WHAT TO CUT - PURPLE COW AGATE

Purple Cow agate comes from the McDermott area of Nevada, one of the many stones you can get straight from the Caldera Rock Shop, which is owned by the Kemp / Zuccone family.

- RUSS KANIUTH

This material was originally found by Reggie Kemp and Gary McIntosh back in the late 1960s, and was referred to back then as just “the purple agate.” Somewhere along the line, it became known as Purple Cow, and the name stuck. This material wasn’t the easiest to dig, being that the vein ran down at a 45-degree angle. With that, a lot of dirt needed to be removed in order to chase the seam, and in turn, this material wasn’t always abundant.

This past year or so, the Kemp / Zuccone family has been digging out quite a bit and making the material readily available through their rock shop, as well as online in the Cabs and Slabs - The Slab Depot Group on Facebook, where you can find family member, Leanne, selling each week.