Tracing the Hope Diamond’s Lineage Help! We need a secretary! October Rock Show 1939 Rock & Gold Trip P O R T M O O D Y R O C K & G E M Editor: Rose Kapp ([email protected]) Sept/Oct 2005 President: Drew Rekunyk Vice President: David Albert Past President: Geoff Cameron, Andrew Danneffel Secretary: Gail Mawhinney Treasurer: Chandra Collett Membership: Sonja Stubbings Workshop: Ken Ayres, Cecil Smith, Stormy Refreshments: Diane Rekunyk Newsletter: Rose Kapp Society Delegates: Ken Ayres (Sr) Gary Richards (Int) Drew/Diane Rekunyk (Jr) Club Mailing Address: Port Moody Rock & Gem c/o Kyle Centre, 125 Kyle St. Port Moody, B.C., V3H 2V7 General Meetings: 7:30 PM Arts Centre, Port Moody next meetings: Thursday, September 29th & Thursday, October 27th www.lapidary.bc.ca (BC Society) www.rockhounds.com (Rock & Gem Magazine) mineral.galleries.com www.palagems.com www.gemsociety.com INTERESTING WEBSITES Growing old is mandatory; growing up is optional. SPECIAL MEETING, JUNE 23, 2005 Workshop Needs Report This is a short version of the report. A full report is available from the workshop committee. Please contact Andrew Danneffel • Motion 1: Propose club to begin upgrading workshop to provide full set of 8" diamond wheels: carried • Motion 2: Propose club purchase 8" flat lap for grinding and polishing flat stones: carried • Motion 3: Propose club purchase 14" slabbing saw: carried • Motion 4: Propose club purchase 2 convex 12" buffing wheels: carried • Motion 5: Propose club cover several small upgrades and maintenance issues: carried • Motion 6: Propose club purchase 10" trim saw: carried • Motion 7: Propose club lower slabbing fee from 25¢ per square inch to 20¢ per square inch: carried • Motion 8: Propose club increase annual membership fee by $10 for both single members and families to help fund upgrade endeavor and assist increase in maintenance costs: carried The workshop committee proposes the club authorize the continued efforts of the committee to further evaluate equipment requirements, ask for member suggestions, coordinate efforts to assemble training material on proper use of workshop equipment, conduct and inventory of club property, introduce "odorless" oil to saws, and explore a higher grade of polishing compound: carried Ken Ayres sent me a link to an interesting site: Palagems.com, Fine Creations From Planet Earth. It contains amazing finds, book reviews, shows and news from the rock world. Check it out! Because of work constraints, Gail Mawhinney is no longer able to hold the position of club secretary. The club needs someone to carry out this function - taking minutes during the monthly meetings and some correspondance. Anyone interested in helping, please contact a member or attend the next meeting. TanzaniteOne Ltd. announced August 3 the discovery of the world’s largest piece of rough tanzanite. The rough was taken from its Merelani Tanzanite Mine in Northern Tanzania and weighs over 3 kilograms (16,839 carats). WORKSHOP SCHEDULE ROCK NEWS ROCK NEWS CLUB NOTICES MON. TUES. WED. THURS. Lapidary Lapidary Faceting Lapidary 8:30 AM - 12 noon 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM 8:30 AM - 12 noon For faceting, contact Bill McCracken at 604-469-1726 Rock & Gem Newsletter Port Moody submitted by Rose K. By Cecil E. Smith photo: www.palagems.com http://www.smithsonian.org/research/spotlight/3_2.ht m#diamond From left to right, Tavernier Blue Diamond, French Blue Diamond, Hope Diamond. The Tavernier and French are cubic zirconia replicas. The Hope is the real thing, taken out of its usual white diamond setting. Research conducted over the past year by Smithsonian curator of gems Jeffery Post, mechanical engineer and computer specialist Steve Attaway, and gem cutters Nancy Attaway and Scott Sucher supports the theory that the Hope Diamond was cut from the French Blue Diamond after the latter was stolen from the French Crown Jewels in 1792. The team used state-of-the-art imaging and computer modeling technology, combined with new measurements of the Hope Diamond and historical records and sketches of the Tavernier Blue Diamond and the French Blue Diamond, to create for the first time ever accurate virtual computer models of the three diamonds. The results of the modeling study clearly support the assumption that the Hope Diamond was cut from the French Blue Diamond, and reveal that no sister stone to the Hope Diamond could have been cut from either previous stone. The computer models were used to guide the cutting of accurate replicas of the two precursor stones – in cubic zirconia. This extensive research project was captured on film and featured on the Discovery Channel in the production "Unsolved History: Hope Diamond." Get ready for Port Moody Rock & Gem Club's annual show October 29 & 30, 2005. This year's theme is Geodes & Thundereggs: Nature's Surprise Packages. Time to get organized and put on a great show! This is one of the trips I took when I was 16 or 17 in the year 1939. I grew up in Oregon. Jack and I went to Fish Lake in Oregon. Driving up to it we passed what is called "rabbit ear". On up, we passed some massive cedars. We parked our 1929 Model A at "Mt. Lookout". It was 8 miles down to the lake. I had a pack made from a gunny sack. We roughed it that night. The next day we went up into the hills looking for gold. Didn't find any. While I was in camp, I met a school teacher and taught her how to make a figure for a trap. And got to ride a big black horse. Really a good horse. Jack panned for gold in some island in a creek. He found fool's gold. This was one of my early outings.