Slate and Shale Types and Facts
Types
Phyllite, Schist, and Slate
Red Shale, Black Shale, Green Shale, Grey Shale and Yellow Shale
Features
Easily splits into thin plates, Surfaces are often shiny, Very fine grained rock
Easily splits into thin plates, Generally rough to touch, Very fine grained rock
Archaeological Significance
Famous Monuments
-
Jantar Mantar in India
Types of Slate and Shale
Some rocks according to their use or texture are classified into different types. Know more about Slate Texture and Shale Texture. Types of Slate are Phyllite, Schist, and Slate whereas the types of Shale are Red Shale, Black Shale, Green Shale, Grey Shale and Yellow Shale.During historic times, some rocks depending on their hardness were used to create Pictographs and Petroglyphs. Rocks which are hard were generally not used. Pictographs are paintings or drawings that have been placed or created on the surface of rock. Slate and Shale were for creating pictographs. Petroglyph is an image which is carved into a rock. These are images created by removing part of a rock surface by incising, picking, carving or abrading, as a form of rock art. Slate and Shale were for creating petroglyphs.