Posted on 06/11/2021 11:51:04 AM PDT by Red Badger
At 563 carats, the Star of India is the world’s largest gem-quality blue star sapphire, and is approximately 2 billion years old. (Image credit: D. Finnin/Copyright AMNH)
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What does the legendary Star of India — a 563-carat star sapphire the size of a golf ball — have in common with a 35-million-year-old petrified redwood slab; a massive cluster of sword-like crystals that looks like it came from "Game of Thrones;" and a 5-ton (4.5-metric ton) stone pillar that can "sing?"
You can see all of them, along with 5,000 other amazing stones, in the newly renovated Mignone Hall of Gems and Minerals at the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) in New York City, which is reopening after a four-year closure on Saturday (June 12). There, one-of-a-kind precious gems appear alongside odd-looking rocks — some of which date to billions of years ago — that have been uniquely warped and twisted by extreme temperatures and pressures.
Individually and together, these objects tell a story of the diverse geologic processes that shape minerals on Earth's surface and deep inside our planet, beginning when the world was young and continuing to this day, museum representatives told Live Science.
Related: 13 mysterious and cursed gemstones
The Star of India, which formed about a billion years ago, was discovered in Sri Lanka in the 18th century. It is one of the best-known gems in the world, in part because it was famously and brazenly stolen from AMNH in 1964, along with several more of the museum's prized stones, by a pair of thieves named Jack "Murf the Surf" Murphy and Allan Kuhn, Smithsonian reported in 2014, on the heist's 50th anniversary. (The one-of-a-kind sapphire was recovered and went back on display in 1965).
(Excerpt) Read more at livescience.com ...
Oh, yes, before I forget, as for a getaway, Tom’s may be a good idea, but you may also be ready to see some flamingos as well. ;o]
So, I’m off for now! See ya when you’ve had your nap! Or after church, whichever comes last!
Very fond of flamingoes. There are none at Tom’s.
We can go to an aviary.
I’ve been enchanted by the flamingos I’ve seen in some of the Attenborough’s films. He is quite an amazing man.
One of the interesting things about birds is how some of them get their color from pigments and others from light refraction effects.
Mass was nice. We had a visiting priest who didn’t speak Spanish, but Father Gary doesn’t speak Spanish, either. The guest priest was from Buffalo, NY, from a Polish family, and he had a heck of a nose.
I said to Lola, “Cual nariz!” and she said, “Un Polaco!” She’s married to a Polish man.
Email sent!
I find birds fascinating, especially their mating rituals and the fact the some mate for life, others are really fickle and others are sneaky and let other birds bring up their young. Kinda like peoples.
Church was nice here, today, too. The Primary children sang again about Pioneers, having sung last week as well. I always like to hear the little ones sing. There’s always one who never opens his mouth and always one who sings the loudest, off-key.
Yes, my late Polish brother-in-law had a heck of a nose, too! He could sing, though!
Since I’m going to be up VERY early tomorrow, I’m heading off for bed, now.
I’m pretty tired, and think it’s a permanent deal. See ya tomorrow!
Back from the nap with Jake. He even washed! Then he went outside and came back.
I hope you have a very good night and that everything goes smoothly in the morning.
I woke up 20 minutes before the alarm went off, and now I have to put my shoes on and sort clothes so I can skedaddle.
I hope your night was great, too!
Awww...sweet!
Good morning! The laundry will be done when I get off my tuffet and go hang the clothes. Unngh.
The cooler was shut down so the laundry room felt close, but at least it didn’t smell like cigarettes.
I think I need to go wash my face off before I do anything else!
Good morning. Things were okay here. I found Jake sleeping on the floor of the game closet, at the top of the stairs, when I got up. By the library closet, near the foot of the stairs, I found a spew. I don’t know if it’s related.
There are no birds singing in the morning any more. It’s kind of depressing.
I think the birds mostly sing in the spring, when they’re finding new partners and waiting for the eggs to hatch, then making sure the babies are well fed. There are some trees by Walmart that seem to almost deafen a person in the spring, but last week, I noticed there was hardly any sound.
I’ve listened to an uplifting talk, so now, I really need to get to work! LOL! Maybe a box will get packed today. ;o]
When we were at camp, I knew it was time to get up because Bill would be whooping around 5:30. Now it’s quiet. Kind of dark already, too: I have to turn the light on to read the Bible at 6:30.
Yes, I know the feeling. Of course, with the mesas and the trees around, the sun isn’t actually over the mesa to the east until after 0700.
I open the blinds, but it’s a long, slow wait for the light to filter through.
The clothes are hung up to dry, and my face has been washed off and my head combed out, but I still have the bed to make and the prayer to be said. Still, the day has started.
The day has started here, too. Laundry is going, dishwasher is going, James and his hair took a shower.
I’ve had eye drops, an allergy pill and a few hits on the inhaler. I emailed the doctor and asked if he would increase the amount of inhalers a month.
I don’t know if Chuck is going to do anything about this guy but I’m just making entries in my log when I need to and when the book is full, I’ll take it over to Chuck and tell him he owes me for all the inhalers, room fresheners, allergy pills and eye drops I’ve had to buy since this guy moved in.
Once one smoker gets away with it, you’ll probably get more. It sure would be nice if you could move!
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