Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-08-04
ONYX AND ITS USES.
Hts Extensive Employment for Decorative
Purposes Where 1t Is Qusrried.

Hts Extensive Employment for Decorative
Purposes 1t Is Quarried.
The use of onyx as a decorative marble is
constantly increasing and il is TO be regretted
that the United States Possesses but few
genuine onyx deposits. quarry Of this
precious stone within the limits of the United
States, OF good quality and abundant in guam
tity, would be Of great commercial value and
would bring wealth to its owners With a view
to ascertaining something about the value of
this stone and its geographical distribution
STAR reporter strolled into the sanctum of
Prof. George P. Merrill, curator of the depart
ment OF geology In the National Museum. and
cleaned from him the following particulars:
Prof. Merrill said: Onyx lis very easily mis-
taken for alabaster, but the latter is always
white, while onyxis found ina variety of colors.
Onyx marbles have long been used for decora-
tive purposes and the ancient Romans utilized
them In the construction of their monuments
and for interior decorations of their houses.
Within recent years ONYX has been largely used
in the United States for wainscotiug in build
lngs constructed by trust companies and other
financial and wealthy business corporations"
where are our quarries situated?'
QUARRY IN CALIFORNIA.
The only onyx marble of any commercial
importance in the United States is found at San
Luis 0bispo, Cal, and near Prescott in Arizona.
The stone from the former locality is almost
white. finely banded and is susceptible of a
beautiful polish. The latter deposit is of very
recent discovery. and if the stone is of pure
quality and can be found in abundance a
ready market can be obtained for il.
1.-The California onyx brings about 300 ton
IN San Francisco and when polished it is worth
about 80 a square foot.
"Quarries of onyx marbles have occasionally
been opened IN the stalagmitic deposits of caves
in Missouri, but this marble has been found to
be OF little commercial value. Nearer home we
ind similar deposits in the Luray Caves of
virginia, but this stone is too friable for COM
mercial use, although possessing good color. II
THE BEST COME FROM MEXICO.
by far the most beautiful and variegated OF
the onyx marbles are imported from Mexico.
and we use annually many tons of this Mexican
stone for decorative purposes These marbles
are exquisite In color; creamy white. amber
yellow, streaked with green or red, and light
green form the varieties of colors. Cut into
thin slabs the Mexican ONYX is quite translu-
cent, and it has been used III this form for win
dow panes In some of the public buildings of
the City OF Mexico. This onyx is used wholly
for interior decorations, especially for tables
and stands. Slabs of one inch thickness are
valued, according to color. at from 81 SO to
sou per square foot in the New York market
ls there any other country from which we
import onyx
and Egypt send us considerable. The Egyp-
tian stone lacks the variety of colors displayed
Dy that or Mexico and varies only from whitish
to amber yellow. 1t is. however. "A beautiful
stone and is utilized for furniture tops. clocks
and number of smaller recommendations. The
quarrles were first worked by the Egyptians
and later by the Romans
Ihe Algerian stone Is translucent of family
white color and is fibrous in structure. 1t lies
In irregular beds, varying in thickness from a
few inches to nearly ten feet.
Both the Algerian and Egyptian ouarries are
said to have furnished material for the enbel-
hshment of ancient Carthage and Rome. We
have several samples of Algerian stone in the
museum, but they are not remarkable for their
beauty"
oUARnIEs IN EUROPE
"Are onyx quarries found i'm Europe?"
There are certain portions OF France, Ger
many and Italy where stalagmitic marbles may
be fouua, but SO far as know we do not inn
port any of these marbles. The various cavi-
ties and caves in the limestone forming the
rock OF Gibraltar often furnish small masses of
handsomely banded, brownish stalagmite.
which is cut into small ornaments and widely
circulated. We have in the museum collections
a small mounted cannon and several irregular
blocks and slabs OF this material, which. now
ever, are simply curiosities and cannot be con-
sidered from a commercial standpoint
How is onyx quarriedi' asked The STAR
emissary.
THE cost of quarrying onyx" replied Prof. |
Merrill, lis necessarily heavy, the stone being
so fragile that explosives cannot be used az a
small blast might destroy many thousands Of
dollars worth of this beautiful material. The |
method employed in Mexicois by drilling holes |
along a line traced on the surface of the block |
it is desired to remove. Wooden plugs are |
then inserted in these holes, upon which hot |
water is poured, causing the plugs to swell, |
and the onyx is thus slowly split into blocks Of
the desired size. Saws are also used to adj |
vantage in getting out the stone, but this |
method unnecessarily slow, and great care must |
be exercised lest fractures OCCUR in the veins of
this precious marble" |