bumblebee

If you know German agates, you know green or blue dyed shooters are as rare as hen's teeth. So imagine my smile when I gambled less than $20 shipped on these two, assuming they were likely machine ground and newer which in my experience they usually are. Nope! Hand-faceted and as happy in their new home as I am to have them. 😁

This is the way, people! @RolleyHoleMan, I assume the marble size must be 3/4" or ? Also I'd be interested to learn more about how they are made. Were they always made locally or did the players use the extant German agate marbles that would have been around from the late 19th and early 20th centuries?

Neat! I always wanted to watch a game of this in person although I'd probably need to read the rules a few times first.

Done! Thanks for the updates. Forgot about machinemades. Don't know the others but glad to have them onboard.

I was hoping to put more sellers in that link but so far, here's the list in my current link on the top of the site. Feel free to suggest others: cedarman7,hjdmarbles,orange_orbital,rhgeis65jk,oldnurse85,natwilso-9,arasmus,bobblocksmarbles,oldnurse85-c,wvrons

Oh, I get you. I wasn't sure if you meant there was a stone Oxblood glass. 😁 Original of course would be actual ox blood (not googling that!) Speaking of agates, there are some quite nice ones if you search eBay for "agate sphere" instead of "agate marble"...sometimes they can be had for a song, although quality in terms of flaws and polish varies.

I had seen the familiar 7/8" twist ones before in person, but not these intricate 5/8" ones. I have to say many are quite pretty, and at $3 each, I am tempted to cherry pick next time.

Thanks for thinking of me as a go-to but I stumble around in the mists of time as much as the next collector. 😉 Gorgeous agate with all those tightlines and sharp angles but how far back does your definition of "original" go? Machine ground, yes? At that unusually large size with that type of pattern, methinks it could be more baby boomer or newer. I've misplaced my agate book so maybe @hdesousa can chime in. Pattern reminds me of what often is called "mad river agate" or Madagascar jasper often seen on eBay in that similar size:

Sometimes I put myself in the shoes of non-collectors and realize how silly this must seem from their eyes, but I get it. That Blue Panther sure has a lot of what look like sheared/flat bubble pops...anybody else notice that?

Came home from work Friday to find these notes on my porch, left by the neighborhood kids I have given marbles to in the past: "Marbles is Your Thing" "Thank You for Your Marbles. Have a Nice Day" So utterly charming. A sort of marble score of a higher kind. Of course I left them an answer note with marbles and other gifts to find this week.

Local Craigslist ads have gotten me some nice scores over the years.

This was a fun find. Local man in his 70s saw my ad for marbles wanted. He only had about sixty marbles, commons from the 40s and 50s, with one old slag. But he had a prized agate shooter he used to win the marble tournament at his elementary school in Montana. I offered him $7 for just the shooter, but he balked and said that agate cost $5 in the 1950s. Turns out his family bought the agate for his birthday from a local gem and rock store. He said the store made the agates on site. It was machine ground and slightly oblong, which he said helped him put English on it. His father was a billiards man who taught him about backspin. This man even had a small bag he made to hold his agates which you can see in the background. I offered him $20 for the agate if he agreed to pose with it ready to shoot. Turns out he also had double-jointed thumbs which no doubt helped his game, although he was modest about his skills. This story made me wish I were retired so I could travel around the country collecting marble lore from the old timers that are still around.

Stumbled upon this bag on Craiglist. I cannot pick it up (I'm not in California) but I thought it might be of interest to others. Says 1981 on bag. Edit: Hard to say much about where the loose ones are from.

A good clue with shady items is the seller not accepting returns. eBay always recommends a seller accept returns, so most sellers offer that option. This guy did not.

I found these in the same lot which was definitely all from the wild, all 1940s or earlier. Interestingly this lot also had two or three matching patch and cork pairs, one of which had tiny bits of aventurine.

Here's an alternate universe listing where CAC not only makes a Superman, but also Superman is a member of Blue Man Group.

I'm going to tell them which ones brought me the most joy, then tell them to keep only the ones that made them smile. Or keep them all if that makes them smile. My family were sentimental hoarders, which I truly appreciate, but it is also a burden. I have my late grandmother's favorite doll, even some of her other toys. I have the first shoes I wore, and the topper from my first birthday cake. Both of my parents have dementia now, so neither can tell me the stories behind the things I did not know about, which makes it easier in a way to get rid of stuff. One tip I can give everyone: Tape notes onto sentimental things. My grandmother did this and it has been a wonderful relief to have the full story. I plan to do that because my kids may end up caring in 30 years, and the stories will be there after I'm long gone.

This one just sold for $500 probably because of what looks like a 1" lemonade oxblood and a shooter blue ox as well. Anybody see anything beyond that ?

What gives here with the high bidding? Isn't this a single JABO Scallawag marble? Size is 0.571".

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The first pic looks a little shroomy to me but I only have one.

I never get to shows now so a fellow collector had mercy on me with some of his discards. 😄

Larger (~0.67") Tiger Eyes with a regular 5/8" one at bottom. The seller told me these larger ones were dug at the factory. Considering I've only ever found one Tiger Eye this size in the wild and a couple of larger ones (~0.84"), I do wonder how many Vitro actually sold because I've found hundreds of 5/8" Tiger Eyes.

Wow, that's a rare marble, and so very marble-like. I am skeptical that Viking children got to play with these as marbles, for I imagine they were quite rare, but who knows? Guessing I won't find one of these in the wild.

I like that idea! I know my ex would not have tolerated that. Stirring through a bin like that in good light should put a smile on any collector's face. Meanwhile, I finally have settled on a strategy for my wooden jewelry box after trying to put several different makers in it. Turns out its bright felt liner doesn't work well with most opaque marbles, but it shines with cat-eyes and similar marbles with lots of clear glass. Now I just need to find an overhead light to stick under the shelf above it so I can really get the lights bouncing through these. Edit: Note that the top drawer marbles were formerly all stashed away in show-off trays not touching each other, and now they look much better together.