i'm gonna fill in the details on that piece and then i have to give over the pc to the AM (he's got some stuff to do too).... ok, the boot is smooth with some jagged spots on it. it is granular looking and has some pitting going on. haven't done the knife or glass test yet but can't scratch it with my nail. it has light and dark grey spots on it. i've had it for over 16 years and can't remember if i found it in a gravel road or what. it appears to be the same on both sides although on one side the "ankle" is smooth and the other is bumpy. what is interesting, besides the symmetry, is the indentation where the achilles is over he back of the foot and before the beginning of the calf. if this was nature made, it's amazing. it never occurred to me that it could be a petrified dolls foot. and now i've got to go. thanks for your help marcia and for spurring on my interest! oh, and i've still got to find a jeweler's glass and a black light. tried a black light bulb but it wasn't the same.

Thanks Wolfie for the interesting posts...like a treasure hunt. More on the doll's foot tomorrow, then?! I'll be here.

:-) Hey, this was real fun reading! You two will get the Indiana-Jones-Treasure-Hunters-Award for this one! Those stones are interesting. I got a box full which my parents collected, there are amethysts between and garnet and other stuff. My sisters lives at the north sea and always finds these precious ambers...I never had the luck to find something worthy at the shores...

me either!

Make that three of us...I found broken stuff in the Atlantic as a child, and out here there is more different stuff because of being in coral reef territory, but there is still no amber or anything close to it washing up around me. Hi Isabel! Happy you enjoyed our little fun evening of detective work. I really had a great time with it! Thanks again, Wolfie...time to get to the little foot again?

yeah! and i found a couple other interesting rocks mixed with my earliest collection of land shells. let's do one rock at a time! so what is your theory on my boot?

Does it seem like it is old eroded porcelain or does it seem hard enough to be stone? If it is stone it could be almost anything, but it could also be part of a figurine. I am still opting for the doll foot.

i have no idea about eroded porcelain.

How hard is it? Try your knife and window again

1. scratches glass 2. knife scratches rock

Huh! hmmm....does it seem to be of some sort of glass, as well?

Can you see light through it? (get out that flashlight again!)

i don't know! the residue from scratching with the knife made me think of sand and the scratch left a white mark.

as to the light, no, it's opaque...

Hmmm...turn over a coffee mug or plate and find where it is not glazed. Does that scratch whichever?

it didn't leave a discernable mark, but did draw on it (like chalk). the unglazed portion of the mug left a white mark on the boot.

..engraved white mark on the boot?...that means it is harder than the boot. Unglazed porcelain is hard - about 7... so it is used as a diagnostic for streak (Do you have some polished hematite which has a dark metallic luster and is often made into beads? Try that on your unglazed porcelain.)Do you have a stee life handy? Try that...it is 6 1/2.

that's what i used, a steel knife....i have a polished black stone ring but am not sure if it's hematite. actually, the white mark is gone now after i rubbed my finger over it.

the scratch from the knife is still there, i can feel the indentation with my nail.

I'm guessing it is just slightly harder than glass but enough to scratch it. Pure forms of silica would react like that but would be clear and without inclusions. Thinking.... Do you recall from whence this little footie came?

Ok softer than 5 1/2 so likely not glass or silica of any form. (Your black stone is probably onyx if it does not have a metallic luster) Try a penny - which scratches which and how much (I am guessing it will scratch the penny which is 2 1/2.)

the black stone is in the form of a ring--it's not onyx....ok, now to find a penny...is my little boot gonna get all ruined from all these experiments?

ok, it scratched the penny, but we expected that, right?

(back to the ring, i think it is hematite....it's black with a silvery lustre and very smooth.)

ok, i tried the hematite and boot scratching thing and neither scratched the other.....

No, find something tiny and unglazed to use on the underside of your stone ring (it will scratch your ring, so use it on the inside.) If you don't wish to do this I will tell you what happens. (I have a pair of them and wear them as guards on a jade or carnelian ring made the same way)

Put that boot somewhere in a safe place until I can think of other things to try. I am having to look through my texts now to see what it might be.

are you talking about using the boot on the inside of the ring? i did and no marks.

ooohh, making marcia do some deep research!! thanks, girl, for your help and patience with me and my rocks!

