ROCK ROOM
Smithers Exploration Group's Collection of Cordilleran Rock Suites
Welcome to Smithers Exploration Group’s Rock Room, home to our classic collection of Cordilleran rock suites. This extensive collection of rock samples is representative of deposits and rock types from across British Columbia, with a focus on the northwest. It’s an important resource for the development of expertise on the geology of northern BC and the discovery of the next mines.
The collection was begun in the 1970s by local geologists and prospectors, as well as the BC Ministry of Mines, and was updated under the direction of former regional geologist Paul Wojdak. It is designed to give hands-on examples of the rocks that make up the regional geological framework of northern British Columbia. We are working hard to complete our collection: if there is a particular suite you are keen to see but we do not yet have, please let us know and we will prioritize the aquisition of those samples. If you have a suite that you would consider donating to help us fill in the gaps, please contact us.
The Rock Room occupies a spacious classroom at the Smithers Exploration Group office at #101 3423 Fulton Avenue in Smithers. We have almost 2000 rock samples catalogued, clearly labelled and stored in trays that can be removed for handling and close examination. The room is heated, well-lit and spacious .It is equipped with regular and zoom stereomicroscopes for detailed investigation.
The rock suites cover:
- Plutonic
- Volcanic
- Sedimentary
- Metamorphic
- Stratigraphy
- Mineral Deposits and Ore Deposit Types
- Rock-forming and Ore Minerals
Call 250-877-7883 or email rockroom@smithersexplorationgroup.com if you have questions about the Rock Room or the donation requirements for samples.
SEG’s Rock Room with its Cordilleran Rock Suites will make Smithers home to a unique tool for explorationists. It will attract industry and government attention to Smithers as a community committed to the growth of the minerals industry in BC.
Browse the Rock Room Collection
| Library No. | Suite Name | Location | Collector | Rock Name | Age | Description | Cart |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| S5-13 | Karmutsen | Pillow basalt | very fine grained; dark grey; centre of specimen is a coarse grained igneous xenolith (bomb?) | ||||
| S5-12 | Takla Group | NTS 93L | T Richards? | Basalt breccia | dark green; clasts are mainly angular and all of same composition; clast supported; infilling of white calcite and silica | ||
| S5-11 | Takla Group | NTS 93L | T Richards? | Vesicular basalt | grey; aphanitic; 10% irregular shaped vesicles; weak calcite on vesicle margins contributes to pocked weathering; prominent malachite and weak azurite(?) on vesicle margin; likely basalt flow top, perhaps originally with native copper | ||
| S5-10 | Takla Group | NTS 93L | T Richards? | Tuffaceous argillite | well bedded; alternating grey, black and buff beds on mm to cm scale; very fine grained. Commonly interbedded with green tuff and volcanic breccia, clear evidence of submarine origin | ||
| S5-09 | Takla Group | NTS 93L | T Richards? | Green tuff | pale green; very fine grained; massive; pervasive weak epidote | ||
| S5-08 | Takla Group | NTS 93L | T Richards? | Amygdaoidal basalt | medium green; aphanitic; 20% amygdules filled by chlorite and lesser epidote; one vein(?) of quartz-epidote | ||
| S5-07 | Takla Group | NTS 93N | F Ferri | Basalt breccia with micritic limestone | light grey, very fine grained micritic limestone infills dark green-black basalt breccia; fragments are are broken, angular, to 8 mm; dark reddish hematite patches and minor epidote in basalt; moderately magnetic. Likely flow-top breccia infilled by limy mud precipitated from seawater | ||
