Page 17 - Tạp chí bonsai cây cảnh BCI 2014Q2

Top left; This colorful stone
was found in the Trinity River
watershed. Ken was the
first to introduce this type
to the stone appreciation
community. He refers to this
stone as “My Heart.” It stands 12
inches tall, 9 inches wide, and
5 inches deep.
two new combinations of serpentine and jade with a Top right; This northern
wavy pattern. Ken calls one of these types as “swirly California mountain shaped
stone” and the other as his “ two-tone” stone. These stone with a waterfall is a
have also become popular among collectors because combination of jasper with
of their texture and their beautiful colors. While Ken some quartz inclusions.
was not the first to introduce an interesting flower Bottom; This rare piece of
pattern stone from northern California, he did make grossular garnet stands 9
inches high, 7 inches wide, and
many fine examples available to stone hobbyists. It is 3 inches deep. Ken calls this
a river-washed stone that has numerous circular de- stone “Scary Face.”
posits, possibly fossils, on a darker background or ma-
trix stone. He has collected and sold many Eel River
stones and many authentic pieces of California jade
to collectors. True North American chrysanthemum
flower stones are scarce. Ken has collected four of the
approximately twelve known examples of this type.
Making numerous quality stones available to collec-
tors is one of the most important contributions that
Ken, and other earlier collectors and sellers of stones,
have made to the hobby of stone appreciation.
His fifteen years of professional stone hunting has
taken him throughout the western United States, but a result, Ken McLeod has become an important ele-
especially in California, Oregon, Washington, Colo- ment in helping to drive the growth of North Ameri-
rado, and Wyoming. Ken regularly attends and has can stone appreciation culture. Evidence of this can
a sales booth at major exhibitions. He participated readily be seen in James L. Greaves excellent book
in four International Stone Symposia in Hershey, American Viewing Stones: Beyond the Black Moun-
Pennsylvania, attends most major California bon- tain: Color, Pattern, and Form. According to Ken,
sai and stone exhibitions, and maintains an active approximately 30 of the stones featured in this book
online sales of stones. He sells between 250 and 300 were collected by him.
stones per years and has placed over 4,000 stones in My wife and I had the privilege of going on a stone
hobbyist’s hands during his career as a stone mer- hunting trip with Ken to a remote California river.
chant. Most of the major stone collections in North We piled into his truck, a seven-passenger SUV,
America have one or more of Ken’s stones. Many seri- with his equipment early one morning and headed
ous collectors have several to many stones that Ken north from his home. Ken was regaling us with one
McLeod collected over the last decade and a half. As stone collecting story after another along the way.

April/May/June 2014 | BCI | 15