Hand-Faceted Agate lovers look here.

[akroorka]

If you have never tried this I urge you to do so. 
Backlight an Agate in a dark room and be rewarded, any agate regardless of the hit-marks.
This one is a Bruiser no doubt. Let’s call it 13/16”. It is loaded with Provenance.
There are two original cut marks left intact after the original hand faceting, very, very cool imho. 
I cannot count the hit marks and there is no missing stone from the hits.
How many glass marbles did this one destroy and how many “steelies” did it fend with?
I love this stuff
Marble—On and explore on as well!!
 

[Ric]

Wow, looks like someone was dribbling that one on concrete - what a warrior. It's super cool looking back-lit though!

[bumblebee]

Wow that one is cratered. I will have to try that in a dark room myself.

 

[wvrons]

Nice pics. A marble used as intended and a good life. It deserves retirement. 

[akroorka]

12 minutes ago, wvrons said:

It deserves retirement.

Thanks Ron,

This may just be my spirit marble. We all take a lot of hits in life.

I am still rolling on though.

Retirement On!!

[akroorka]

Here is another one at just under 7/8”.
I had always considered this one to be flawless and wondered if it may be a newer knock off. It does have facets, highly polished but still there.
I thought, no way this one will shine light through it. It sure does and it shows a few hits as well.
It helps to light these. I am now convinced of its age. Of course the hits could be faked but I am still happy with my findings.
Agate On!!
 

[bumblebee]

Speaking of moons, here's some text from an unpublished marble wiki I was working on:

Moons are circular or crescent-shaped impact fractures occurring in the subsurface of agate marbles.

Unlike the more fragile glass marbles where moons can occur on the surface (missing glass) or subsurface (fractures), moons on agates always appear subsurface.

Most collectors today consider moons unwanted damage that detracts from a marble's beauty and value. This was not always the case with marble players of the past.

Earl Johnson, writing in 1946 about his boyhood marble memories, said agates were like “diamonds” and that the:

…milky white ones that had the wonderful propensity of collecting 'moons' (like moons on finger-nails), when hit by other marbles! With great ceremony we used to soak a many-mooned agate in a bed of lard and presto, next day–all the moons were gone! ²⁾

On the other hand, there are several instances of players seeing moons as highly desirable, even necessary.

Weare Holbrook writes in 1940:

And although flaws in an agate did not enhance its desirability, 'moons' were something else again; they were scars acquired in long and faithful service, a visible proof of prowess exhibited as proudly as the saber cuts on the face of a Heidelberg student.³⁾

The author of this 1953 newspaper article describes how when he was a boy:

…you wanted moons in your agates. You treasured them. They were proof your agate was the real thing. ⁴⁾

This 1908 poem contains a stanza about a new agate being proven 'right' by adding moons:

Then Guy Fuller bought an "agate,"
And to prove it was "right,"
He would throw it hard against a stone;
"Half-moons" you'd see of white,

On the other hand, another writer in 1921 says too many moons was not desirable:

At the time we played marbles an agate should have two or three moons in it to prove it was genuine, but its value was lessened by a larger number. ⁵⁾

But another author in 1921 says that agates:

…were the mark of opulence and the more 'moons' they had in them the more valuable they were regarded. No agate was worth anything until it had some 'moons' in it. ⁶⁾

If this sentiment was true nationally in America for a significant period of time, no doubt agate owners spent time ensuring their agates were covered in moons even if not from official play.

'Repairing' Moons

Those who disliked moons were able to temporarily but effectively obscure moons by soaking an agate in lard overnight, or by boiling an agate in lard. Oil would seep into the porous agate and fill the moon fracture space, obscuring the damage for a time.

This trick was also reportedly used by unscrupulous gemstone dealers who used it to obscure flaws in opals.⁷⁾

This technique was reportedly used by unscrupulous players to deceive opponents into thinking an agate up for “keeps” or for trade was pristine.

While the lard method has been proven effective, other substances are also mentioned by article writers as being effective at obscuring moons, though vinegar seems dubious:

• Buttermilk
• Coal oil
• Cream
• Vinegar

[Tommy]

24 minutes ago, bumblebee said:

Speaking of moons, here's some text from an unpublished marble wiki I was working on:

Moons are circular or crescent-shaped impact fractures occurring in the subsurface of agate marbles.