'night! *hugs*

Break a dish or somethiing really badly chipped. Take the bigest piece you can slip into the inside of your ring and see what color streak it scrapes off...just the tiniest scratch will suffice. If you do not wish to do that I will tell you in the morning what your results would have been and why. Meanwhile hitting the books for boot ID, and downloading lava pix for Travel/Hawaii ... G'night, Wolfie! *hugs*

Don't know quite where to put this little story but it IS a rock we are talking about and not old enough for Paleo... Woman Carries 'Fossil' Fetus for 49 Years TAIPEI (Reuters) - Taiwan doctors operating on a 76-year old woman discovered a ``fossilized'' fetus in her abdomen conceived 49 years ago a phenomenon recorded only three times in history, hospital sources said Wednesday. The Veterans General Hospital said doctors on December 31 found a 20 gram (0.7 ounce) lithopaedion, the rocklike remains of a fetus hardened by calcium buildup, in the abdominal cavity of a woman surnamed Wu. The baby appeared to have died in the 20th week of Wu's pregnancy when the fetus moved from her womb to her abdomen. The hospital said their research yielded only three known lithopaedions, and the earliest case dated back to 1582, when a 28-year old fetus was found in French woman.

(Wolfie is not going to be happy with me as this is linked to her collecting conference, but it IS a rock...)

it is an interesting rock to say the least. how could she not have known?

Some people are dead from the neck up, I think! No sense, no feeling and all those old adages must be true!

Don't think I'll put one of those on my wish list...Yeesh!

euw! well, on the subject of rocks, i received my mom's package with the photo albums and guess what was in there? the mysterious kansas rock pictures. yup, tomorrow i'll scan and post them for you to marvel over. yes, am gonna keep you in suspense! :)

Yes! I remember. Big'uns, if I recall correctly...! Waiting patiently...well...as patiently as I can...*sigh*....Yippee!

ok, here's the link to the mysterious kansas rock formations: http://www.spring.net/~bayou/rocks.gif

For the time being it is http://206.97.234.70//~bayou/rocks.gif except for the fortunate few who can still get in the old way... Oh my! They look like fossilized butter rolls which you peel to eat (I cannot think of their real name...) They are just sitting around like that with all those layers? Never thought they'd look like that in Iowa! Thanks, Wolfie!

iowa? kansas, marcia! *heehee* they're absolutely huge. we climbed on some of them. can't even remember what the site was called. a bunch were perfectly round and others were flatter. they all had that butter roll look though.

Absolutely amazing! Funny thing I can never remember the midwest because whenever I flew over it the states were not painted different colors like on my map and I could not tell where I was. They could have at least painted the edges a different color...*sigh*

the midwest looks like a patchwork quilt to me....(check out my post in linens)

I did...and noted that I am to "talk" to Terry which I shall do straight away. *hugs*

Talk to me, talk to me.

Wolfie and I would like an Arts and Crafts Conference, unless you think it is too much and would be more properly a Topic in another conference. This would be handmade things from crocheting and knitting to doll-making, teddy bear making and tapestry to name a few. Pottery, woodworking and glassblowing also come to mind. Or should this be under the Art Conference? Not all of it is art however...sewing of clothes and design of same...lots of cross-overs to be linked if it is a separate conference. Let s know. Thanks! When you have, time, of course! *hugs*

...or just plain CRAFTS would probably be better...

yeah, cuz then it wouldn't be confused with the arts and if we run across topics that would serve a purpose (and it's ok with ree ree) we could link them up. i've got a bunch of ideas for a crafts topic! (and terry, i want to send something to help with the bills but it will have to wait until payday. always tell myself that i'm gonna do that and i forget, so maybe this way, i'll be more apt to remember *grin*) speaking of rocks, i saw a show today on emerald mining. how tempting it must be for those miners to want to walk off with something. guards were all over the place (i think they were in mexico or someplace else where they speak spanish)--no offense but i can't remember where they were. they were 300 feet below the surface and air had to be blown in. i'd be so scared!

