This is one of the most beautifully colored, perfectly preserved and finely detailed of the Zimbabwe Woodworthia specimens I've had the pleasure of offering! It's also one of the most unique because much of the log contained a geode cavity that was likely inspired by rot. There are tiny stalactites lining the cavern and it's completely coated in a very fine, sparkling drusy crystal. Look under magnification and you'll see thousands of tiny quartz points sparkling back at you in this delicate looking opening! The stone is surprisingly strong and not at risk of breaking from normal handling despite the delicate appearance. The process of cutting, grinding, sanding, polishing and pressure washing these pieces in preparation is far more brutal than any handling the owner is likely to put it through short of throwing it. This forest can produce some truly impressive color frozen in magnificently preserved petrified wood that in many cases represent some of the finest pieces anywhere on the planet, but it's particularly uncommon to find one preserved in three distinct shades of color like this one! I wasn't sure what this log was going to yield and held off cutting it, only to discover the brilliant color pattern over the bold medullary rays highlighting the growth structure of this amazing fossil! The anticipation in finishing these has been tremendous and the high silica content ended up producing truly museum grade specimens that we're very pleased to be able to share now. It's the only one I've ever seen with the color preserving the wood this way! It's really a compelling and captivating piece of natural fossil art with a magnificent polish! The finely detailed annual rings are pierced by the bold rays to form one of the prettiest fossil formations you'll ever see in petrified wood. And the color represents some of the best of the specimens from this forest you'll find. One of my all time favorites in a wonderful collector size specimen!
NOTE: Second photo is from a mate cut slab taken from the same log. It's included to show edge detail and finish quality which are identical in this mirror polished piece.
This round is from a typical sized Woodworthia log that still has the stellar rays emanating through the entire round from the spike knots this wood is identified from. For several years now we've been seeing some really fascinating petrified wood coming into the US at the big import shows from Zimbabwe, Africa! The wood is typically green, brown and black and exceptionally well preserved on the exterior. The interior reminds me of a lot of the Utah wood in detail (i.e. it's hit and miss) but the best pieces show beautiful spike knots leading up to the spine bases that coat the exterior logs. You'd recognize these specimens anywhere as the logs are consistently the same colors inside and out, and the exterior is coated with an unmistakable pattern of spine scars. The wood grain itself varies in quality, but the best of these pieces show spike knots in cross section (they look like rays coming from the center of the log) and a good cut will show several of them.
This wood is quite unique and really is a much more interesting fossil than most of the Woodworthia we get here in the US. The green color is something you have to see in person to understand - it's not really comparable to any other petrified wood and it's difficult to get a representative photograph that really does the color justice. The wood has a reasonably high silica content so we're able to coax a nice polish out of the specimens.
This is one of the few complete rounds I was able to locate that really took a stunning polish. If the timeless mystery of this piece isn't enough for you, then I'm certain the simple, natural, gemmy beauty of it will be. The colors are dark and subtle, and the wood grain is unique to this exotic species.
This round is cut from the center of a very solid log. It's really a nice piece, but what else would you expect from a business named "Sticks-in-Stones"?! We've applied all of our considerable lapidary skills to bring out a mirror finish and produce a specimen worthy of display in your own collection. You can also make out some of the spine scars on the edge of the slice.
This piece measures about 4 3/8" across the polished face and is cut about 0.42" thick. Weight is 0.44 lbs. Stands sold separately.
NOTE: Second photo is from a mate cut slab taken from the same log. It's included to show edge detail and finish quality which are identical in this mirror polished piece.
This round is from a typical sized Woodworthia log that still has the stellar rays emanating through the entire round from the spike knots this wood is identified from. For several years now we've been seeing some really fascinating petrified wood coming into the US at the big import shows from Zimbabwe, Africa! The wood is typically green, brown and black and exceptionally well preserved on the exterior. The interior reminds me of a lot of the Utah wood in detail (i.e. it's hit and miss) but the best pieces show beautiful spike knots leading up to the spine bases that coat the exterior logs. You'd recognize these specimens anywhere as the logs are consistently the same colors inside and out, and the exterior is coated with an unmistakable pattern of spine scars. The wood grain itself varies in quality, but the best of these pieces show spike knots in cross section (they look like rays coming from the center of the log) and a good cut will show several of them.
This wood is quite unique and really is a much more interesting fossil than most of the Woodworthia we get here in the US. The green color is something you have to see in person to understand - it's not really comparable to any other petrified wood and it's difficult to get a representative photograph that really does the color justice. The wood has a reasonably high silica content so we're able to coax a nice polish out of the specimens.
This is one of the few complete rounds I was able to locate that really took a stunning polish. If the timeless mystery of this piece isn't enough for you, then I'm certain the simple, natural, gemmy beauty of it will be. The colors are dark and subtle, and the wood grain is unique to this exotic species.
This round is cut from the center of a very solid log. It's really a nice piece, but what else would you expect from a business named "Sticks-in-Stones"?! We've applied all of our considerable lapidary skills to bring out a mirror finish and produce a specimen worthy of display in your own collection. You can also make out some of the spine scars on the edge of the slice.
This piece measures about 4 3/8" across the polished face and is cut about 0.42" thick. Weight is 0.44 lbs. Stands sold separately.