| S5-06 | Takla Group | NTS 93N | F Ferri | Argillite | dark grey; fine grained; weakly foliated; partings show shiny chlorite and calcareous material; calcite veinlets (5 mm) with red-orange siderite selvage; weathered surface has grey calcite with unusual shapes. Occurs at base of Takla volcanics | ||
| S5-05 | Takla Group | NTS 93N | F Ferri | Volcanic-derived pebble greywacke | well sorted, clast-supported; subround pebble clasts from <1 to 8 mm; larger pebbles in crude beds (see cut surface); large clasts are dark, fine grained volcanic; small clasts consist of feldspar, augite, carbonate, green and red volcanics and black argillite; strongly magnetic | ||
| S5-04 | Takla Group | NTS 93N | F Ferri | Amygdaloidal basalt flow | dark green-black; fine grained; 30% mafic phenocrysts, entirely chloritized augite(?) to 5 mm; 20% rounded, elongate amydules (to 8 mm long) filled with calcite; amygdules are aligned, in flow orientation(?); visible magnetite, strongly magnetic | ||
| S5-03 | Takla Group | NTS 93N | F Ferri | Andesite augite porphyritic agglomerate | dark green; coarse grained; augite phenos (2 mm) slightly chloritic; fragments and matrix of similar composition; lithic fragments subrounded to subangular to 3 cm; fragments are amygdaloidal augite porphyry; amygdules (5 mm) filled with quartz-carbonate; rare large (8 mm) amygdule contain dark green olivine | ||
| S5-02 | Takla Group | NTS 93N | F Ferri | Andesite lithic tuff | dark green; 50% phenocrysts, mainly euhedral augite (to 5 mm), minor feldspar, hard to distinguish; lithic fragments to 1.5 cm; weak pervasive carbonate-epidote-chlorite alteration throughout | ||
| S5-01 | Takla Group | NTS 93N | F Ferri | Dacite crystal tuff | grey-green; fine to medium grained; 20% small, poorly visible feldspar phenocrysts; 10% small anhedral mafic phenocrysts (altered to chlorite/sericite); weak apple-green epidote patches; pale brown carbonate in hairline fractures with siliceous envelopes; weathered surface has cpy bleb oxidized to malachite | ||
| S4-16 | Toodoggone Volcanics | NTS 94E | H Gabrielse | Silica sinter | buff coloured quartz sinter, riddled with 15% cavities; cavities (0.5-3 mm) are of vesicular origin; locally quartz appears fragmental (subrounded, 1-5 mm). Vesicular texture suggests rapid cooling of tuffaceous silica melt, such as at a hydrothermal vent | ||
| S4-15 | Toodoggone Volcanics | NTS 94E | H Gabrielse | Quartz-carbonate vein / silicified volcanic | grey massive, semi-translucent silica with 5% rounded carbonate inclusions (5 mm); cavities on weathered surface are from dissolution of carbonate, leaving a dark grey powder (manganese(?) from rhodochrosite?); Probably a quartz-carbonate vein but possibly intensely silicified felsic volcanic rock | ||
| S4-14 | Toodoggone Volcanics | NTS 94E | H Gabrielse | Silica geodes from rhyolite flow (missing) | egg-shaped banded silica geode (lithophaese); silica spheroids (3-4 mm) stand out on weathered surface; original banded texture consists of 1 mm silica bands which pass completely through the sample, indicating spheroids formed later, during cooling. Soft white areas suggest feldspar content of 25%, but no visible crystals; pentagonal/hexagonal jointing through geode is resealed with chacedonic quartz. Cut surface shows an outer shell with original rhyolite; inward from the rhyolite is 0.5-1 cm concentric band of grey-purple finely banded chalcedony; then a 0.5 cm irregular band of red jasper; centre of geode has open infillings of light purple amythest which is light greenish in the centre. These geodes may have formed as a gas bubble (cavity); concentric cooling point caused the geode's shape; later silica precipitation caused the different coloured concentric rings. The hard chalcedonic quartz of the exterior is resistant to weathering than the rest of the rhyolite causing the geodes to weather out of the outcrop. | ||