oh, thanks terry *smoooooooch* (and to you, marcia for taking the ball and running with it)

Museum Sues Indians Over Meteorite Ownership NEW YORK (Reuters) - The American Museum of Natural History sued an American Indian group Monday to block its claim to the 15.5-ton Willamette Meteorite, one of the museum's oldest treasures and a centerpiece of its newly opened planetarium. The suit seeks a court ruling that the museum is the rightful owner of the largest meteorite ever found in the United States. It also seeks a ruling that it does not have to repatriate the extraterrestrial object to an Oregon Indian group that alleges that the gigantic meteorite is a holy tribal object that brought messages from the spirit world long before the arrival of white men. The museum's lawsuit was filed in Manhattan federal court a little over a week after the much touted opening of its sleek $210 million Rose Center for Earth and Space on Manhattan's upper West Side. The metallic iron meteorite, which is believed to have fallen to earth 10,000 years ago from the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, holds a place of honor on the main floor in the planetarium's astrophysics hall. It has been viewed by countless scientists, teachers and schoolchildren for nearly a century. The lawsuit alleged that the meteorite's ownership history dates back to at least 1855 when various Indian tribes voluntarily ceded the meteorite, which was once located in the upper Willamette Valley in Oregon, to the United States in exchange for reservation land and other considerations. In 1905, the Supreme Court of the State of Oregon ruled that the meteorite belonged to the Oregon Iron and Steel Company as owner of the land on which the object was found. The company sold the meteorite to the American Museum of Natural History the next year for $20,600. Almost immediately after its purchase, the museum began to study the object and it has been on almost continuous display since 1906. According to the lawsuit, the current ownership dispute began during the fall of 1999 when representatives of the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde Community of Oregon visited the museum. The federally recognized group consists of a number of tribes from the Upper Willamette Valley, including the Clackamas which ceded the meteorite in 1855, the suit said. At the end of their visit, the representatives submitted a written claim for repatriation to the museum stating that the meteorite is a sacred object. It filed its claim under the federal law known at the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, known as NAGPRA. The law was written for the preservation and repatriation of Native American cultural and religious artifacts. To obtain repatriation of a sacred object, a tribe must show that it is a sacred object, that the tribe owned or controlled it and that the museum does not have a right of possession, the suit said. The museum alleged that the Oregon Indian group did not meet these requirements.

Gee, perhaps I was not talking loud enough in the post before last...?!

are we people sue happy or what? who can own a meteorite? sheesh!

I'd sure like to have one, but I must not! They belong to everyone as far as I am concerned! Greed once again rears its ugly head...!

Of course, all of the famous legendary swords were forged out of meteroitic iron. Iron from the gods made them invincible - and we still remember the names today - as in Excalibur...

well, it's one thing if you happened across a piece, kinda like the berlin wall, but to sue for ownership? this world has become quite greedy. i'd love to just see one in person (already landed and no damage done safely inside a scientific museum) *knock on wood*

*lol* Me too!!! Exhibit A....

(Sometime, when I am not cooking supper, remind me to tell you why you knock on wood!)

it's from an old myth, right? anyway, i don't like tempting fate, God, or whatever....

you guys are just eating supper? and you're still posting?

Nope - I took off about 15 minutes to eat and another 10 to clean up the dishes and kitchen...and I am back at it. As I write itis 5:36pm and we watched the local evening news while consuming my homemade pisghetti.

I think I only just missed you! It's 4 am here and I'm working already.

You so not sleep much. It is almost 5am and I have kept you from doing anything constructive =) It is just going on 7pm yesterday here!

(shh I went back to bed for a while afterwards ;-) but I'm back working again now - it's 7.50 am and I've got a meeting at 9.30 which I'm not ready for! My sleep patterns are all over the place just now. I napped yesterday afternoon which I don't usually do)

(Shhh...so are ours. R wanders in the night and ends up in the back bedroom if he does not start there...I just get up and read.)

