Thread: Any thoughts about this hone?

Seller of this stone claims it is a razor hone. Any thoughts what sort of stone it might be?

Based on the color, it could be a dirty belgian blue.
Otoh Belgians are usually a bit wider in my limited experience, so the more probable possibility is a thuringer or escher in a bad state.

I was going to say "dirty escher," too. Howard once got an escher on eBay for like $5 because it looked all nasty. This hone is pretty dished out, which would seem to indicate that it's a soft stone of some kind.

To riff off of Dave Barry, "Dirty Escher" would be a good name for a rock band.

Josh

I have a lot of hones coming, one in a box like this one, I am hoping it is an Escher. I figure the odds are bad but......

Originally Posted by JoshEarl

I was going to say "dirty escher," too. Howard once got an escher on eBay for like $5 because it looked all nasty. This hone is pretty dished out, which would seem to indicate that it's a soft stone of some kind.

To riff off of Dave Barry, "Dirty Escher" would be a good name for a rock band.

Josh

A friend of mine has one that looks like that. He says it was his grandfather's razor hone.

Norm

I've got one that is even worse, custom made wooden box with rotted leather on the other side.

The thing is, with natural stones getting so hard to find, I'm wondering if it makes sense to cut these antiques up into smaller stones and flatten them.

I'll see if I can post a pic of the one I have.

Paul

It could be a thuringian, a belgian blue, or a slate stone. The box doesn't look like a thuringian box as the Germans usually sold them in lovely wooden boxes with a label inside the cover. Clean it with oven cleaner to get the dirt/grease off and then see what you've got. It may be an artificial for all you know! That's happened to me before. I wouldn't pay much for it. It's also pretty deeply dished.

Thank you to everybody for their comments.

Most likely either a Thuringan or an Escher. The scratches on the side say it is a soft stone. I would bet that the bottom side is flat!

Cutting up vintage stone would be a bad idea imo.
Personally I like big stones (but that's just preference), but the major reason I think it is pointless is that one way or another, in a couple of years time there will be no more eschers floating around.

Someone may find one in his grand father's old stuff, and he will be able to fetch 1000$ for it, but since Eschers are not quarried anymore, at a certain point there will be no more. No point in dragging it out by cutting them smaller and smaller until they are postage stamp sized.