In One Ear: Heart of stone

Published 12:15 am Thursday, April 11, 2024

In late March, a brilliant red, translucent 2-pound rock was found on Short Beach, near Oceanside, by Matt Ransom, of Portland, who was walking with his wife, Lani, according to a Yahoo News story.

A geologist from the Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries, Mike Darin, took a look at it. “The rich red color, translucence, texture and lack of banding suggest it is a carnelian,” he said. “ … As for the interesting shape, it looks to have been formed by natural processes of erosion … ”

The unusual rock is approximately the same shape, color and size of a human heart. Accordingly, on the Oregon Beach Agates and Beach Rockhounding Facebook Page, Lani declared, “I will now refer to this as dragon’s heart.” (Photo: Matt Ransom)