(I'm really gonna have a problem when I move my desk back in - won't be able to get up at night and work!)

That is currently my problem. He built my computer station into the corner of the bedroom...and when he is in here trying to sleep for the night, I cannot be on the computer. Maybe I should leave him in the back bedroom....=)

ok, so tell me the story about the knocking on wood (i think i've heard it but right now, can't remember a thing)

What is the story of knocking on wood? It's one of those things you hear and don't really pay attention to, one of those old bromides.

Well, it all has to do with the world tree and the Celts who gave it to the Norse. The roots reached to the gods of the underworld and the branches reached into the heavens. By knocking on the tree, you are praying for the gods of both to heed your comments and help you!

Ygsdrill or something like that...(gotta look that up, too...)

Funny thing about old bromides and nursery rhymes and folk tales. Somewhere, way back..there was real meaning behind the words...

My downstairs bathroom is now sporting a pile of rocks ....from the cornish beaches. A mixture ...my favourite is granite with white quartz lines that look as if they've been dribbled across it. Looked for geodes but didn't find any except in the shops. I really just picked paintable items for their looks ...

Where do you keep these rocks? In a box? On a shelf?

On the shelf behind the loo ..in an artistic looking pile ..they'll stay there til I'm ready to paint them .. collected some nice driftwood too.

I have a bunch of Great Lakes granite "beach pebbles" which look very like the Cornish variety in a wicker basket on my guest room bureau to keep the breezes from removing the bureau scarf. I gave some of mine the "wet look"

do you do that with varnish? i remember us talking about a similar project for shells (which i've not even tried yet)...

yuo take the cheapest colorless clear nail polish you can find. Pour half or 1/3 into another glass container and cap. To the polish bottle add acetone or polish remover to the top and shake well. Coat stones/shells. The more polish per thinner, the shinier the glaze. You can also use spray clear urethane if you find some on sale. Any clear stuff will suffice but hth polish deal is more controllable as to the luster of the finish.

'twould be nice if I learnt how to type, too...*sigh* Sorry!

thanks marcia!!

It's cheap and works well. That's my kind of useful household hints!

mine too!!

Marble Greece is located between the Ionia Sea and the Aegean Sea, and is slightly smaller then Alabama. It is comprised of very mountainous areas and lots of islands. The structure underlying Greece is "Marble". The climate is mild and makes it a vacation paradise. The historical landmarks make it necessary to visit from an architectural standpoint and for general education. Greece rates highly on literacy at 95% and is one of the highly advanced nations in the world, besides being one of the oldest to explore marble. The first marbleworks were started probably in the Cycladic islands in the centuries of 3000 B.C. Hellas is a celebration in word and picture of a beautiful, rugged land, its diverse peoples of antiquity, and their unique civilization which gave birth to the finest elements in our own. The story of the ancient Greeks is known to most persons today in the form of a few highlights: the Acropolis of Athens, the philosophers and sculpture and playwrights of classical Greece, the precious heritage of the Olympic games. Marble contributes considerably to the mineral wealth of Greece. Greece provides rare varieties of marbles which can scarcely be found elsewhere and which have greatly contributed to the history of civilization. Hundreds of thousands of cubic meters of white Pentelic marble or the white marble of Zasteni Magnissia, or the bright-white of Paros, known as "Lykhnitis" which were quarried and used by the ancient Greeks and Romans, to create the masterpieces of sculpture Pheidias, Hermes of Praxitelis and many others. The exploitation of the Greek marble deposits goes back to the sixth century B.C. They were among the first civilizations who noticed the unique properties and uses of marble. The Greek marble coming from the islands of Naxos and Paros in the Cicladi were commercialized also in the Asia Minor, North Africa and at Rome. In the Delphi area, the site of the sanctuary of Pythian Apollo at the foot of Mount Parnassus is extremely impressive. Much of this area was built with marble dating 4th to 6th century B.C. Parian marble was used about 6th century B.C. as Ionic columns in the portico of Athenians, a temple. Sculpturing Schools flourished in this period and works of art became second nature. The Greeks transformed marble into objects of art never considered before and probably since. From other Greek islands came the white marble which was sculptured for the famous Winged Victory (305 B.C.) discovered at the Samothrace now conserved at the Museum of Louvre in Paris. From the ancient quarries of white marble in the mountains of Penteli, Pentelico marble was used for the Parthenon, constructed in 447-432 B.C., the Erechtheus and the Propylaea on the Acropolis of Athens. In the Kavala area, the white veined marble, which is still quarried today, are in the remains of the ancient town of Philippi in Macedonia, founded by Philippus II, father of Great Alexander. Larisa, known as ancient green was used for the columns of the ancient temple of Artemis at Ephesus, one of the Seven Wonders of the World. These columns were later used for the construction of the columns in the church of St. Sophia in Constantinople, erected in 350 A.D. and which now is a mosque. The Romans favored the Cipollino marble quarried in Karystos. http://jbmatthews.home.mindspring.com/Articles/GREEK%20SPEECH.html

