9.35" Free-Standing, Polished Brecciated Snakeskin Jasper - Australia

Free-Standing, Polished Brecciated Snakeskin Jasper - Australia #280167

This is a vibrantly colored section of brecciated snakeskin jasper from Western Australia. It has been cut flat on one side and polished to a mirror-like finish, revealing very interesting banded patterns. Another edge has been cut flat for presentation purposes and the rest of the specimen has been left in its rough state.

Snakeskin jasper formed as seams of jaspilite in a banded iron formation, called the "Weeli Wooli Formation", which is about 2.5 billion years old. Over time, these deposits fractured due to seismic, tectonic, volcanic, or other kinds of stress-inducing activities. Following those fractures, groundwater containing silica filled in the gaps around the fragmented jasper, cementing them together to create this beautiful mineral association.

Jasper is a term that can be applied to an opaque variety of chalcedony. The opaqueness is due to a higher concentration of impurities mixed with silica/quartz compared to other varieties of silica, such as quartz or agates. Like agate it may form in a wide variety of colors, and is often multi-colored. In most cases, jasper forms when silica-rich fluids permeate throughout a soft sediment or volcanic debris deposit. The fluids then crystallize around the particles/impurities, resulting in a cementation process. Most often, the impurities present determine the coloration of the deposit following solidification, but other factors can play a role in the color of what is now considered a jasper.

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