Jewelry question, what kind of stone is this?

Hi all!

What kind of stone is this in this Mexican silver brooch/pendant. I am unfamiliar with pink stones.

Thanks!

 

Thank you Mary!!

 

Looks a little like Rhodochrosite to me, but not sure. I don't think it's Rose Quartz, though.

 

thank you Bonnie!

 

Sure looks like it could be rhodochrosite. I have seen that stone in Mexican jewelry before as the mineral is native to that country.

 

They do look a bit similar, but Rose Quartz has more of that clear look like quartz.....sometimes a bit milky which could easily cause some confusion as to the similarity in the two. This is a nice comparison, Mary. Thanks for posting. Since I don't work with cutting stones anymore and haven't for many years, I'm often not as familiar with them as I used to be, but this one jumped out as being Rhodochrosite with not as many striations as some.

 

It is found in a number of countries, including Mexico. It is not native to only 1 country.

 

Oh, Mary, don't do that! I'm not an expert by any means, but used to handle these types of stones quite a bit. I never faceted, but instead cut cabachons and wished I had the time to do it again one day as I have lots of lovely rough material. I always enjoyed cutting Rose Quartz although it was extremely difficult to find pieces that were good and stable. Some pieces had so many fractures, but actually, those fractures most of the time made them so pretty adding various shimmers of color! We did a lot of Lapidary and Silver work in the late 1970s and belonged to an Artists and Craftsmen co-op for 13 years. Not many people were interested in the beauty of these stones at that time. It's so rewarding to see so many now that love them! They are truly little works of art in themselves and when you slab a rock, you know you are the first eyes to have ever seen what's inside after millions of years. You see, it really doesn't take much to excite this very simple being. If I can find an old pic of me cutting and polishing I will share it with y'all.

Made these black and white as the color was not good and you can see the detail of the process better I believe. 1970s with a pile of rocks and a Diamond Pacific cutter.

 

Way back when........many moons ago!

 

Thank you everyone, this has been fascinating reading!