Carbonate cemented conglomerate
Collection:
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Microscope
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Microscope
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Object

Fact sheet

Carbonate cemented conglomerate

Clasts in this Carboniferous age conglomerate range from semi-rounded poorly sorted immature siltstones, to elongate mudstone fragments and rare volcanic clasts. The framework is supported by the larger clasts and voids contain smaller clasts notably the rounded elongate mudstone fragments.

In thin section the rock is composed of rock fragments all of which appear to contain angular quartz and feldspar fragments cemented by clay and some calcite. Poorly defined sedimentary banding is present in some clasts. Angular altered volcanic rock fragments are also present, and one clast contains larger altered biotite grains indicating alkalic or acidic volcanism. The conglomerate is cemented by coarse-grained sparry calcite cement that also fills in cracks within the clasts. 

Additional images
  • Berwick conglomerate in a beach pebble
  • Berwick conglomerate in a beach pebble
  • Berwick conglomerate in a beach pebble
  • Close up of Berwick conglomerate
Map
56.0064, -2.5292
Description:
Dunbar, East Lothian,
Precision:
Good
About this collection

The United Kingdom Virtual Microscope (UKVM) collection consists of igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic rocks from around the UK.

It is intended as a teaching resource, helping to tell the story of the common rock types and how they form, and reflecting the history of the UK at the margins of the continent of Europe. The collection is a series of teaching sets, for example igneous rocks from the North Atlantic Igneous Province and SW England; high-temperature metamorphic rocks from Scotland and low-temperature metamorphic rocks from Wales; and sedimentary rocks, including English limestones and sandstones.

Sample details

Type
sedimentary
Category
conglomerate
Rock-forming mineral
calcite
quartz
Accessory minerals
iron oxide
Category guide  
Category Guide
Title
Refers to any word or phrase that appears in the individual rock names. Names are generally descriptive; they allow users to search for broad terms like ‘granite’ as well as more specific names such as ‘breccia’. However, the adjacent descriptions of the specimens captures a wider range of general words and phrases and is a more powerful search tool.
Description
Refers to any word or phrase that appears anywhere in the descriptions of the specimens
Accessory minerals
Minerals that occur in very low abundance in a rock. They are usually not visible with the naked eye and contribute perhapssver, they often dominate the rare elements such as platinum group metals.
Rock-forming minerals
Minerals that make up the bulk of all rock samples and are also the ones used in rock classi?cation.
Timescale
Selecting one or more period, for example 'Jurassic'.
Theme
A term used to group together related samples that are not already gathered into a single Collection. For instance, there is a ‘SW England granites’ theme that includes such rock types as granite, hydrothermal breccia, skarn and vein samples.
Category
A general term used to label a rock sample. It is a useful way of grouping similar samples throughout a collection. Category names are often, but not exclusively, common rock names (e.g. granite, basalt, dolerite, gabbro, greisen, skarn, gneiss, amphibolite, limestone, sandstone).
Owner
The owner of the sample that appears in the collection. For example, NASA owns all the samples that appear in the Moon Rocks collection
We would like to thank the following for the use of this sample: