June, 2006
____________________________
Executive:
President:
Elmer
Beck
1St
Vice-President: Fred Stratton
2nd
Vice-President: Simon
Cantin
Secretary:
Vacant
Treasurer
Adam
Villalbazo
Editors: Norah & Simon Cantin
Membership Karin
Beck
Sunshine:
Shirley
Cook
Publicity:
Julius
Cotter
Wagonmaster:
De Singleton
________________________
* Membership *
$17.50
single, $25.00 per family (includes children 18 years and younger),
Memberships
become due in September each year.
____________________________________
Workshop
The workshop is located in the basement at:
Sullivan Hall,
6302 152nd Street
Surrey, B.C.
___________________________________________________
Surrey
Rockhounder is the official newsletter of
the
Surrey Rockhound Club, and is included
in
your membership fee.
It is published monthly, except July & December.
If you wish to submit articles, please send
them by
the
12th day of the month to: e-mail:
norsim@telus.net
Norah Cantin, Editor
SURREY
ROCKHOUNDER
(The
Original Rockhounder Newsletter)
Suite 614,
7360 - 137 Street
Surrey, B.C.
V3W 1A3
`
Newsletter of The Surrey
Rockhound Club
Members of:
The B.C. Lapidary Society
Gem and Mineral Federation of
Canada
Arts Council of Surrey _________________________
Meetings
General
meetings are held on the fourth Wednesday of each month at 7:30 PM at:
St. Luke Parish Hall
10177 - 148th Street, Surrey, B. C.
(at the back
of the church)
Next General Meeting
The June
Meeting will be held on Wednesday,
June 28th, 2006.
The June program will be:
Bring your Rendezvous Finds
Next Executive Meeting
The next
executive meeting will be on Wednesday,
July 14th,
2006
___________________Contents:
History of Wedding Rings &
Bands 4
Materials
Used in Inuit Sculpture 5
Surrey Rockhounder Newsletter - June 2006
Welcome to the Surrey Rockbound club. Please
let us know of rock hounding activities you would like the club to undertake.
Please bring your Rendezvous finds to share at
the June meeting.
Thank you to those who came out on June 7 to
work on getting ready for our show. Gloria and Dick Dyble, Don and Norma Wolfe,
Elmer and Alice Clarke, Elmer Beck, Mike and Winnie Wolowski.
Thank you to Bob Morgan for leading the Lee and
Ferguson trips.
Are there any topics you would like presented
at future meetings?
Are there any speakers you would like us to
hear at future meetings?
We are in need of volunteers for several
committees, become an active member of the club.
Please see Karin Beck to purchase a membership
roster if you want one. They are $2.00.
We have some Surrey club vests for sale.
Please contact me if you want GMFC Scholarship
forms.
Thank you to Norman Handy for agreeing to be
our club secretary.
As we journey through the 2006 season, I
welcome members to attend workshop sessions but remind people that members
should attend three meetings a year. Junior members must have an adult member
accompany them while they are working in the shop.
I look forward to seeing you
at meetings and club outings.
Elmer
Hi Again Everyone! Hopefully, all you dads and
step-dads had a wonderful "Father's Day".
I heard that our last meetings program with
Rick Hudson was really good. We have
one of his books but not his most recent. Apparently Rick sold all the copies
of his book that he brought with him, so hopefully we will have one in our
library.
Simon and I were recently on Vancouver Island
in Qualicum Beach at a funeral. After
the funeral we were mingling with the family and friends and were introduced to
Brian Beard, a neighbour of the deceased.
Brian we discovered manages the museum in Qualicum Beach, which he said
has some incredible fossils. He invited us to visit the museum when we get a
chance. We thought it would make a nice
stop to visit on our way to summer camp.
Brian has written several articles and co-authored some books on Fossils
in B. C. and Canada. A little later we had the wonderful opportunity to see
some of his fossils and rocks and gems in his private collection at his home.
We were delighted, and amazed at his knowledge and collection..
Thanks to Bob Morgan, for arranging the filed
trip to Lee and Ferguson's, and for guiding me to Lee's. I was able to buy some
nice rocks both for carving and polishing.
Wow! Is there ever a lot of
rocks and related materials at Ferguson's.
There was so much to see I found it a little overwhelming. Perhaps they
will have another sale again sometime. Also, did you notice the beautiful birds
they have in the pens there?
There are lots of activities coming up to look
forward to and participate in, as well as our Show coming up in September. See page eight for details.
We hope to see you at the next meeting.
