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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Bronwen, post: 2266764, member: 5833&quot;]Dear Bronwen, just for my information. what is jet, a kind of stone? Is it more like an onyx?[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p><p>I&#039;ll add to the more technical &amp; historical info on the Wiki site that jet is much softer than black onyx, so much less challenging to carve &amp; shape.&nbsp; Whitby jet is quite light in weight for its size.&nbsp; The first time I bought a cameo set in jet I thought at first that it was plastic because of the lightness, the high degree of polish &amp; the sort of clink it made when tapped with a fingernail.&nbsp; Came back to the English seller with my doubts.&nbsp; They were understandably a bit distressed, but reassured me it was jet based on their long experience.&nbsp; Had to concede that I had no experience other than with Zuni work in jet, which seems to be much denser &amp; is not polished to such a high gloss.&nbsp; Subsequent acquisitions showed me that jet cameo frames really do seem a lot like plastic.</p><p><br /></p><p>Jet is a form of coal.&nbsp; Imitations began to be made based on plant gums similar to rubber/latex.&nbsp; One brand name was Vulcanite, &amp; it has become the noun for all these related materials.&nbsp; Unlike jet, they could be molded instead of cut.&nbsp; Also light in weight but tends to turn brown with time.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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