More Marble Areas of Greece that produce are Drama/Kavala area well known for its white and white-gray marbles; Ioannina for its beige; the Argolis area for beige, brown, and red; the Attica area for white Pentelikon and ash-blue marble; Crete for its greys; Naxos for the whites; and Volos for the pinks; Attikai for Pentelikon & Agia Marina; Evia Island for Cippolino and Red Eretria; Larissa for Verde Antico; Argolida for Breccia and Red-brown; Arcadia for Black; Chios Island for Brown; and Kriti Island for Onyx;As you can see the utility of many parts of Greece are used for mining and quarrying marble. The six main marble regions of Greece are Drama-Kavala-Thassos which can be considered the Carrara of Greece. Near Kozani and Veroia are well known whites and colored marbles. Ioannina, for beige marble and similar to the Trani area of Italy. The black marble of Farsala, the grey of Larisa, the white of Volos, the rose of Pteleos Volos are among some extracted from the Larisa-Volos regions. Attica and the Pentele mountains for white. (It should be noted that in the Athens area in 1976, a fall in production of marble occurred due to the closing of some quarries for environmental reasons.) The Argolis region is the newest and one of the most dynamic areas for extraction of beige, brown, and red marbles. Many other areas have opened up such as Thrace, Crete, Lesbos etc. An abundance of marbles and limestones such as Cipollino of Evia, the black rudist-bearing limestone of Vitina, the breccia of Mycines, the multi-colored breccia fantasia of Syros, compete against the colored marbles of other countries. Probably the three most widely known marbles today in use are Tinos Green, Pentelicon white, and Thassos White. They are very versatile. Even though the Greeks have an ancient history and use of marble the modern processing started in 1960. From that moment, the number of quarries and marble cutting and process factories started to increase and to be modernized with new and more modern equipment. This was due to the tremendous increase in world building demands and the growth of the rich oil bearing nations who wished to expand their palaces and domiciles. In 1983 Greece started a 5 year development plan that would triple primary quarry production of marble and increase marble exports by a factor of 10 by 1988. This program was established for the expolitation of the marble bearing places, aiming at a higher primary production and exportation. This was to include an intense exploitation program of 12 specific marble-bearing areas. A 128 million dollar investment, half for the production and half for the processing and sales. At that time their primary exports were to the Middle Eastern markets. The main Greek marble to be exported for years has been Pentelikon, which was used to build the Parthenon and Tinos, a very Green serpentine marble. Today they are also known for their white from the island of Thassos, as well as pinks, greys, blacks, reds etc. Greece has so many colors to select from that it would satisfy most any architect or buyer. In most cases their marbles are more true marbles then those of other countries claiming the softer limestones as marbles. Thus the material lends itself for flooring applications. Development of the stone industry over the last 20 years has created a "new stone age". At production well over a million and a half tons of marble, Greece has increased well over 10 times its production in the last 20 years. Still, marble only accounts for 0.3 per cent of teh total GNP and 0.9 per cent of the Greek exports. This is due to the efforts made by the Associations, Government support, Investors and marble factories, and of course the advancement in marble production technology. Stone has progressed from cubical, to thin panels. We have progressed from 3/4" to 3/8" tiles, now to panels of 3-4mm thick with various backings which can be used in elevators, furniture, raised floors and other applications. One only has to consider that out of all the countries which quarry and use stones only 9 exceed the average annual production of one million tons, a smaller quantity than the production in the Carrara area alone. The total quantity produced by these nine countries, Italy, Spain, Greece, India, Brazil, USA, Portugal, France, and China, adds up to around 20 out of the certain 28 million tons quarried throughout the world in 1990: equal to 70% of the total production. The use of stone for claddings has and is currently undergoing a great evolution too. From slabs directly applied to the structure first with mortar and then with mechanical fixings to the creation of prefabricated panels. In a very short time techniques have gone a long way and precast panels have transformed from "strong back" to curtain wall (a finishing module made of metalic structure, stone, glass, insulating materials and interior finishings, ready to be installed. Material is being cut thinner and thus the demand for tile and the affordability it gives, allows even the most conservative individuals to afford it. In 1990, the quarries of Greece produced over 1,800,000 tonns of marble. The capability of Greece is to produce well over 2.5 million tons. The primary geological product of Greece is marble. There are of 4000 companies in the stone sector, over 50,000 employees. There are today well over 300 firms in the quarrying business. The main professional institute or association is the Federation of Association of Marbles of Greece, the Panhellenic Marble Association in Athens, and the "Hellenic Marble" magazine. Other organizations which