Jet[GEM]
Listing description
Jet is a geological material and is considered to be a minor gemstone.
Jet is not considered a true mineral,
but rather a mineraloid as it has an organic origin,
being derived from decaying wood under extreme pressure.
Detailed description
Jet is a geological material and is
considered to be a minor gemstone. Jet is not considered a true mineral, but rather a mineraloid as it has an organic origin, being
derived from decaying wood under extreme pressure.
The English noun
"jet" derives from the French word for the same material: jaiet.[1] Jet is either black or dark brown,
but may contain pyrite inclusions[2], which are of brassy colour and
metallic lustre. The adjective jet-black is
better known perhaps than the substance from which the descriptive phrase
derives.
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Origin
Jet is a product
of high pressure decomposition of wood from millions of years ago, commonly the
wood of trees of the family Araucariaceae. Jet is found in two forms, hard and
soft. Hard jet is the result of the carbon compression and salt water; soft jet is the result of the carbon
compression and fresh water.
The jet found at Whitby, England is of early Jurassic (Toarcian) age, approximately 182 million years
old.[3] [4]
Jet is easily
polished and is used in manufacturing jewellery, according to the Whitby Museum,
dating from 10,000 BC in parts of contemporary Germany. The oldest jet jewellery was found
in Asturias, Spain, dating from 17,000 BC.
History
Jet as a gemstone
was fashionable during the reign of Queen Victoria, during which the Queen wore Whitby jet as part of her mourning dress. Jet was
associated with mourning jewellery in the 19th century because of its sombre
colour and modest appearance, and it has been traditionally fashioned into rosaries for monks. In the United States, long necklaces of jet beads were very popular during
the 1920s, or Roaring
Twenties, when women and
young flappers would wear multiple strands of jet
beads stretching from the neckline to the waistline. In these necklaces, the
jet was strung using heavy cotton thread; small knots were made on either side
of each bead to keep the beads spaced evenly, much in the same way that fine pearl necklaces are made. Jet has also been known
as black amber, as it may induce an electric charge
like that of amber when rubbed.
Properties
Jet is very easy
to carve but it is difficult to create detail without breaking so it takes some
time for learning and executing more elaborate carving.
Jet has a Mohs hardness ranging between 2.5 to 4 and a specific gravity of 1.30 to 1.34. The refractive index of jet is approximately 1.66. The
touch of a red-hot needle should cause jet to emit an odor similar to coal.
Authenticating jet
Although now much
less popular than in the past, authentic jet jewels are valued by collectors.
Unlike black glass, which is cool to the touch, jet is not cool,
due to its lesser thermal
conductivity.
Anthracite (hard coal) and vulcanite (hardened rubber) are superficially
similar to fine jet, and have been used to imitate it. These imitations are not
always easy to distinguish from the real thing.
The structure of
jet (which is remarkably like the wood that it is derived from) can be seen
under 120x or greater magnification.
PRICE
$850/KG OR $386.36/IB
For more information:
mobile: +2348039721941
contact person: emeaba uche
e-mail: emeabau@yahoo.com
website: www.franchiseminerals.com

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