Garnet schist from the eastern Italian Alps
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Garnet schist from the eastern Italian Alps

by Bernardo Cesare, Department of Geosciences, University of Padova, Padova, Italy

Polarized light photomicrograph of a thin section of a garnetiferous metamorphic rock called schist. This rock was originally a mud deposited in the sea floor. Through the increase of pressure and temperature that accompany metamorphic processes the rock changed, crystals of garnet formed, and layers of mica were intensely and flattened anastomosed around it.
Width of view 5,4 mm