Norah
Surrey Rockhounder Newsletter
- June 2006
The workshop is located in the
basement of Sullivan Hall, 6302 - 152nd Street, Surrey. Please Note that, for insurance
reasons, you must be a club member in order to use the workshop machinery. Also, the workshop is just a small part of
the Club's activities. If you wish to
use the Workshop facilities, please plan on attending some of the regular
monthly meetings. It is also recommended that if you wish to join wire wrapping
or silversmith classes, that you should first complete the 10-week Beginner
Lapidary lessons on Monday nights.
Lapidary ($2 per session, plus
cost of supplies):
Note: Workshops are not in session during the summer, except for Friday nights but check this with Kavinder first before attending.
Beginners: Monday - 7 pm - 9 pm
foreman - Elmer
Faceting: Tuesday Evening-Drop-in
sessions @ $2 each,
Alice & Elmer
General: Wednesday 12:00 - 3 pm
foreman - Rudy -
(Please call the day before if you will be attending)
Wednesday: There is no Wed. evening wire wrapping at
this time. However, if anyone is interested in taking wire wrapping at another
time call Norma Wolfe.
Wire Wrapping: Thursday Afternoon
- Open session $2 each, minimum of 3. Please call first, and come with
supplies.
Norma Wolfe
General: Thursday evening 6:30 pm to 9 pm
foreman
- De -
Sculpture/ Thursday 6:30 pm to 9 pm $2 each
Carving Simon -
General: Friday:
7 pm - 9 pm , foreman -
Kavinder:
; or Ron -,
Please call the day
before if you will be attending.
Reminder: Children must be
accompanied by parent, guardian or a responsible/suitable adult.
The Thursday
evening workshop will be closed for the month of July and August. It will
reopen sometime in September.
There are no new
members this month.
Attention All
Members:
There
will be flyers available at the next meeting.
Most
positions were filled BUT we would really like to have Assistants for all
positions. Newer members will find this a great way to get involved and find out
what needs to be done to put on a Show. So please speak up and offer your help.
We
need:
1.
Prizes for the Hourly Prize draw. $5.00 to $10.00 value.
See
Karin Beck.
2.
Displayers to fill 20 Show cases. See De.
3.
Donations of good rock for the Silent Auction. See Rudy.
4.
Help to create prizes for Spin & Win. See Gloria & Dick Dyble.
5.
Used Equipment or Supplies .
6.
Club sales: Anyone wishing to sell some of their work should let the committee
know so we know how much space will be needed. 10% of sales to go to the Club.
7.
Demonstrators: Let Simon know if you would be able to demonstrate.
We
hope to have most things lined up by our June Meeting, so you have a little time to think
about what you can do.
Alice
Clarke; Show Chairman.
Surrey Rockhounder
Newsletter - June, 2006
History of Wedding
Rings and Bands
The wedding ring on a hand of a person symbolizes the person is in husband and
wife relationship. This symbol and tradition has a long far back history. It
started with ancient Egyptians, seeing the circular band (today's wedding ring)
representing eternity and love, endless devotion, with no beginning and no end.
Even the ring hole has the meaning of a door to events known and unknown for
two committed to each other
The today's exchange of bands in wedding ceremonies came from Roman Empire
times, when it was a public promise what the marriage contract between a man
and a woman will be honored. The Christians made the wedding bands part of the
marriage ceremony. The use of forth finger for the wedding band came from the
belief of Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans that the vein of this finger is
directly connected to the heart, hence the vein of love
Throughout the years to these days wedding rings keep the meaning of ever
lasting purity, love and commitment between two people. It made a remarkable
run over periods of jewelry eras as Georgian, Victorian, Art Nouveau,
Edwardian, Art Deco, Retro and Contemporaneous. Every jewelry period and era
gave wedding rings perfections, expressed in use of gold platinum, silver,
gemstones, diamonds, ornaments, designs, styles, etc.
The most significant development wedding rings got after the World War II, in
our time, with wide use of platinum and diamonds. Today more then 70% of
wedding engagement rings are those made from gold and sold with natural
diamonds.
Simulated diamonds started to pick up popularity, as they differ little from
their natural counterpart. Even a cremated human body can be made into a man
made diamond, then used in a piece of jewelry and kept as a reminder of the
love one
Contemporary jewelry industry embraces almost all styles from old jewelry eras.
It is easy to find an antique engagement ring or rings of Victorian, Edwardian,
Art Deco styles, even can be possible to buy pieces of those times.
Contributed by: Wade Ohrlein
Sources:http://1wedding-rings.com/
*********************************************
Via the Rockytier
4/6; Rockhound Special 4/06
Gold filled: A layer of gold backed with another metal such
as chrome, nickel, copper, or silver.
