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SOAPSTONE #1
Soapstone    -   Other specific examples: #1 | #2 | #3 | #4
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Composition
Talc (magnesium silicate; Mg3Si4O10(OH)2). Apple green, white; greasy feel, hardness = 1
Description
     A nondescript rock greenish with whitish flecks, very soft (H=1), greasy feel, generally homogeneous in appearance (no streaks or color bandings).
     Once one becomes familiar with the rock it is distinctive and easy to recognize, but it is the "feel" of it that is most indicative.
Tectonic Association
     Serpentine forms from the alteration of ultramafic igneous rocks under low grade metamorphic conditions in the presence of lots of water so any circumstances that provide these conditions will result in serpentinite. Aside from these conditions there is no specific tectonic association associated with serpentinite.
Type of Metamorphism
     Hydrothermal metamorphism at low to moderate temperatures.
  

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