When rock hunters are prospecting for interesting and/or colourful rock and they want to know how the rock will cut and polish, they lick it. It's the most convenient way to wet the surface and so get an idea of its qualities. I love to watch my partner do this. It's as if he has an affinity with the earth itself. But then, rocks are his passion and always have been. He was picking up rocks from the age of three.
He cuts the rocks in rock saws then polishes them on vibrolaps (large circular flat plates that vibrate). This process reveals the beauty contained inside the rocks.
The polishing powder needs to be washed off each polished face and slab and this is a job I can do for him. I stand in the sunshine holding each piece under the powerful jet of a pressure cleaner and watch the specimens come to life.
Then all the rocks are packed into drums and sent to America in time for the biggest rock, gem and mineral show in the world.
Sorry, Woody, you can't come!
4 comments:
Ah, love that pic of W!
Your blog is now a
'christmas gift' on my blog....hope that's ok?
Woody looks adorable!
I love polished stones, great to look at and so tactile too. (You may remember I have one of yours (Tiger Eye) that HHnB brought over to England for me.
Like the dawgie - looks like he may be a "Bluey" - that so?
I used to think Woody was part Bluey.. until his beard and eyebrows grew.. and grew. So now I think he's part Schnauzer. I've asked him a number of times but he's 'cagey' to say the least. Wants to keep me guessing, I suppose.
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