Worthless minerals

Just a couple of pieces of Iron Pyrite I picked up this weekend and decided to show off.
I found a few fossils and will post those maybe tomorrow.
Today just the "Fools Gold"

Bone2stone

These came from the Arcadia Park member of the Eagleford Shale.

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     Stress on SOMETIMES associated with SMALL quantities of gold  
     You're talking about a gold content of UP TO 0.37% (37 percent of 1 percent) for a very specific type of pyrite in a specific type of gold bearing formation.   Kind of makes it difficult to even consider it an indicator mineral in general conditions, doesn't it?  
     On the other hand if you want to get into sulfur extraction your looking at a pretty good ore there.

BA

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Out4gold, Eagleford , East Texas. Good ammonite fossil country. I've been there. Did some collecting and found some pyrite. There is a prize pyrite mineral collecting site North of Dallas in the Pennsylvanian don't remember the group but it was in a creek bed. and we found saucer size round 'blooms' of pyrite in the creek bed and in the shale along the sides of the creek.  We had to hike a ways to get there and were out of water after we collected for a while, but there was lots of springs of clear cool water running out of the shale beds. We discussed weather to drink it or not and finally decided it was probably safe. I collected some in my canteen and tasted it. Argggggg!!!!!!!  , Don't ever drink water that drains out of pyrite beds. It's just like drinking battery acid. I didn't get the taste out of my mouth until we stopped at a gas station on 279 which was miles away.

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You guys are a hoot.
Worthless as far as a source of marketable metal. 
Now as far as a mineral specimen that is a different situation. Sold lot's of it.

Gold in this particular pyrite is not one of the things we even think about.(None)
Now sulphur, that's one of the prime ingredients in these nodules.
The Eagleford has some pyrite that if left exposed turns into a little pile of dust.
Sulphur is some nasty stuff and if you were to take a whiff of a "wet" sample
you sure can smell it! It stinks to high Heaven!
I don't keep it in my house, it smells like a large accumulation of of Matches all being struck at once! Storing them in a breathable container in an area where rain can not get to it allows it to become tolerable and after a few months it may be placed in a show case. Heating it helps as long as you do not take the heat too high. It will pop apart.
Even then when you open your showcase you can smell that pungent stinch.

Gambol1,
Drink it!!!!!!!!! Wow you got more cahoonas than I do.
BTW: The Pennsylvanian deposits are to the West, N West and S West of the DFW area.
Mineral Wells, Bridgeport, Brownwood those are just a few of the major areas to collect.
Most of the pyrite if have found in these areas are of little collectability.
It just rusts apart too rapidly.
Now the Eagleford all around the Dallas area is loaded with the stuff some better than others. The Midilothian area produces some of the largest and best nodules I have seen, some as large as a Grapefruit. (The Austin Chalk) The limestone just ablove the Eagleford contact area to be more precise.
I too have found some of the flowerettes you spoke of, here, near the Lewisville area.
Although smaller they sure sold good at the gem and mineral shows.
Thanks for all the comments and I will now start another thread about the fosssils I found out there that day.

Out4gold

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I have not had the opportunity to hunt the Permian just so many other things to spread myself out to.
Glad to know about the bloom preservation technique.
One question. What type of alcohol ethanol or would isoprpanol?
When I get to go down to Bell Co. it is usually to do the arrowhead thing.
Plenty of inhabited areas along the Leon river.
I have heard of some of the specimns found around the Archer Tx area.
There is a nice Edaphasaur in the museum here in Dallas.
BTW: Collins Co. has it's own musem now The Heard Museum is getting some
world acclaim. Including Ft Worth we now have three museums here.
Well chat later. Have a good day.

Out4gold

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