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Can't tell if this rock from the creek is slate or phyllite, and it's bugging me.
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nancy307mo ago
Try checking for that shine garcia.kelly talked about. I did that and it sorted mine out.
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emma3497mo ago
That reminds me of a time I found a rock in a creek that looked totally dull. Turned it in the light and caught a tiny shimmer, just like garcia.kelly said. Your mileage may vary, but water can really hide that phyllite shine.
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garcia.kelly7mo ago
Slate is completely smooth and breaks in flat sheets. Phyllite has a faint satiny shine to it because its mica flakes are just a bit bigger. If your rock has any kind of shimmer when you turn it in the light, it’s phyllite. That change happens with a little more heat and pressure on the slate. Creek tumbling can polish it and make that shine harder to see, so check a fresh broken edge. Still just looks flat and dull gray? Probably slate.
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