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Bamboo?? In marble?? In oregon??


Brandonml541

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20180511_162150.thumb.jpg.a860e32f783d6d98ea0f0578d0fc8c0a.jpg20180511_162202.thumb.jpg.a5304a282508da3291c2c43585b9b7aa.jpgMe and a buddy were looking for some limestone caves that had a bunch of calcite... long story short we drove to this abandoned marble quarry it was massive and the quality of marble was magnificent... after a long day of hiking and climing around this snarge mountain for the 3rd day and still couldnt find said cave so we headed back to the car disappointed and defeated.. we walked past a bunch of broken boulders of marble and old workings of the quary... i was admiring the beauty of this marble when i saw what looked like a clay imprint of a plant in the side of the marble.. not knowing anything about fossils having never found one and being relativity new to rock hounding i wasnt sure what to think of it and as i walked around this good sized bolder on the other side was a black imprint like on the othere side then it hit me... no one did this this cant be a carving too remote and just in a pile of boulders.... so it had to be a fossil.. but how was it so perfect and when was the last time southern oregon had bamboo...... so we didnt know what we had (still dont ) but we knew we had to get it but it was too big for the two of us so we decided to crack it down the middle so we could save both faces and put it in the truck witch we did...

 

Now i have no idea what it is if its real or what i should do with it.. i am most likely going to reach out to a local rock club or museum but thought i would do some research on my own (considering. I know nothing about fossils) first...so heres some pics please tell me anything you can... what you think? I dont see it being a fraud i found other inprints in that area but nothing like this...

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Beautiful! Are the rock faces with the plants smooth? The one with the dark leaves looks painted and the other looks carved (or inset). I know nothing about the area, but since it was a quarry, I wonder if someone wasn't testing their skills. Can you post a closeup photo of the plants on each? :)

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Heres another bolder but its all distorted.... and that black stuff is like a carbon like substance ill get my good camera and get a good close up of it here in a little wile just got off work and the sun isnt up yet... and its in the area of grants pass oregon

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I'm trying to pinpoint the age of the rock you are finding, as that may better assist in identifying what these may be.

 

So far, I've found this document, which describes the old (and likely now defunct) mines in the area:

 

Diller, J,.S. and G.F. Kay (1908.) "Mineral Resources of the Grants Pass Quadrangle and Bordering Districts, Oregon" in Contributions to Economic Geology
U.S. Geological Survey bulletin 
380-A. US GPO: 48-79.

 

Link.

...How to Philosophize with a Hammer

 

 

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The rock club I was part of, in Klamath Falls, OR, hunted in the Grants Pass area once in a while.  Never heard of any plant fossils in the area, much less bamboo.  Also, many of that clubs members would display at our yearly show...and none of them displayed any plant fossils.  

 

The close up really looks carved....especially the leaf at top center.  You say the black stuff is like carbon?  Did it rub or scratch off?  And the "weathering" of it looks kind of sketchy. 

 

I also think it is the work of someone who rubbed a pattern on the rock and practiced chiseling it out.

Everything is generated through your own will power ~ Ray Bradbury
 

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I am not seeing any nodes on the plants that would indicate that they are bamboo. 

 

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"In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks."
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The polished nature of the stone is also a bit of a red flag for me. The slab with one of the "impressions" appear to bear carving marks. Another possible issue is that the two plant species seem to be from two widely disparate geologic ages. I am thinking this was an art/home deco project that was dumped at the site. :( 

 

Fossils in marble are possible, but they tend to be very poorly preserved and are generally just trace fossils at best.

...How to Philosophize with a Hammer

 

 

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These do not look real to me. I believe it to be decorative artwork.

"There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant

“Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley

>Paleontology is an evolving science.

>May your wonders never cease!

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Welll the name of the mountain is marble mountain in wilderville oregon and i just dont see someone carving this... i mean in the place i found it wasnt like it was dumped there its was in a pile of boulders at the bottom of a face in a quarry... ill get better pics here in a minThis is the back side of the same rock befor we chiseled it in half

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The other problem is the location itself, which was either marine or composed of volcaniclastic rocks after a great deal of volcanic activity during the Jurassic. Much of the limestone in the Marble Mountain has been subject to thermal metamorphism, which accounts for the mottling marble pattern. It is unlikely much could survive that process in terms of fossilization.

