Also veinstone. [f. VEIN sb.]

1

  1.  Stone or earthy matter composing a vein and containing metallic ore; gangue, matrix.

2

1709.  T. Robinson, Nat. Hist. Westmoreld., 37. The appearance of several Veins of Spar, Soil, and Vein-Stone breaking out upon the Surface.

3

1789.  J. Williams, Min. Kingd., I. 273. Several feet wide of ore, mixed with spar and vein-stone. Ibid., 284. What I call veinstone, is a compound mineral concretion, of various colours, appearances, and degrees of hardness.

4

1830.  Lyell, Princ. Geol., I. 423. Before sufficient time is allowed for the accretion of a large quantity of veinstone.

5

1869.  Eng. Mech., 31 Dec., 380/1. Quartzose veinstone often contains iron pyrites.

6

1882.  U.S. Rep. Prec. Met., 599. A simple and cheap mode of extracting the gold from low-grade vein-stone.

7

  b.  With pl.: A portion or variety of this.

8

a. 1728.  Woodward, Fossils, I. 163. Vein-stones, or Bodies consisting of Spar, earthy Stones, or other Matter … found lodg’d in the Veins … of the Strata along with the Ores of Metals and Minerals.

9

1799.  Kirwan, Geol. Ess., 410. Of these, the most soluble were first carried off,… and being deposited on the surfaces of the rift, formed, what are called, the vein-stones.

10

1833–4.  J. Phillips, Geol., in Encycl. Metrop. (1845), VI. 777/1. The veinstones are chiefly quartz.

11

1883.  Science, I. 130/1. All serpentines not veinstones … appear to belong to peridotite.

12

  2.  = PHLEBOLITE, -LITH.

13

1835.  Cycl. Pract. Med., IV. 443/1. Of phlebolites, vein-stones, or calculi in the veins.

14

1849–52.  Todd’s Cycl. Anat., IV. II. 1400/2. The curious bodies called phlebolites, phlebolithes, or vein-stones,… are true vascular calculi.

15