View source for Chemistry:Unakite

[[File:Colored minerals closeup.jpg|thumb|Tumble polished unakite pebbles]]{{No footnotes|date=April 2023}}
'''Unakite''' is a [[Earth:Metamorphic rock|metamorphic rock]] that is altered [[Chemistry:Granite|granite]] composed of pink orthoclase feldspar, green [[Chemistry:Epidote|epidote]], and generally colorless [[Chemistry:Quartz|quartz]].

==Discovery==
It was first found in the {{wipe|United States}} in the Unaka mountain range of North Carolina from which it gets its name. Unakite exists in various shades of green and pink and is usually mottled in appearance.
[[File:Unakite bear Length 8 cm Taken 18.8.21.jpg|thumb|Bear carved from unakite. Length 8 cm.]]
==Use==
A good quality unakite is considered a semiprecious stone; it will take a good polish and is often used in jewelry as beads or cabochons and other [[Engineering:Lapidary|lapidary]] work such as eggs, spheres and animal carvings.  It is also referred to as epidotized or epidote granite. 

==Structure==
In some of the Blue Ridge occurrences, an epidotized [[Earth:Augen|augen]] [[Earth:Gneiss|gneiss]] is present exhibiting [[Earth:Foliation (geology)|foliation]] structures. 

The dominant green epidote in unakite rocks is the [[Earth:Metasomatism|metasomatic]] alteration product of [[Chemistry:Plagioclase|plagioclase]] feldspar, while the orthoclase and quartz crystals remain unaffected.

==Distribution==
Unakite can be found as pebbles and cobbles from glacial drift all across the US Midwest.  It also occurs in Virginia where it is found in the river valleys after having been washed down from the Blue Ridge Mountains.  Unakite is not limited to the United States, and has also been reported in {{wipe|South Africa}}, Sierra Leone, {{wipe|Brazil}}, {{wipe|China}} and {{wipe|Australia}}

Some material labeled ''unakite'' lacks the feldspar and is more properly called [[Chemistry:Epidosite|epidosite]], and is also used as beads and [[Engineering:Cabochon|cabochon]]s.

==References==
*[http://stoneplus.cst.cmich.edu/Default.htm R. V. Dietrich ''Gemrocks: Unakite'']
*[https://geology.com/gemstones/unakite/ Unakite on Geology.com]
*[https://www.gemdat.org/gem-36075.html/ Unakite on Gemdat.org]
[[Category:Gemstones]]

{{Sourceattribution|Unakite}}