WEBVTT 00:00:00.320 --> 00:00:04.000 Azurite Levigation Michael Price 00:00:04.060 --> 00:00:15.199 A piece of azurite with impurities, from Arizona, and this will then be crushed up in the pestle 00:00:15.199 --> 00:00:29.019 and mortar, and then from that, the crushed powder is then sieved and, eventually, after 00:00:29.019 --> 00:00:34.900 a first levigation, it’s then ground up finely. 00:00:34.900 --> 00:00:40.170 And here you can see some of the impurities. 00:00:40.170 --> 00:00:45.380 Now this... 00:00:45.380 --> 00:00:57.820 I’ll now show the levigation process which I developed just using casein, and this was 00:00:57.820 --> 00:01:11.759 then developed further with Georg Kremer, and so azurite MP has been produced for quite 00:01:11.759 --> 00:01:18.330 a few years using this technique. 00:01:18.330 --> 00:01:28.450 And this is much more effective than the techniques often using shells. 00:01:28.450 --> 00:01:42.579 Now, into this, I pour diluted casein, and then this is mixed in to separate out, eventually, 00:01:42.579 --> 00:01:48.579 the different particle sizes. 00:01:48.580 --> 00:01:54.620 In the initial stage, the very first stage, there’s a lot of blue-grey sludge and other 00:01:54.620 --> 00:02:00.119 impurities that come out, and you’ll also see other impurities rising. 00:02:00.119 --> 00:02:04.429 So now the casein is mixed in thoroughly. 00:02:04.429 --> 00:02:11.850 You don’t need too much. 00:02:11.850 --> 00:02:20.209 And then, I add water and start diluting. 00:02:20.209 --> 00:02:26.660 And this will separate the small-particle, 00:02:26.660 --> 00:02:33.220 pale-blue sizes to the large-particle deep-blue azurite. 00:02:33.220 --> 00:02:45.239 So now, I’ll add more. 00:02:45.240 --> 00:02:55.740 Now, often in the manuscripts, it says to wait one paternoster, 00:02:55.740 --> 00:02:59.730 which is just a few seconds, basically. 00:02:59.730 --> 00:03:03.200 Now, you’ll see, when I pour this off, 00:03:03.200 --> 00:03:10.660 first of all, the small-particle azurite being poured off. 00:03:10.660 --> 00:03:18.829 Now, here, you’ll see impurities come to the surface. 00:03:18.829 --> 00:03:24.659 This is mainly cuprite, there will be some sandstone—it depends on the origin. 00:03:24.660 --> 00:03:32.920 Now, basically, I keep doing the same procedure, 00:03:32.920 --> 00:03:41.240 and many of those bits of impurity will float out. 00:03:41.240 --> 00:03:46.359 It’s a matter of repeating and repeating. 00:03:46.359 --> 00:03:53.150 And there you can see, again... and this, then, I would collect separately—I’ll 00:03:53.150 --> 00:03:59.640 just drain this off right now—but I would collect that separately in a bowl. 00:03:59.640 --> 00:04:08.180 Now, just to speed this process up, I will now show you what’s happening. 00:04:08.180 --> 00:04:13.040 Eventually, I will get the deepest blue from this. 00:04:13.040 --> 00:04:23.160 Now, you have to let this settle a little bit longer, and then, again, you pour off 00:04:23.160 --> 00:04:29.960 the fine particles and then you have your next grade of blue. 00:04:29.960 --> 00:04:43.520 And again, I’ll dilute it, add more water, and again just wait a little bit for... and 00:04:43.520 --> 00:04:49.660 you can see, each time, this blue will get purer. 00:04:49.660 --> 00:04:58.280 And, again, there’s impurities coming out there. 00:04:58.280 --> 00:05:05.380 Now, again, just to go through this as quickly as possible. 00:05:05.380 --> 00:05:16.080 Now, again, I wait, and I count just a little bit longer, and then, again, you’ll see 00:05:16.080 --> 00:05:28.250 the difference between this and the blue that’s settling. 00:05:28.250 --> 00:05:33.539 And, again, you can see impurities. 00:05:33.539 --> 00:05:38.820 Eventually, I will have a bowl in which I collect most of the impurity. 00:05:38.820 --> 00:05:44.990 As you can see here, these impurities are just settling out, on top. 00:05:44.990 --> 00:05:52.440 This will then, will be worked on further, eventually dried out, reground. 00:05:52.440 --> 00:05:59.879 I don’t want to overgrind, so that I still have, I want to have also some very deep blue, 00:05:59.879 --> 00:06:02.669 but deep blue without the impurity. 00:06:02.669 --> 00:06:03.669 Okay. 00:06:03.669 --> 00:06:12.220 That’s just introduction into levigation technique of separating different particle 00:06:12.220 --> 00:06:17.319 sizes of azurite, also from its impurities.