| S4-13 | Toodoggone Volcanics | NTS 94E | H Gabrielse | Dacite crystal flow tuff | mauve and white, partially banded; non banded part is 50% dark purple aphanitic matrix with 10% feldspar (0.5-2 mm) and 5% mafics (<0.5 mm). Banded portion is 3 cm wide with white 1-2 mm stringers; soft material of bands is altered feldspar(?); partial hematite alteration | ||
| S4-12 | Toodoggone Volcanics | NTS 94E | H Gabrielse | Feldspar hornblende andesite crystal tuff | medium grey; 20% aphanitic matrix; 30% plagioclase and lesser K-feldspar (1-2 mm); 20% hornblende (1-2 mm); hornblende is reddish (hematitic); one hornblende-rich lithic fragment; feldspars mildly altered to clay; tuff features visible on weathered surface | ||
| S4-11 | Toodoggone Volcanics | NTS 94E | H Gabrielse | Feldspar porphyry rhyodacite | dark brown; aphanitic; hard matrix with 15-20% rounded phenocrysts of K-feldspar (light pink) and plagioclase (white); 2:1 ratio of plag to K-spar; 5% tiny (<0.5 mm) hornblende; probably shallow intrusive origin | ||
| S4-10 | Toodoggone Volcanics | NTS 94E | H Gabrielse | Quartz breccia rhyolite | grey and pink; mottled; chunky; 70% angular fragments of grey semi-translucent quartz; matrix is pink-orange K-feldspar-rich; matrix is leached, altered to clay; thoroughly weathered sample | ||
| S4-09 | Toodoggone Volcanics | NTS 94E | H Gabrielse | Volcanic sandstone, of dacite composition | medium grey-green; fine grained; sandy textured; barely distinguishable feldspar and quartz and darker green (chloritized) mafics; carbonate and chlorite on fracture surfaces | ||
| S4-08 | Toodoggone Volcanics | NTS 94E | H Gabrielse | Sanidine hornblende trachyte | orange-pink and medium grey; mottled; 25% pink feldspar (sanidine, 1-2 mm); 15% subhedral hornblende (0.5-2 mm); 50% fine grained matrix; pervasive carbonate in matrix; hairline veinlets of carbonate and chlorite; one mafic xenolith (2 cm) | ||
| S4-07 | Toodoggone Volcanics | NTS 94E | H Gabrielse | Potassic altered K-feldspar hornblende trachyte | orange-pink; slightly chalky; medium grained; 5% plagioclase altered to clay; minor quartz eyes; 30% subhedral sanidine (1-4 mm); 20% euhedral hornblende (1-3 mm); minor biotite; pervasive laumontite | ||
| S4-06 | Toodoggone Volcanics | NTS 94E | H Gabrielse | Propylitically altered andesite | dark grey-green; medium grained; equigranular; 30% euhedral plagioclase laths (1-2 mm); 10% quartz (1 mm); 5-10% hornblende as individual laths (1 mm) and 2-3 mm aggregates; chloritic, fine grained matrix (propylitic); disseminated magnetite; minor calcite | ||
| S4-05 | Toodoggone Volcanics | NTS 94E | H Gabrielse | Hydrothermally altered rhyolite | light grey-pink; heavily altered; granular felsite; less altered area shows chalcedonic matrix with 20-25% K-feldspar (bleached white); pocked surface due to acid leaching with small remnant quartz crystals (devitrification of siliceous matrix?) and clay after feldspar; abundant limonite stain | ||
| S4-04 | Toodoggone Volcanics | NTS 94E | H Gabrielse | Crystal lithic andesite latite tuff | 50% grey-green, fine grained andesite which is equigranular and more deeply weathered; brown, medium grained latite as rounded spheres (2 mm to 2 cm) more apparent on weathered surface; latite is densely packed with crystal fragments of K-feldspar (1-2 mm) and fine hornblende | ||
| S4-03 | Toodoggone Volcanics | NTS 94E | H Gabrielse | Sanidine porphyry trachyte | dark grey to purple; fine grained; 30% feldspar phenocrysts, mainly pink euheral K-spar (sanidine) 2-5 mm and minor elongate, pale green plagioclase; calcite and epidote throughout (pervasive propylitic alteration); moderately magnetic, fine magnetite throughout | ||
