FANCY AGATE: is the general term used to describe a translucent, multi-colored and richly patterned variety of Agate. While almost identical in mineral composition to Fancy Jasper, the term "Agate" is used to describe the translucent variety of this stone while "Jasper" refers to its more opaque cousin. Agate can be many different colors, and because its banding is so variable, different types of it have been given many different descriptive names. Many types of organic material have been fossilized by Agate, where the organic material has been replaced slowly over a long period of time, so that the original structure of the inclusion is retained. Agate is the oldest stone in recorded history. They have been used in jewelry since Biblical Babylonian times and were prized gems in antiquity.