to make quite a few more rounds.

 

[coatimundi_org]

1--flow marks in moldavite? looks like tiny gas bubbles too.
4--rounded apatite crystal attached to another crystal? Can't make out the color of the stone.

 

[Proteus]

Good call, #1 is moldavite. It''s been my favorite thing to photograph so far, it has some really wild stuff in it.
For #4, I''m not actually entirely sure what the makeup of the included crystal is. It''s a bit too small to tell. The host gem is a deep, steely blue.

 

[coatimundi_org]

4-host gem spinel

 

[Proteus]

You got it - #4 is in a blue spinel. I really like that crystal inclusion, the rest of the gem is incredibly clean. There's a lot of subtle detail in the crystal... it doesn't come up as well as I'd like in the photo, but it's still decent.

Good job! That didn't take you long at all. I guess I'll have to start up another round soon!

 

[coatimundi_org]

Yah! Please do!

Where is everybodY? I''m the only one playing-haHA!

 

[beaujolais]

Thanks Proteus. I got to this party too late to participate. Then again, I don''t even have the knowledge to participate.

Go Coati. You will be some G.G. I too, find clean stones a bit boring. In diamonds, I often look for I1''s (fairly clean, though, meaning one inclusion). Inclusions (in a reasonable amount) add character, mystery and intrigue. Also, obviously, makes I.D.ing your stone lots easier.

 

[Pandora II]

Humph, you guys will keep doing these whilst England is asleep...

 

[LD]

I was in bed too

Love the photos - stunning! I''ve got a piece of faceted Modavite set into a ring and I''m tempted to get the loupe and microscope out now! I honestly thought #4 was lead filling! Good job I wasn''t awake

 

[Proteus]

Ok, it looks like a lot of people missed the boat on the last round, so here are some more. It''s only a bit after 5 in England, so hopefully you can join in, Pandora.

Feel free to guess both on what the inclusion is, and what the host stone is.

#1: This is (I think) a somewhat unusual inclusion for this stone. The color might give the gem type away.

 

[Proteus]

#2: This might be really obvious, but I think it''s a great shot for educational purposes.

 

[Proteus]

#3: This is a lot of fun. These are reflective.

 

[Proteus]

#4: This is a pretty common inclusion for this type of stone.

 

[LD]

#3 I think is Sunstone

#2 looks like an old fashioned record disc!

No idea but fantastic photos!

 

[beaujolais]

1. something in a spessarite

3. schiller

Realize that I'm a new gemophile.

----

Say, Proteus, do you have any microphotos of lilly pad inclusions in a peridot?

---

This is Great. How educational.

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you, Thank you.

 

[Proteus]

LD/Sonoma, good job! #3 is a sunstone, you''re seeing the tiny copper platelets that make the schiller effect.

Yes, #1 is in a spessartite. These are some weird fibrous needles. I haven''t seen them before... usually spessartite is just full of liquid inclusions, or "sugary" crystals.

Glad you''re enjoying the photos! It''s fun to show everyone what goes on inside of gemstones.
I don''t have any yet of a peridot lily pad specifically, but I do have a piece of rough with a big ol'' pad in it. Maybe I can polish a window sometime and get a shot of it. I do have some other peridot inclusion photos, though.

 

[coatimundi_org]

Way to be Sonoma and LD!

#2 Curved striae in synthetic corundum

Yay for the schiller photo--I love Oregon sunstone--just got one!

Where's Pandora??

eta:--awesome photos Proteus!

 

[coatimundi_org]

#4 tsavorite? crystals--but what kind?

 

[Proteus]

Coatimundi,

Good work, #2 is a synthetic color-change sapphire. It''s hard to get a good photo of the striae.
#4 is a tsavorite. I''m actually not 100% sure what the crystals are. The Handbook of Gem Identification calls them "white crystals"... Thank you, Mr. Liddicoat...

Wow, I guess we''re ready for round 3 already!

 

[coatimundi_org]

Great photo of the striae--can be hard to find.

White crystals--I always want to know what the are!

 

[Pandora II]

Okay.. I haven''t looked at other people''s posts yet...


1) These are not the lace-like inclusions typical of spessartite garnet. I wondered if it was asbestos...

2) Curved stria in synthetic sapphire

3) Copper schiller in Oregon Sunstone

4) Oriented two phase inclusions in Emerald.

 

[Pandora II]

Now I''ve looked at them all....

Numbers 1 and 4 were the tricky ones. I nearly went for finger-print inclusion on number 4, but they don''t tend to be oriented.

Interesting.