| S4-02 | Toodoggone Volcanics | NTS 94E | H Gabrielse | Feldspar crystal rhyolite tuff | brown and green mottled; fine grained; 10-20% subhedral pink K-feldspar to 2 mm; reddish due to hematite(?); calcite rims cavities | ||
| S4-01 | Toodoggone Volcanics | NTS 94E | H Gabrielse | Amygdaloidal dacitic andesite | matrix is dark grey, dense, fine grained, siliceous (note radiating sub-conchoidal fracture on one surface); 5% subhedral white feldspar to 2 mm; 2% round siderite amygdules to 3 mm with white semi-translucent rims (that weather orange); pocked surface results from weathering of siderite; rock is strongly magnetic | ||
| S3-10 | Coldfish Volcanics | Spatsizi | Andesite lapilli tuff | Lower Jurassic | Cherry red matrix with 80% mm scale angular to subrounded fragments, calcite as subrounded blebs (amygdules) fragments range from same composition as matrix and from deeper red to dark and pale grey. | ||
| S3-09 | Coldfish Volcanics | Spatsizi | H Gabrielse | Andesite lapilli tuff | Lithic fragments more visible on weathered surface; 50% fragments of subangular feldspar porphyry andesite to 1.5 cm; calcite as rounded blebs (amygdules?) and on fractures; matrix is finer grained but similar composition to fragments; magnetic throughout; minor manganese stain | ||
| S3-08 | Coldfish Volcanics | Cry Lake, NTS 94H | H Gabrielse | Flow banded hematitic spheroidal rhyolite | 70% dark red, siliceous, banded matrix; portions of bands consist of grey silica which has not been hematized; some round to irregular amygdules [spherules?] (to 1 cm) filled with quartz and minor carbonate occur along some layers of the flow; spherules up to 7 cm (along edge of sample where rhyolite cooled more quickly) show radiating texture. Few patches of pale, soft chlorite/sericite may be altered lithic fragments (pumice?) | ||
| S3-07 | Coldfish Volcanics | Cry Lake | H Gabrielse | Flow banded rhyolite | pink-orange; fine grained; hard; flow banded; 5% scattered, pale orange feldspar (K-spar?) phenos to 3 mm; minor small, anhedral mafic phenos; hairline fractures filled with calcite or silica | ||
| S3-06 | Coldfish Volcanics | Cry Lake | H Gabrielse | Polymictic lithic tuff | 60% subrounded to angular fragments of many types; matrix supported; matrix is pale pink, soft, fine to medium grained with small, bright to dull green irregular shaped fragments. Small dull green fragments are montmorillonite altered pumice(?). Bright green glassy fragments may be less altered pumice, secondary epidote or primary olivine. Fragments consist of reddish fine grained hematitic tuff, light to dark grey crystal tuff, light brown siliceous rhyolite and one fragment of orange K-feldspar. Pumice indicates this rock was once a glassy vitric tuff | ||
| S3-05 | Coldfish Volcanics | Cry Lake | H Gabrielse | Feldspar porphyry breccia | 80% subrounded to subangular fragments (to 12 cm) of andesite feldspar porphyry; matrix is grey-green, fine grained, contains small feldspar and altered hornblende phenocrysts, and green chlorite blebs that may have been amygdules. Fragments are andesitic feldspar (plagioclase) porphyry with 30-75% sub to euheral feldspar to 4 mm and 5% chloritized hornblende. Matrix in the fragments ranges from grey-green to dark reddish hematitic andesite; some small fragments are aphanitic and one is strongly magnetic. Matrix and fragments have similar composition, hard to distinguish; may be proximal to a vent | ||