...How to Philosophize with a Hammer

 

 

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1 hour ago, Brandonml541 said:

Heres another bolder but its all distorted.... and that black stuff is like a carbon like substance ill get my good camera and get a good close up of it here in a little wile just got off work and the sun isnt up yet... and its in the area of grants pass oregon

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This is a clear example of an unfinished carving. The stems have not been added yet. I bet if you were to take a close look under magnification, you would see the chisel marks. The marble looks highly recrystallized, so I agree with the others that fossils are unlikely to survive, and delicate plant fossils would never be so perfectly preserved. I bet you can easily remove the black paint with a solvent like acetone or paint thinner. Still a neat discovery in a remote place. If I stumbled on something like this, I would certainly do a major double take!

"Don't force it, just use a bigger hammer"

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An excellent yard rock and story to go along with it!

Everything is generated through your own will power ~ Ray Bradbury
 

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I, too, see the hand of a human here. Too many red flags pushing it very far from fossil. But yes, it would be a very cool thing to stumble on!

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Ok guys your staring to bum me out here.. but im glad to get this information... cause one i know nothing bout this stuff.. but it did and dose seem highly unlikely that it could have with stood the forces it would have to go through... but  nature dose some unbelievable things... but this stuff is solid and heavy as heck i wouldnt think it would be a easy task for some one to have carved it i mean.. i know i wouldnt take the time just to leave it there but my camera is charging and then ill take it out put on the mico setting and see if i cant get some close up shots... that being said i really appreciate all of you taking the time to inform the uninformed... mostly so if it is a fake i dont look like a snarge fool in my local rock hunting community haha... ill get some more detail pics in a bit

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Glad we could help. :) It just means the next fossil you find will have to be real! 

 

In terms of carving dense stone, it may not be as challenging as one thinks. Consider how they carve letters and motifs on hard, polished granite headstones and monuments. One definitely needs the proper tools, though!

...How to Philosophize with a Hammer

 

 

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Look how deeply these "leaves" are incised. They should be paper-thin. if not just a carbon film.

~~.jpg

I think you might have found an artist's practice studio.

"There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant

“Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley

>Paleontology is an evolving science.

>May your wonders never cease!

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3 minutes ago, Brandonml541 said:

 mostly so if it is a fake i dont look like a snarge fool in my local rock hunting community haha... ill get some more detail pics in a bit

Not a fake....just not a fossil, if that makes sense. 

I don't think anyone set out to try and create a fake fossil for you or someone else to find.  I think they were just trying their hand at carving in the stone.  

And you said it was at the bottom of this unused quarry...it may have been carved 100 years ago.  Jacksonville is one of the oldest towns in Southern Oregon.  There was a lot of local custom work being done for the buildings in town when it was booming.  Keep an eye open when you are out and about for that type of marble used in buildings or walkways.  You may even find some with similar carvings. 

Everything is generated through your own will power ~ Ray Bradbury
 

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Hi sorry you have had bad news about your finds but I think it maybe an Artist’s project in the same practice as “land art” . Left for poeple to find and enjoy. I would like them in my back garden, maybe you should finish carving there plant stems.  All the best Bobby 

 

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Land_art

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12 minutes ago, Bobby Rico said:

Hi sorry you have had bad news about your finds but I think it maybe an Artist’s project in the same practice as “land art” . Left for poeple to find and enjoy. I would like them in my back garden, maybe you should finish carving there plant stems.  All the best Bobby 

 

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Land_art

Hell ill sell it to you lol

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11 minutes ago, Brandonml541 said:

Hell ill sell it to you lol

I don’t think my postman would ever talk to me again. :)

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23 minutes ago, Bobby Rico said:

I don’t think my postman would ever talk to me again. :)

Im sure of it its a heavy sob

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