Gold Plated:
The process of placing a base metal, such as copper in a bath and
sealing the two metals through electroplate.
Gold Leaf:
A sheet of gold varying from four to five millionth of an inch in
thickness used for gilding and other purposes.
Yellow Gold: A metal generally used for jewelry,
comprised of 53% gold, 25% silver, and 22% copper.
Liquid Gold:
Finely divided gold suspended in a vegetable oil and used for gilding
ceramics.
Vermeil: 14 karate gold overlay on sterling
silver.
********************************************
Shop Tips
How to Burp a Tumbler -
If you're running a tumbler and it keeps burping out gas and making a
mess in your shop, here's a tip. The
burping is due to gas generated by acids and metals. A common example is the iron in a stone (say, bloodstone)
reacting with the weak acids formed by grinding other rocks. Simply toss a couple of antacids in the tumble
and the problem will be reduced or go away.
Tums for the tumbler, so to speak?
Via Hy Grader3/06:
Rock Rollers 7/05; Rockhound Special 3/06.
Surrey Rockhounder Newsletter -
June, 2006
Materials Used In Inuit Sculpture
Inuit artisans in Canada’s Arctic
regions use raw materials that are found on the land or from the sea along the
coasts.
Since there are no trees up in the
Arctic tundra, wood was never an option as a raw material for Inuit sculpture
and art. Instead, the Inuit artisans use whatever is in good supply locally.
Therefore for their Inuit sculpture,
stone is the most common material used followed by animal bone and ivory.
Stone For Inuit
Sculpture
Since stone is the most common raw
material for Inuit sculpture, this is what the world usually sees in Inuit art.
However, getting a good supply of quality stone is not always easy for Inuit
carvers. Quarries or sites with good stones are not always located near the
various established Inuit communities.
Inuit artists would often have to travel together to the quarries
by boat during the summer or by snowmobile during the winter. Sometimes trips
can take several days. Getting the stone out of the land is hard physical labor
since it has to be extracted with tools such as picks and drills. The stone
cannot be simply blasted out with dynamite since blasting will damage the
stone. Once enough quality stone is extracted, the Inuit carvers would have to
transport the supply back to their communities.
The type of stone used for Inuit
sculpture varies since each Arctic region and even supply site will usually
have different types of stone. The general term soapstone often used for Inuit
sculpture is not exactly accurate since most Arctic regions in fact do not have
soapstone sites. Soapstone (talc steatite), a relatively soft stone, is used in
some but not in the majority of regions for Inuit sculpture.
The most common stone used in Inuit
sculpture are serpentine and serpentinite, which are harder than soapstone. As
carving material, serpentine and serpentinite are more difficult for Inuit
carvers to work with than compared to soapstone. These stones come in a variety
of different colors including green, brown, black and a range of shades in
between.
Other types of Arctic stone used for Inuit sculpture include
marble, quartz, argillite, siltstone and dolomite.
Alabaster and soapstone imported
from other countries such as Brazil, Italy and United States (Arizona) are
sometimes used in Inuit sculpture.
Many Inuit art enthusiasts claim that Inuit sculpture made from
foreign stone are not as valuable as those made from indigenous Arctic stone.
Knowing that artwork made by
indigenous Inuit artists who used their local indigenous Arctic stone may be
one of the overall appeals of owning authentic Inuit sculpture.
However, some Inuit including David
Ruben Piqtoukun who is one of the most successful Inuit artists, use imported
stone on a regular basis. His artwork is world renowned and his use of
non-indigenous stone has not hurt his reputation or career at all.
This article is from:
http://www.freespiritgallery.ca/materialsinuit.h
Surrey Rockhounder Newsletter -
June, 2006
ALABASTER
[alabaster] fine-grained, massive, translucent variety of gypsum , a hydrous
calcium sulfate. It is pure white or streaked with reddish brown. Alabaster,
like all other forms of gypsum, forms by the evaporation of bedded deposits
that are precipitated mainly from evaporating seawater. It is soft enough to be
scratched with a fingernail and hence it is easily broken, soiled, and
weathered. Because of its softness, alabaster is often carved for statuary and
other decorative purposes. It is quarried in England and also in Italy. Vases
and statuettes of Italian alabaster are sold as "Florentine marbles."
