Obsidian

[Artimi]

Blade

 

Obsidian has always fascinated me.

Mayan culture is outside this site's purvue(?) but this blade is absolutely beautiful.

[Bryaxis Hecatee]

Obsidian has long allowed ancient peoples to carve very utilitarian but also very nice looking objects. Even around the mediterranean you can find such beautifull objects, although we stopped much earlier to use stone for our utilitarian tools, and we never needed so huge tools as what can be found in the precolumbian world.

[Artimi]

A North American archaeologist who had found his niche in Oregon/Washington sent me 3 raw pieces of obsidian. Obsidian is the mineral for Moon Birth sign - Owl. so it is no wonder I am drawn to Obsidian.

[Axel Wers]

Obsidian has always fascinated me.

 

My work is selling of gemstones, obsidian including. Obsidian in natural form has an interesting smooth surface and sharp edges.

[Onasander]

That is found occasionally here in the upper ohio valley, but I mostly just use anything other than sandstone (you have to grind sandstone, good for say nets anchors, but bad for most other operations, as it's largely just.... sand.)

 

There is a site one hundred miles southwest of here, that has green jade, similar properties to obsedian cutting wise. A trade item apparently in old times.

 

This is a old steel mill town. If you read the children's book "No Star Nights" it gives you a understanding of the degree of industrialization here, and the enviromental toll un terms of slag waste deposits.

 

You have a lot of impurities left over from steel, in a molten state, and have to dump it somewhere... so they dug a hugh ditch a few stories deep parallel to some tracks, and simply poured it off the side, standing in silver suits and face hoods. I would hide out as a kid on the opposite side at night, and watch the lava pour. After a while, they would leave and I would run down ti the lavaflats, and look for the think dryed out crusty grey portions.... and throw newspaper on it. If the newspaper didn't light up in flames, I would run across, high stepping it, never more than one foot on the ground, to get to the wall where the lava first hits.... at about eye level is where little black,blue and white obsedian like rock would form.... not in lumps, but in little cylinder like coils.

 

I used to collect that stuff, alot to brittle to be of use, but some quite solid..... looks awesome as a spear tip, just severly doubt it's functionality.

 

If you have a old steel mill nearby, you have obsedian like rock under the slag deposits. Just know slag is inherently unstable, and you gotta dpread your weight.... and can easily end up losing ground quicker than you climb, plus inviting a mini acalance.