professionalize this ancient trade are the Institute of Geology and Mineral Exploration in Athens; H.O.M.M.E.H. known as Hellenic Organization of Small and Medium Sized Industries and Handicrafts; The Federation of Greek Marble; H.E.P.O., which is the Hellenic Export Promotion Organization. This organization assist Greek exporters to operate successfully in foreign markets through promotion and advertising campaigns, market research and the arrangement of Greek participation in International fairs and other events. They also offer free services to commercial buyers visiting Greece. If you have the opportunity you should visit Greece in April, when normally the Hellexpo in Thessalonki is held. There you will see many producers, fabricators, and artisans of marble. You will have the opportunity to tour facilities and have a taste of history in the landscapes of this beautiful country. As you know, the Greeks are primarily a trading nation and very involved in shipping due to this. The family is plays an important role in the culture of Greece and its trade. The second largest consumer of Greek marble is the USA. Greece is the 3rd largest supplier of marble to the United States. Since 1988 the USA market has consumed 11% of their production. Greek production has grown in this period about 86%. The USA maintains a vital role in the consumption of Greek stone. While the United States is a major producer of dimension stone, Italy is the largest producer among the market economic countries. It is interesting to note however, that in 1991, Italy imported from Greece well over 18.5 million dollars, thus ranking it 8th in importance of imports for Italy. The imports to the USA grew from 1987 monthly figures of 800,000 monthly to 1990 figures of 2 million per month. Due the economic conditions in the latter half of 1990, the 1991 figures have reduced to about 1,300,000 per month on the average. It is interesting to note that Greece had the biggest decline in imports of stone to the USA by a drop of 35% in 1991 versus 1990. Greece today represents about 6 to 7% of the yearly imports of marble to the USA, which in the last decade has given them a substantial increase yearly. Greece is number one in the world production per inhabitant at 396 pounds per person. This really shows the dedication to production that the society and companies attribute to the importance of stone. The next nearest is Italy which is 25% less. Recently, the exportations of hellenic marbles have been considerably increased, but still do not reach the real capabilities of Greece. It is worthy to note that Greece has over 300 marbles but probably only 50 are exploited. The pallet of colors available should satisfy most any designer or architect. The Greek stones are both competitive in price and quality with the marbles of other countries. Quality is most important to the Greeks and supported by the Institute of Geology and Mineral Exploration and the Department of Industry Research and Technology which will assist and test each marble that is commercially produced and make sure they meet international standards for quality. Most companies now have equipped themselves with the most modern production facilities and have technologically advanced themselves in quarry extraction, production, quality control with the current world standards, sales and marketing. The factories can produce objects of art, blocks, slabs, tiles, commercial jobs, sinks, decorative items, columns, and many architectural items. No one can deny that Greece has so much marble and potential new marbles and quarries, that it will maintain itself as a key player for years to come in marble production. As long as Greece maintains there role in keeping up with modern technology, which for two millenium they have, then we should consider Greece as one of the most important suppliers in the world market of marble. Greece, presently, is the 4th1 largest producer of marble in the world. By the recent World Stone Industry report by the Italians, it is noted that world consumption of marble will grow at an annual rate of 6.5% per year to a level of about 51 million tons by the year 2000 (a total of 40% growth in this decade. Present production is 30 million tons.) Also, the the forecast for raw production of marble will increase to a level of 60 million tons by the year 2000, again a 40% rise. Obviously, these figures could increase considerably if marbles and stones continue to grow in popularity with architects and designers as they have done in the past. Assuming Greece will maintain its present position of production growth and sales, this will mean a substantial boost to their economy and market. Stone flooring will be one of the main increases. In the past three years flooring demand has increased by about 33%. Architects have and will be selecting granite over marble due to its durability and sales efforts by the producers for commercial use. However, marble can still play a most important role in this growth if properly promoted and controlled. Marble is still predominant in the residential market. By world figures, flooring is consumed at about a 34% rate versus exterior cladding at 20%, its nearest competitor. Since the United States has the second largest Housing Construction market in the world (even though it declined 25% in the last two years), the market potential for Greece and the United States in marble is outstanding. One can clearly conclude, that Greece has made history in the past and will make it in the future. from... http://jbmatthews.home.mindspring.com/Articles/GREEK%20SPEECH.html