The term "Oriental alabaster" is a misnomer and actually refers to
marble , a calcium carbonate; whereas gypsum is a calcium sulfate. Important
sources of alabaster are Algeria, Egypt, Iran, and Mexico (from which it is exported
under the name Mexican onyx); in the United States there are important sources
in Utah and Arizona. Oriental alabaster (marble) was extensively used by the
Egyptians in sarcophagi, in the linings of tombs, in the walls and ceilings of
temples, and in vases and sacrificial vessels. The Romans worked the Algerian
and Egyptian quarries and used the stone for similar purposes. In modern times
it was used by Muhammad Ali for his mosque in Cairo. The French make extensive
use of alabaster in interior decoration.
Author not available, ALABASTER., The Columbia Encyclopedia,
Sixth Edition 2006
Submitter by Simon Cantin
The picture on the
right is an Alabaster Column.
Please bring your finds from the Rendezvous.
I
know that some of you did find some great treasures on some of these field
trips.
So
bring some of these rocks to show the other rockhounds.
Surrey Rockhounder Newsletter - June 2006
Surrey Rockhound Club Meeting
Minutes of last meeting Apr 26,2006 accepted as
written
Correspondence: Sudbury Rock and Lapidary Society, Ripple Rock Gem and Mineral
Club, BC Lapidary Society, J&M Dowler Medicine Hat, Thunder Bay Lapidary
Society
Invitation from Ivan Leversage open house june
3 & 4 and Donnamae Chionis June 11 rock sale
Treasurer income
Income for the month
Committee reports:
Arts Council
Theresia Keet meeting on how to fill out grant forms may 29
Education Co-ord Bill Wardle class next week and the week after
Hospitality Karin and
Elmer Beck
Library Leo
Dery
Membership Karin
Beck 57 members; 5 guests new members
Newsletter Norah
Cantin excellent; need new editor in Sept
Program De Singleton May Rick Hudson
Public Relations Julius Cotter
cheking into “the Leader’s” community information page
Show Committee Alice
Clarke June 7 workshop
Sound Don
Wolfe
Sunshine Shirley
Cook Ray and Cory Williams
Sullivan Hall Ron
Wade
Wagon master De
Singleton trip to Northair mines:
june 10
Ways/Means Kamlesh Puri
Work Shop Foreman Elmer Clarke
Old Business
Gladys moved that the club will do food service
at Abby show. Jenifer McAllister has volunteered to co-ordinate. Seconded by Bill
Wardle. Carried
Investigating Canada Day
Rockhounder on the website www.surreyrockhound.com
New Business
I attended the BC Lapidary Society Annual
General meeting. The current slate of officers were re elected. Summer camp
2007 Beaver Point Resort near Burns Lake.
Rendezvous:
Roe Lake Lodge near Sheridan Lake.
Members only on field trips and sign waivers to
go on trip.
Surrey Rockhound Newsletter -
June 2006
Wagonmaster trips: A backpack is a
useful and probably the easiest way to carry your finds. Bring gloves, boots,
protective eyewear, waterproof rain gear and waterproof hat, a rock hammer if
you have one, chisels, spray bottle, portable shovel, a brush to clean the
specimens, and lunch with a thermos of something hot or cold to drink,
depending of the season. Drinking water is also very good to bring along as you
get pretty dehydrated out there.
In Winter/Spring: Be sure to wear
warm clothing in layers so that you can adjust to changing weather conditions.
Warm boots with socks are a must, as are gloves. Remember your rain gear, and
something hot to drink.
July 16/06 North Air Mine, Squamish Leader is Gord
Pinder. The meeting place is the
Britannia Mine Parking Lot. We will be
looking for Pyrite cubes, 1/4" Chalcopyrite and exploratory on the logging
road above North Air.
July 30/06 Keystone Mine Leaders are De Singleton and
Bob Morgan
The meeting place is the south side of the
Coquialla tollbooth at 10 am. We will be looking for Sulphides and Pyrites in
the tailing of the old mine.
Also see: B.C. Lapidary
Society internet site: www.lapidary.bc.ca/clubs.html under: B.C. Field Trips
for possible trips
Most trips go RAIN or SHINE!
***PLEASE NOTE: Please do not just
arrive at the meeting place without checking to be sure the trip is actually
on. You should always phone the trip leader the day before the trip to confirm
it is going ahead.
August 6-11 Summer Camp on Vancouver Island
at:. Broughton Strait Campsite
550 SE Main (North end
of Broughton Blvd.) Port McNeil, B.C.
Reservations: Tel: 250-956-3224 Hosted by
the Ripple Rock Gem & Mineral Club
Campbell River. B.C.
September 23 & 24 Surrey Rock and Gem Show At Sullivan Hall. 6306 - 152 Street.
Oct. 28 & 29th Port Moody Rock & Gem Club, Annual Show at: Kyle Centre, 125
Kyle St.,
Port
Moody, B.C.