Black With White Dots Porphyry Snuff Bottle

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Porphyry is not a stone I am familiar with. As I understand it, this stone was used in everything in … Read more Porphyry is not a stone I am familiar with. As I understand it, this stone was used in everything in the Ancient world, from jewelry, sculptures to architectural uses from Egypt to Crete from Rome to Byzantium (present day Constantinople. The composition of Porphyry is feldspar, quartz and biotite. It is not a popular stone for snuff bottle and it is the first one I have encountered. The black stone is speckled with spots of white and gray. It is a fine specimen!!! It has a rounded globular shape tapering to a small flat oval foot, giving it a very elegant appearance. It has a short neck with a large round opening. It is matched with a pink glass stopper encased in brass and a brass spoon. It is a snuff bottle made in the 21st century, and the bottle is not well hollowed.

I am curious where Porphyry is found. Quoting from Wikipedia : Most of the known porphyry deposits are concentrated in: western South and North America and Southeast Asia and Oceania – along the Pacific Ring of Fire; the Caribbean; southern central Europe and the area around eastern Turkey; scattered areas in China, the Mideast, Russia, and the CIS states; and eastern Australia.

That would make sense that the rock can be found in China. But why aren't more snuff bottles made from this material ? This will require some future research. See less