Hornfels in Victorian archaeological sites

Hornfels is an unusual and relatively rare stone used in making flaked stone tools, and which is found in Aboriginal archaeological sites in Victoria, Australia.[1] A sample of places where it has been found can be seen in the geographic section below.[2]

The term has been used for ...a group of compact, fine-grained, metamorphic rocks that form as a result of contact between sedimentary country rocks and a magma intrusion. The mineral composition is variable, but commonly contains mica and pyroxene while porphyroblasts of pyroxene, cordierite or andulusite also develop. Sedimentary structures are rarely evident due to a high degree of recrystallisation.[3]

References

  1. A Record In Stone: The Study Of Australia's Flaked Stone Artefacts By Simon Holdaway, Nicola Stern
  2. Archaeological survey of Aboriginal chert hornfels quarry sites in eastern Tasmania: a report for the Australian Heritage Commission / David Rhodes, Ian Thomas, Melbourne, Vic. Du Cros and Associates, 1994
  3. Archaeological Survey of Gravel Search Area Victoria Highway


This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 5/29/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.