Unlike the more fragile glass marbles where moons can occur on the surface (missing glass) or subsurface (fractures), moons on agates always appear subsurface.

Most collectors today consider moons unwanted damage that detracts from a marble's beauty and value. This was not always the case with marble players of the past.

Earl Johnson, writing in 1946 about his boyhood marble memories, said agates were like “diamonds” and that the:

…milky white ones that had the wonderful propensity of collecting 'moons' (like moons on finger-nails), when hit by other marbles! With great ceremony we used to soak a many-mooned agate in a bed of lard and presto, next day–all the moons were gone! ²⁾

On the other hand, there are several instances of players seeing moons as highly desirable, even necessary.

Weare Holbrook writes in 1940:

And although flaws in an agate did not enhance its desirability, 'moons' were something else again; they were scars acquired in long and faithful service, a visible proof of prowess exhibited as proudly as the saber cuts on the face of a Heidelberg student.³⁾

The author of this 1953 newspaper article describes how when he was a boy:

…you wanted moons in your agates. You treasured them. They were proof your agate was the real thing. ⁴⁾

This 1908 poem contains a stanza about a new agate being proven 'right' by adding moons:

Then Guy Fuller bought an "agate,"
And to prove it was "right,"
He would throw it hard against a stone;
"Half-moons" you'd see of white,

On the other hand, another writer in 1921 says too many moons was not desirable:

At the time we played marbles an agate should have two or three moons in it to prove it was genuine, but its value was lessened by a larger number. ⁵⁾

But another author in 1921 says that agates:

…were the mark of opulence and the more 'moons' they had in them the more valuable they were regarded. No agate was worth anything until it had some 'moons' in it. ⁶⁾

If this sentiment was true nationally in America for a significant period of time, no doubt agate owners spent time ensuring their agates were covered in moons even if not from official play.

'Repairing' Moons

Those who disliked moons were able to temporarily but effectively obscure moons by soaking an agate in lard overnight, or by boiling an agate in lard. Oil would seep into the porous agate and fill the moon fracture space, obscuring the damage for a time.

This trick was also reportedly used by unscrupulous gemstone dealers who used it to obscure flaws in opals.⁷⁾

This technique was reportedly used by unscrupulous players to deceive opponents into thinking an agate up for “keeps” or for trade was pristine.

While the lard method has been proven effective, other substances are also mentioned by article writers as being effective at obscuring moons, though vinegar seems dubious:

• Buttermilk
• Coal oil
• Cream
• Vinegar

Awesome read ...thanks again 👍

[akroorka]

1 hour ago, bumblebee said:

Speaking of moons, here's some text from an unpublished marble wiki I was working on:

 

Good reading bumblebee,

I think that you know which one is my fave---no buttermilk for the OP🚫.

I love this stuff---

Marble--On!!
 

[Ric]

I've had these two on my key chains for years and years.

[Ric]

2 hours ago, bumblebee said:

Speaking of moons, here's some text from an unpublished marble wiki I was working on:

Good stuff! Thanks for sharing it.

[Ric]

Here's a little better shot of my "moon" key ring marble . . .

[wvrons]

Nice info and history for agates. 

My key chain holds a Jabo as a reminder. I was pressured at a show and bought it in a hurry at the last minute. It was described and sold to me as a Alley. But a few days after back home.  I was informed by another collector friend that it was not a Alley and that I had several of those. Sure enough, I had more and it was a 100% Jabo. I bought it with my brain wanting it to be an Alley.  We all want to make our marble into something it is not. My shock was at the next show. I confronted the seller, a long time well known and liked dealer. He said "So it is a Jabo". looked at me and said "What a shame, I thought it was a nice Alley". That was the end of it. He never offered my $50.00 refund or even a trade for another marble. But we are still close good friends. His friendship is worth more over the years than a Jabo marble. 

[Fire1981]

Glycerin is another good one. Lower fat contain and doesn’t go rancid or get sticky. 

[Ric]

I picked up this nice hand-faceted green-dyed agate at the Decatur show too.

[Tommy]

13 hours ago, Ric said:

I picked up this nice hand-faceted green-dyed agate at the Decatur show too.

🤯