Hello! Your cameo is very pretty. I believe that cameos can be made from many substrates. If you wish to find out what your cameo is made of, it should be tested for various stones that it could be carved from. A lab should be able to test the absorption rate, density ect, and tell you what stone it is. Cheers!
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Lava Cameo by: Anonymous
The back of my cameo is concave vs flat. Many cameos were made out of white lava from 1850 - 1900. It is locally sourced and is relatively easy to work with. The tell on white lava is that it scratches. The back of my cameo has a myriad of tiny scratches. To make sure yours is not some form of resin is to hold a flame under a needle then place the tip of the needle on the backside of the cameo. It should leave no mark if the material is lava or shell. If it melts the material you have a problem!
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Lava Cameo Clues by: Brittany
Is the back of the cameo a flat surface? If you don't mind me asking, what makes you think the material is lava? Any clues about lava you could pass on would be great as I also have a white cameo, that I've wondered about for many years, my white cameo looks antique judging by the pin on the reverse, it's very high relief and I was informed it is also lava. Cheers Brittany
