ann

This time, what Kevin said.

Horserhinodogpig?

or get comfortable straddling it.

What Sue said. And I'm a retired art historian, and will fight you if you think you are more obsessive about terminology and history than me. But that doesn't keep me from buying marbles that I think are beautiful, even when no one (including "the big guys") can ID them. The two approaches are not really mutually exclusive . . . and . . .

Nice sea!

As a retired art historian, gotta say your comparison isn't really valid. Comparing the "Mona Lisa" to a very nice contemporary painting by a well-known artist would be more like it. And for the record, I acknowledge that the Mona Lisa is a great painting, for many reasons, but I personally don't like it. Wouldn't hang it in my house. Would definitely sell it. Don't have to like something to acknowledge it's good, and vice versa. As in marbles . . .

Welcome, Pete! And imagine, this is just the beginning!

And what she said.

What he said.

That crazy marble in # 34 - - - what's the blue and white (and red?) stuff in there? Can you tell? And are those internal fractures or pieces of stuff or what?? (Obviously I like the weird ones . . . )

Ok. Cub Scout, Boy Scout. I wouldn't take it as high as Eagle, though . . .

I got mine.

The photos are so bad as to be unreliable. Either (1) Don't waste your money, or (2) I'll send you mine, Steph!

Girl Scout project for sure. Maybe Brownie Scout. Looks like for the "caging" they used one of those copper wire scrubbing pads . . . kinda clever, really.

I'm good with that!

Calf slobbers! I love that . . .

Unbelievable! So there really ARE still treasures out there! And a puzzle, to boot. What was going on with the original owner that he put (hid?) them behind a wall . . .

Boy, I'd say so. Both pontils are pretty weird for an old handmade. Maybe a lot weird. Obviously the maker was having some glass issues too . . . Odd and interesting!

I love weird stuff in marbles. In person, is that really gold metal of some kind in there? I ask just because in the photo it looks silvery -- like an air-trap inclusion, maybe . . .

Hard for me to tell from the photos whether some of the mibs also have translucent white glass (with the wispy white and clear), or whether they just have dense areas of wispy white (as in some Popeyes) that might look translucent in photos . . . Nice, whatever the heck they are.

If you don't really collect them, then you wouldn't mind boxing up that purple, green, and yellow one and sending it to me, right? Right?

Oh yes. Oh my.

I don't really know what the traditional definition of a Ringer is, but I've assumed (and we all know how mistaken that can be!) that it was -- more-or-less -- a one-color Popeye. Like the yellow in clear with wispy white you show there, Steph. Is that what you mean by the traditional def? And if so, would an extra little streak of white (opaque, or opalescent) necessarily disqualify it as a Ringer? As long as no other color was added? Oh dear. Abomilnal . . . abonm . . . you're right.

Everybody, keep away. I plan on having two of them . . . OK, maybe three.

I was clueless, for one. I think I've gotten Aces straightened out now, and have discovered a couple in my Akro box, but I also now realize that I don't have a great understanding of what a moss agate is . . . Thought they were simply patches, part transparent (usually colored) glass and part cloudy/milky white, sometimes UV . . . Is there an archived thread on moss agates, maybe? So as not to hijack this one? Thanks, Ann