Chinese Snuff Bottle Discussion Forum 中國鼻煙壺討論論壇

Public Forum Categories and Boards => Gem, Stone, Rock and Fossil => Topic started by: cshapiro on August 16, 2016, 12:01:51 am



Title: Banded Iron Formation Snuff Bottle?
Post by: cshapiro on August 16, 2016, 12:01:51 am
I did a lot of research on this bottle, and the best I can come up with is that it's banded iron. Which is really interesting, if it is!

It's a small bottle - measures 4.5 cm and the stone on the top is a complete mystery to me.

It is hollowed pretty well - the walls are thick but it's hollowed along the sides, not just a straight shot down the middle.

I saw where Peter posted one on the board before, so any info would be much appreciated!


Title: Re: Banded Iron Formation Snuff Bottle?
Post by: Wattana on August 16, 2016, 12:19:27 am
Hi Cathy,

You may well be right about the material. If so, the main ingredient is hematite. Have you checked to see if it is magnetic?

While the material is millions of years old, the bottle itself looks like a post-1990 product.   ;)

Tom 


Title: Re: Banded Iron Formation Snuff Bottle?
Post by: cshapiro on August 16, 2016, 12:48:57 am
Just stuck a rare earth magnet to it and got a very slight bit of a pull on the red bands - no where else.  :o

Any ideas on the material on the stopper?


Title: Re: Banded Iron Formation Snuff Bottle?
Post by: Wattana on August 16, 2016, 01:25:57 am
Yep, that's the iron in the red hematite. The grey-black is also magnetic, but too low to be noticeable.

The stopper is made of red jasper with traces of white quartz in the seams. I have a couple of snuff bottles made of this material.


Title: Re: Banded Iron Formation Snuff Bottle?
Post by: cshapiro on August 16, 2016, 01:33:35 am
Thanks for identifying the top! Would love to see your red jasper bottles


Title: Re: Banded Iron Formation Snuff Bottle?
Post by: Wattana on August 16, 2016, 02:09:32 am
Hi Cathy,

Here is the thread for those two jasper bottles....

http://snuffbottle.smfforfree.com/index.php/topic,1231.0.html (http://snuffbottle.smfforfree.com/index.php/topic,1231.0.html)


Title: Re: Banded Iron Formation Snuff Bottle?
Post by: George on August 16, 2016, 03:55:29 am
Yep, that's the iron in the red hematite. The grey-black is also magnetic, but too low to be noticeable.

The stopper is made of red jasper with traces of white quartz in the seams. I have a couple of snuff bottles made of this material.

Tom, pretty sure the hematite is the grey/black, not the red. The red should not be magnetic.

The full name Cathy is Tiger Iron..  My personal favorite of this kind of material comes from Australia, and called Marra Mamba Tiger Iron..


Title: Re: Banded Iron Formation Snuff Bottle?
Post by: Wattana on August 16, 2016, 05:26:59 am
George, just love the Aussie name for it!

Not sure the colour makes any difference. According to my rock books Hematite is an iron ore, and can be both red and shiny black in appearance. I have a few polished hematite pebbles - disappointingly, they barely register any magnetism.  :(


Title: Re: Banded Iron Formation Snuff Bottle?
Post by: Joey Silver / Si Zhouyi 義周司 on August 16, 2016, 07:28:13 am
Cathy,
 
     While totally modern (the bottle; the material of course, is millions of years old  ;)),
That looks like a genuine snuff bottle, ie., made for use. There is at least one factory in the PRC, I think Tom mentioned it was supposed to be near Shanghai, producing these for the modern Mongolian market. The Mongolians still use powdered snuff, and so still use snuff bottles.

    Sadly, it seems it is not. [See Below, Tom's comment]
I must admit, I think of iron as a metal, not as a mineral.
Best,
Joey


Title: Re: Banded Iron Formation Snuff Bottle?
Post by: Wattana on August 16, 2016, 08:14:58 am

I must admit, I think of iron as a metal, not as a mineral.
 

Dear Joey,

Iron is the metal which man extracts from iron ore, the ore being a natural mineral.

Yes there are genuine snuff bottles still being produced for use. But I can say immediately that Cathy's bottle was not made for the Mongolian market. Their aesthetic preferences are totally different.

Best,
Tom


Title: Re: Banded Iron Formation Snuff Bottle?
Post by: Joey Silver / Si Zhouyi 義周司 on August 16, 2016, 08:19:18 am
Dear Tom,

   Thank you. I stand corrected. But I could use it for giving out snuff in Synagogue, if I didn't have my 'Burning Bush' bottle from Giovanni. That has replaced my 18th C. Imperial Ivory bottle, which I leave in my Collection now; and the modern quartz, Art Deco style bottle I bought in 2001 just before the Houston convention from an Israeli who'd bought it in Shanghai in late Sept.2001.
Best,
Joey



I must admit, I think of iron as a metal, not as a mineral.
 

Dear Joey,

Iron is the metal which man extracts from iron ore, the ore being a natural mineral.

Yes there are genuine snuff bottles still being produced for use. But I can say immediately that Cathy's bottle was not made for the Mongolian market. Their aesthetic preferences are totally different.

Best,
Tom


Title: Re: Banded Iron Formation Snuff Bottle?
Post by: George on August 16, 2016, 09:12:26 am
George, just love the Aussie name for it!

Not sure the colour makes any difference. According to my rock books Hematite is an iron ore, and can be both red and shiny black in appearance. .

Sounds good Tom, and thank you... :)


Title: Re: Banded Iron Formation Snuff Bottle?
Post by: Wattana on August 16, 2016, 09:37:12 am

But I could use it for giving out snuff in Synagogue, if I didn't have my 'Burning Bush' bottle from Giovanni.
 

Dear Joey,

The Marra Mamba Tiger Iron would make an awesome follow-on to the Burning Bush....!   ;D  ;D

Best,
Tom


Title: Re: Banded Iron Formation Snuff Bottle?
Post by: cshapiro on August 16, 2016, 12:18:35 pm

The full name Cathy is Tiger Iron..  My personal favorite of this kind of material comes from Australia, and called Marra Mamba Tiger Iron..

Thanks George will look that up!

Joey - quite honored to have a bottle you would even consider using at Synagogue!