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Identity HelpHingham, MA USA - Help Identifying

6th Sep 2023 14:12 UTCMike Skee

I found this poking a bit of just one side out of the forest floor well off in the woods here south of Boston. I washed the dirt off with my hand under water but that's it. It's around 6" long on its longest side, a few inches thick and weighs right around 4 lbs (i.e. fairly heavy). Even when dry (as in this pic) it's shiny black, with maybe a very slight green hue to it. It appears to be some sort of glass due to how pieces of it appear to have been chipped off. A magnet will stick (strongly) to it in a few spots, but not over most of it. There appear to be golden or yellow/green bits of it in a couple of spots that show up under a flashlight - maybe it's algae or something in a small crack/vein though. It has bits of dirt or maybe rougher stone embedded as pictured. The flat side of it isn't perfectly flat, it has a pretty gradual curve to it.

Slag? Obsidian? Any help would be greatly appreciated, so thanks in advance. I have a bunch of other pics that show all of the above if helpful.

Questions Answered
Can it scratch glass? : No
Can you scratch it with your fingernail? : Yes
Is it light/heavy for the size? : Heavy

6th Sep 2023 14:15 UTCMike Skee

Pic 2

6th Sep 2023 14:19 UTCMike Skee

Pic 3, under a flashlight

6th Sep 2023 14:22 UTCMike Skee

Pic 4

6th Sep 2023 15:41 UTCJeff Weissman Expert

I've a lot of this material around my house and in the woods behind, here in CT. Seems that in the past this was a locally popular material for landscaping and there is quite a bit dispersed in various places as the popularity for this material dwindled.

6th Sep 2023 15:10 UTCHarold Moritz 🌟 Expert

Hi Mike, yes, it's definitely a glass slag. Obsidian does not occur in Mass and isn't magnetic. Slags are wastes made in smelter furnaces and foundries working iron going back 350+ years in the area and can be found in now seemingly natural areas. I have been to many slag dumps in Conn and this piece is better than most in terms of color and luster.

6th Sep 2023 15:53 UTCMike Skee

Thank you - I appreciate the response. It was only magnetic in a couple of spots so I figured maybe it was an inclusion(?) of some sort.

Now to decide whether to crack it open or toss it in the yard for someone to find in the future...

6th Sep 2023 20:15 UTCHarold Moritz 🌟 Expert

Put it in the yard somewhere prominent, or in a stone wall if you have one. It reminds me of the rock featured near the end of The Shawshank Redemption!

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