14K Gold Antique Victorian 22K Natural Gold Nugget Ring | Fossilized Horn or Petrified Wood

Dating to the late 1890s or so may I offer this stunning ring from an old friend of mine in California. Featuring a yellow gold shank and natural gold nuggets, the center stone is something that is not a stone - at least I think it's not a stone. Let me explain. From a distance, the stone looks like a desert agate - you know, an agate with a sandy image - skyline image. But under a loupe, the shading on the side seems to be more "natural" matrix (like powdered sugar) yet the entire cab has been polished smooth - THERE IS NO ROUGHNESS to the touch. Which brings me to the FEEL of the stone - it's not HARD like a stone normally is but rather a little bit soft. Yes, this is hard to explain. Now when it came to making jewelry from natural gold nuggets during the heyday of the Gold Rush, there are only 4 things I can think of that were put into Gold Nugget rings (other than, or as well as, gold nuggets) - first, ore bearing quartz (which this definitely isn't;, second, natural stones (agates