The valley where we collect our onyx is located in an area that had at one time been the basin of a lake formed by a spring. The waters were strongly impregnated with lime to form the body of the stone, and with iron, gold, copper and other minerals to color it. Then centuries of evaporation under the burning suns of Arizona did the rest. The onyx here comes in two predominant varieties. The first is Black and White which is a combination of dark brown, black, gray, beige, caramel and cream swirls. The second is Red, which is predominantly a dark reddish/orange mix with beige and browns and small circular swirls of black, cream and light orange. (You will see an area of the quarry that produces more of the reds in a couple of the photos). This microscopic photo was taken from a piece from the sculpture pictured.
Since the onyx at Mayer could be quarried, a large number of items previously thought impossible for manufacture in onyx were produced particularly for churches all over the world. These included altars, communion rails, and baptismal fonts as well as large altar candlesticks. Yavapai Onyx also signed a contract with Almco Lamps of Chicago, then "perhaps the largest lamp manufacturer in the world," to use this special onyx on all their "plated lamps for the entire year of 1925." The most luxurious of these lamps retailed for $500 ($5000 in today's money).
The onyx gear shift ball had become tremendously popular, and was being sold in "all parts of the world," it was reported. "It has found favor in Japan, Portugal, Cuba, Sweden, Ceylon (Sri Lanka), Argentina, Hawaii, and even in the far away stifling humidity of the Straits Settlements (Malaysia). (Genuine Yavapai County Onyx" Yavapai Magazine, January, 1925;).
Over the years the quarry went through many changes of ownership. Recently, a core drilling study recently conducted by a geologist from Milan reveals that the deposit of onyx is at least 55 meters deep. By comparison, a typical deposit of onyx is 1 to 2 meters, and 3 to 4 meters is considered to be outstanding. Such a massive, one-of-a-kind deposit of onyx is symbolic of the great and special energy of the land on which Yavapai county sits. Its beautiful country where we collect. stunning stone!
Since the onyx at Mayer could be quarried, a large number of items previously thought impossible for manufacture in onyx were produced particularly for churches all over the world. These included altars, communion rails, and baptismal fonts as well as large altar candlesticks. Yavapai Onyx also signed a contract with Almco Lamps of Chicago, then "perhaps the largest lamp manufacturer in the world," to use this special onyx on all their "plated lamps for the entire year of 1925." The most luxurious of these lamps retailed for $500 ($5000 in today's money).
The onyx gear shift ball had become tremendously popular, and was being sold in "all parts of the world," it was reported. "It has found favor in Japan, Portugal, Cuba, Sweden, Ceylon (Sri Lanka), Argentina, Hawaii, and even in the far away stifling humidity of the Straits Settlements (Malaysia). (Genuine Yavapai County Onyx" Yavapai Magazine, January, 1925;).
Over the years the quarry went through many changes of ownership. Recently, a core drilling study recently conducted by a geologist from Milan reveals that the deposit of onyx is at least 55 meters deep. By comparison, a typical deposit of onyx is 1 to 2 meters, and 3 to 4 meters is considered to be outstanding. Such a massive, one-of-a-kind deposit of onyx is symbolic of the great and special energy of the land on which Yavapai county sits. Its beautiful country where we collect. stunning stone!
