Been getting back to some silver working. The stone on top is an ammolite, from the opalized shell of an ammonite fossil. These stones are relatively new to the jewelry scene and many people have not heard of them yet. They have a brilliant green/red/blue and sometimes purple flash that can be seen from across a room. Is one of the flashiest gemstones I've worked with, even more than opal. The below stone is a chip of nephrite jade that I found on the beach in Big Sur, California. There is a serpentine seam that is exposed at the coast here where one can find nephrite jade if you are patient enough. Nephrite jade is serpentine that has been metamorphosed (crushed) twice by geologic forces. This is why it's so rare and the nephrite found in Big Sur has a distinct brooding green color that is not found in jade from other places like British Colombia or China.
