Featured Whitby Jet, Vulcanite, Bog Oak, Gutta Percha, French Jet, etc

Some examples.

Carved jet:



Jet frame with shell cameo inset:



A molded Czech piece in what I think is a jet frame:



Bog wood:


(If anyone recognizes the building depicted, please let me know.)

 

Whitby Abbey?

(EDIT: Are those shamrocks around the border? If so, must search Irish ruined abbeys.)
(EDIT #2: Of course, since the brooch is bog oak, an Irish castle/abbey/ruin makes more sense.)

 

I concur.

 

I'm still not seeing jet. And I think that pattern with those metal links is cuh-cuh-crazy for jet. I mean if it was expected to be worn and not put in a display case.

And I would argue that the circled bit is more "ice cream scoop" than conchoidal fracture pattern.

From piece of obsidian demonstrating conchoidal fracture from wikiepedia user Ji Elle

 

Yep.
And Whitby is the jet capital of the world, so bog oak in Whitby is like cursing in church. (Last bit is a Dutch saying.)

 

Jet (lignite)
UK Wiki

 

Confused as ever!

More than one kind of jet... @Jivvy 's an example of the hard variety?

Jet is a product of high-pressure decomposition of wood from millions of years ago, commonly the wood of trees of the family Araucariaceae. Jet is found in two forms, hard and soft. Hard jet is the result of carbon compression and salt water; soft jet is the result of carbon compression and fresh water.

The jet found at Whitby, in England, is of early Jurassic (Toarcian) age, approximately 182 million years old.[5][6] Whitby Jet is the fossilized wood from species similar to the extant Chile pine or Monkey Puzzle tree (Araucaria araucana).[7]
Same article

 

In case this is part of the confursion: please note, my post included a picture of a conchoidal fracture, not of a conchoidal fracture on whitby jet. Will clarify in that post, too.

 

Oh for heaven's sakes... I also need to clarify, that when we're talking "jet" -- I'm hearing "Whitby jet" -- which is not fair because no one, not even me, was saying that.

I don't even have a clue of how other jet fractures.

My apologies, my confusion.

Please carry on without me, lol.

 

Thanks, @Jivvy - I was a little confused by that...

Geology.com for good technical information on jet varieties.

I think the type of fracture or break would depend on the variety/hardness.

Fascinating vvvv (so not to rule out jet in jewelry that isn't victorian)

While there is no source of jet anywhere near southwestern Turkey, it can be found in western Anatolia near Erzurum, where there are about six hundred family-run mines in the mountains. They call it oltu-tasi and it is the material from which Muslim prayer-beads are made. Finlay, Victoria. Jewels: A Secret History (Kindle Locations 1054-1056). Random House Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

 

My posts aren't meant to be argumentative If I think it helps clarify, I post it.

We all agree lots of sellers, high and low end, misidentify black jewelry - it's truly a black art, pun intended. I went looking for something a little less subjective and shared it, thats all.

 

Good catch, @bluumz and

{I edit my posts all the time, but rarely ever note it - hope that's not bad form }

 

I rarely see disagreements as argumentative. And disagreements that arise from identifying black jewelry via photographs?

More surprising if there are none.

 

@Bronwen , I took the liberty of asking a new Irish member if she recognized the building on your brooch. Her answer is here:
https://www.antiquers.com/threads/pottery-holy-water-font-any-thoughts-on-maker-worth.40031/

 

I just saw -thank you! Will say for others, that brooch, with its domed shape, is a type I see now & again, but with all different castle/abbey/castle chapel architecture. I imagine they are made as souvenirs of those places & that they are Irish in origin. This one came to me in an auction lot from England.

 

Reviving this older thread...

Here is another good link for info on Whitby jet and how it compares to other black substances used in vintage jewelry:
Guide to Whitby Jet

I came across this piece and am questioning the seller's label of Whitby jet. Seller states, "You can see the faint remains of wood grain on the back of the brooch which is true to Whitby jet." Umm... I was under the impression that the appearance of wood grain indicates that it's NOT Whitby jet. Opinions?

 

Doesn’t look like it to me but I’m no expert.
Can you put a screw into WJ like that?, surely it would shatter.
The pieces I have seen look shiny not matte.
Edit, also the ‘grain ‘ stops before the edges. Looks more like something that’s been heated and moulded?

 

In re-reading the earlier posts in this thread, I do see that that the clasp finding on Whitby jet brooches is always adhered onto the piece due to that very issue.

 

I wonder if @Bronwen has come across your cameo in real life?

 

For educational purposes:

This is the back of a brooch that has lost its pin. The seller claims it is Whitby jet. Obviously, the pin finding was screwed on. So... NOT Whitby jet?