Up for sale is a very rare and beautiful example of petrified wood with copper veins throughout that measures 4 x 4 1/2 inches and weighs 298 grams. The piece has been polished to help highlight the beauty of the wood and the copper. Please watch the video as it helps highlight the beauty of the piece as well as identify the copper veins as the pictures do not do the quality of this piece justice. The copper veins are especially prevalent in the white and opaque patterns as well as the agate formation.
I believe the silverish metal on the bottom of the piece is hematite, further adding to the intrigue.
Petrified wood with copper is found from ancient petrified forests in Indonesia and is formed through a process called permineralization where the wood is replaced by minerals, including opaline silica and copper. This process, which takes thousands of years, occurs when mineral-rich water flows through buried wood, depositing minerals that replace the original organic matter.
The high copper content in the opal produces the blue and green colors while native copper creates the golden flecks.
Petrified wood with copper on sites such as Etsy and eBay go for 4 dollars a gram + and more for decent grade and above examples. I wanted to offer a more fair price to help people make their money go farther.
If you have any questions, please let me know.
Thank you for looking,