| S3-04 | Coldfish Volcanics | Spatsizi | H Gabrielse | Banded rhyolitic ash tuff | light brown; fine grained; banded (bedded); siliceous (hard); minor dendritic manganese (pyrolusite) on weathered surface; very fine layering suggests subaqueous deposition | ||
| S3-03 | Coldfish Volcanics | Spatsizi | H Gabrielse | Amygdaloidal andesite | dark grey-green; fine grained; 5% euhedral plagioclase phenos to 3 mm; 10% amygdules filled by calcite, small ones are round, large ones (to 5mm) are irregular; reddish-purple hematite patches in matrix | ||
| S3-02 | Coldfish Volcanics | Spatsizi | H Gabrielse | Amygdaloidal andesite | dark brown; fine grained; 40% amygdules filled with chlorite and calcite; amygdules are round to elongate up to 8 mm long; small amygdules filled only by chlorite, larger have chlorite rim and calcite core; weathered surface appears vesicular | ||
| S3-01 | Coldfish Volcanics | Spatsizi, NTS 104H | H Gabrielse | Fine grained andesite tuff | dark red-brown; dense; fine grained; pale white-grey blotches are, under hand lens, euhedral feldspar laths | ||
| S2-33a S2-33b | Stewart suite | D Alldrick | Granite dike, Diabase dike (2 specimens) | Tertiary | a) Granite dike is light pink, 5% quartz phenocrysts; 50% K-feldspar, trace biotite in a (presumed) plagioclase-quartz groundmass. B) Diorite dike is medium grey, fine grained with a salt-and-pepper texture comprising 65% plagioclase and 35% hornblende | ||
| S2-32 | Stewart suite | D Alldrick | Felsic phyllite | Jurassic | pale green-grey; very fine grained; a few faint primary crystals (feldspar?) or clasts preserved; no clear evidence this was a felsic tuff | ||
| S2-31 | Stewart suite | D Alldrick | Sheared granodiorite (one piece broken in 2) | Jurassic | medium green; 20% feldspar is preseved but deformed; hornblende completely altered to foliated chlorite | ||
| S2-30 | Stewart suite | D Alldrick | Granodiorite (2 specimens) | Jurassic | demonstrates the compositional range of the Texas Creek pluton from more mafic than typical to more felsic; felsic sample has a low colour index, contains 5% hornblende, a few grains of primary biotite, no quartz and no K-feldspar | ||
| S2-29 | Stewart suite | D Alldrick | Dacite - andesite flow (2 specimens) | Jurassic | 10% feldspar, moderately flow-aligned; rare K-feldspar. Extrusive, flow rock; Premier Porphyry is a consanguinous, high level intrusive rock. This should not be called Premier Porphyry | ||
| S2-28 | Stewart suite | D Alldrick | Altered andesite | Jurassic | medium green; 25% feldspar phenocrysts; hornblende completely altered to chlorite | ||
| S2-27 | Stewart suite | D Alldrick | Bedded siltstone | argillaecous black beds and thin light brown silty beds; beds mm to 5 cm thick | |||
| S2-26 | Stewart suite | Mt Dilworth Fm | Dacite Lapilli Tuff | Jurassic | Light grey matrix with 40% angular to rounded fragments dark grey to brown in color and up to 2 cm. | ||
| S2-25 | Stewart suite | Mt Dilworth Fm | D Alldrick | Rhyolite lapilli tuff | Jurassic | mottled light and medium grey; 40% siliceous matrix; 50% siliceous fragments, 1 mm to 1 cm; 5% feldspar throughout matrix; 5% pyrite concentrated in bands and patches and up to 30% in some clasts; intense limonite on weathered surface | |
| S2-24 | Stewart suite | Mt Dilworth Fm | D Alldrick | Rhyolite lapilli tuff | Jurassic | light grey; 65% fine grained matrix; 30% rounded, aligned, lithic fragments 2-7 mm; 5% very fine feldspar in matrix; pyrite throughout; rusty weathered surface; bright orange cut surface may be iron carbonate | |
| S2-23 | Stewart suite | Mt Dilworth Fm | D Alldrick | Rhyodacite lapilli tuff | Jurassic | 60% dark grey matrix; 35% light grey, fine grained lithic fragments 1 mm to 2 cm size and roughly aligned; 5% pyrite fragments and minor disseminated pyrite |
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