Definition
Schist is a medium grade metamorphic rock with medium to large, flat, sheet like grains in a preferred orientation
Migmatite is typically a granitic rock within a metamorphic host rock which is composed of two intermingled but distinguishable components
Origin
Unknown
Southern Alps, France
Discoverer
Unknown
Jakob Sederholm
Etymology
From French schiste, Greek skhistos i.e. split
From the Greek word migma which means a mixture
Class
Metamorphic Rocks
Metamorphic Rocks
Sub-Class
Durable Rock, Medium Hardness Rock
Durable Rock, Medium Hardness Rock
Group
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Other Categories
Coarse Grained Rock, Fine Grained Rock, Medium Grained Rock, Opaque Rock
Coarse Grained Rock, Fine Grained Rock, Medium Grained Rock, Opaque Rock
Texture
Foliated, Platy
Foliated
Color
Black, Blue, Brown, Dark Brown, Green, Grey, Silver
Black, Bluish - Grey, Brown, Brown- Black, Dark Greenish - Grey, Dark Grey to Black
Durability
Durable
Durable
Appearance
Layered and Shiny
Dull, Banded and Foilated
Interior Uses
Decorative Aggregates, Floor Tiles, Interior Decoration
Countertops, Flooring, Kitchens
Exterior Uses
Garden Decoration, Paving Stone
As Building Stone, As Facing Stone
Other Architectural Uses
Not Yet Used
Curbing
Construction Industry
As Dimension Stone, Building houses or walls, Cement Manufacture, for Road Aggregate, Roadstone
As Dimension Stone, Cement Manufacture, for Road Aggregate, Making natural cement
Medical Industry
Not Yet Used
Not Yet Used
Antiquity Uses
Artifacts
Artifacts
Commercial Uses
Used in aquariums, Writing Slates
Cemetery Markers, Jewelry, Tombstones, Used to manufracture paperweights and bookends
Types
Mica Schists, Calc-Silicate Schists, Graphite Schists, Blueschists, Whiteschists, Greenschists, Hornblende Schist, Talc Schist, Chlorite Schist, Garnet Schist, Glaucophane schist.
Diatexites and Metatexites
Features
Easily splits into thin plates, Smooth to touch
Generally rough to touch, Is one of the oldest rock
Archaeological Significance
Monuments
Not Yet Used
Not Yet Used
Famous Monuments
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Sculpture
Not Yet Used
Not Yet Used
Famous Sculptures
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Figurines
Not Yet Used
Not Yet Used
Formation
Schist formed by dynamic metamorphism at high temperatures and pressures that aligns the grains of mica, hornblende and other elongated minerals into thin layers.
Migmatites form by high temperature regional and thermal metamorphism of protolith rocks where rocks melt partially due to high temperature.
Mineral Content
Alusite, Amphibole, Biotite, Chlorite, Epidote, Feldspar, Garnet, Graphite, Hornblade, Kyanite, Micas, Muscovite or Illite, Porphyroblasts, Quartz, Sillimanite, Staurolite, Talc
Biotite, Chlorite, Feldspar, Garnet, Graphite, Hornblade, Micas, Muscovite or Illite, Quartz, Quartzite, Silica, Zircon
Compound Content
CaO, Carbon Dioxide, MgO
Aluminium Oxide, NaCl, CaO, Carbon Dioxide, Iron(III) Oxide, FeO, Potassium Oxide, Magnesium Carbonate, MgO, MnO, Phosphorus Pentoxide, Silicon Dioxide, Titanium Dioxide
Types of Metamorphism
Not Applicable
Burial Metamorphism, Cataclastic Metamorphism, Regional Metamorphism
Types of Weathering
Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering
Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering
Types of Erosion
Chemical Erosion, Coastal Erosion, Glacier Erosion
Chemical Erosion, Glacier Erosion, Water Erosion, Wind Erosion
Grain Size
Medium to Fine Coarse Grained
Medium to Fine Coarse Grained
Fracture
Conchoidal
Irregular
Porosity
Highly Porous
Very Less Porous
Luster
Shiny
Dull to Pearly to Subvitreous
Specific Gravity
2.5-2.9
2.65-2.75
Transparency
Opaque
Opaque
Density
2.8-2.9 g/cm3
Not Available
Resistance
Impact Resistant, Pressure Resistant, Water Resistant
Heat Resistant, Pressure Resistant
Deposits in Eastern Continents
Asia
Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Japan, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Pakistan, Russia, Thailand, Turkey, Vietnam
China, India, Iran, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Russia
Africa
Egypt, Ethiopia, Morocco, Nigeria, South Africa
Cameroon, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Madagascar, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Tanzania, Togo
Europe
Austria, England, France, Georgia, Germany, Italy, Liechtenstein, Monaco, Norway, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland
Albania, Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Kosovo, Monaco, Norway, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine, United Kingdom
Others
Not Yet Found
Not Yet Found
Deposits in Western Continents
North America
Canada, Costa Rica, Cuba, Mexico, Panama, USA
Canada, Costa Rica, Cuba, Mexico, Panama, USA
South America
Brazil, Colombia, Guyana
Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela
Deposits in Oceania Continent
Australia
New South Wales, New Zealand, Queensland
New South Wales, New Zealand, Queensland, Victoria