Montana Agate
Montana Agate comes from near the Yellowstone River in Montana. Montana Agate is one of the alluvial agates, it is not found in-site, but in the Flaxville gravel deposits scattered over a huge area encompassing thousands of square miles. The agate originally was formed in the Yellowstone National Park area of Wyoming as a result of volcanic activity. In Montana Agate the red color is the result of iron oxide, the black is the result of manganese oxide. It is considered a moss agate.
Agate is a microcrystalline Quartz and has a hardness of 7. Montana Agate has been the state of Montana's official state gemstone (along with Montana Sapphire) since 1969.
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