Pink marble??????? Volos has pink marble??? I don't think I have ever seen pink marble... or green marble... It must be very beautiful. You don't want to know what they did to make lime for cement with ancient glories now reduced to holding bricks together.

and I have marble bathroom tiles which I clean with rubbing alcohol. They are not from a quarry though... "cultured" marble. Man made stuff. All marble should become Nike of Samothrace and not bathroom floors. *sigh* I better never get near Greece. I will stuff my pockets until my clothes fall from the weight.

Marcia, have you ever been in Paris and seen Berenike of Samothrace? It's so extraordinary. She is so beautiful standing at the top a of grand staircase. Although, she is hard marble the feathers on her wings and the drapery of her garment give the illusion of looking so soft. The sculptor was a genius. Berenike really looks as though she's just just pausing to turn before she takes flight.

Nope, but I have seen the Elgin Marbles (Parthenon marbles) in the British Museum and a positivly stunning marble statue from Greece's Golden Age in the Metropolitan. It stands at the head of the stairs... and you can see light through her diaphanous clothing. I can see it in my mind as though I had seen it yesterday! Have you seen Nike? My dad did and he was overwhelmed by her beauty.

I've seen pictures of her standing illuminatd at the top of a very dark flight of stair. It must be staggering to see. Some day...

The Hermes of Praxiteles. The statue is dated to 343 BC and is made from Parian marble. It is the only original work of Praxiteles, that has survived and it was found at Olympia, intact on his base, several meters under the ground. Its height is 2.10 m. It was dedicated to the sacred Altis from the Eleians and Arcadians to commemorate their peace treaty. Later it was moved to the temple of Hera, where it was found in 1877 AD. The sculpture, "the diamond of Olympia", represents Hermes, the messenger of the Gods, holding the small Dionysos, who tries to take something from his hand. http://www.sikyon.com/Olympia/Art/olymp_eg09.html Talking about Greek marbles and ancient Greek art, I will help you with this statue that is very beautiful and very detailed. I have seen this before enough years and I remain astonished. John

Remarkable! Just like the veiling on the status in the Metropolitan in New York City. It is beyond human genius to see light through the fine details.... and the sheen on the stone is absolutely perfect. I will hunt up a picture of it. Thank you for your post and image. Like noses on alabaster sarcophagi, the parts that are the most delicate never seem to survive intact. I assume all Greek men look like their Gods (with all parts intact!)??!

There is no reference to my most special statue...*sigh* I'll post this one instead. Nike of Samothrace, 240-190 BC (Paris, Louvre)

The above image of Winged Victory (Nike of Samothrace) http://harpy.uccs.edu/greek/sculpturefemale.html

The Hermes sculpture John posted is pretty cute from the back, too. I wonder who got to polish him?! (Yes, I know! But you guys look...!)

How many have been to the summit of the Acropolis in Athens? Tell me how magnificent it is. It is on my "to die for" list. How sad that automobile emissions are so corrosive to marble... We destroy the very best of our heritage (not to mention what the Turks did storing ammunition in the Parthenon!)

Marcia, sorry to have take so long in repling to your query. Yes, I have seen Nike (Winged Victory). She really is more beautiful than one can imagine. I had an art history professor who insisted that she be referred to as "Berenike", as she was the "bringer of victory". "Nike" simply means victory. I think that (Bere)nike is an aspect of the goddess Aphrodite. Speaking of Aphrodite, also in the Lourve is another revered Greek beauty, Venus de Milo. She's even older than Nike, but she looks really great for an old broad. I've been to the summit fo the Acropolis in Athens. You have to see it, Marcia. Even it's current state, the Parthenon, is magnificent. I definite must see. John, thank you for posting the Praxiteles Hermes. It is exquisite. It's tragic that only one work by Praxiteles remains. The world is poorer for the absence of the majority of his work.

*sigh* Greece has much to entice me and I have NO marble in my rock collection. I'm working on finding a way to get there and what to do with myself when I do. Cheryl, you have seen much beauty. I have scoured the net looking for the statue I remember from my youth at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NYC. I suspect it was 1) on loan from another museum or colletion and 2) not Greek but rather a later Roman copy of a lost Greek statue. I'd be envious of your bountiful optical memories if I did not cherish you quite so much~ Thanks for sharing your memories! John! Surely you have gone past the Acropolis as often as I have the Statue of Liberty or the Kilauea Volcano and scarcely look anymore. Take my eyes and heart next time you are in Athens...

Hi all, Thank you Cheryl and Marcia & Wolfie. Now I have something interesting: Meteora is located near the village of Kalabaka north of the valley of the River Pinios in Thessaly - Greece. The landscape is dominated by a series of pinnacles of sedimentary rock deposited during the middle Cenozoic. The Meteora sequence is made up of Oligocene and Miocene conglomerates and marls which were gently folded in early Miocene time. Later faulting created a series of horst and graben structures. The faulting, and subsequent erosion of the softer marls, have created the spectacular scenery of the region. The site of Meteora is only 145 km. far from Volos that is, an hour and half by bus and it is the most significant sightseeing for the passengers of the cruisers that reach the port of Volos. Meteora is from the biggest and most important group of monasteries in Greece after those in Mount Athos. We can locate the first traces of their history from 11th century, when the first hermits settled there. You can find more here: http://www.port-volos.gr/index.cfm Regards John

This is a photo of a rock in Meteora. You can see a monastery on the top. John

Thank you, John! Not only do you have the most splended marble, you probably also have fossils. Is there anything which captures my imagination that Greece does not have? I think not (other than gently erupting volcanoes.) Horst and graben structues a easy to find in Hawaii. I guess they are in any place which experiences frequent earthquakes. Greece has certainly had some monumental earth-moving events! The monks on Mt Athos are active in Amateur Radio and have a world wide appeal to those collecting QSL cards. Unfortunately I have only heard the US end of the DX pileup which occurs each time they fire up the rig. Thank you for posting the picture of where they dwell. Beautiful. Like all of Greece, I think!