sedimentary
Flint Pebble
Silicon Dioxide (Microcrystalline Quartz, SiO2)
Hardness of 7 on the Mohs scale, color typically grey, brown, or black with a waxy to vitreous luster, cryptocrystalline structure, conchoidal fracture with no true cleavage, and specific gravity around 2.6
Identified More sedimentary →
Explore Flint Pebble in the encyclopedia →Identify your own rocks.
Get a report just like this from any photo, free.
Physical properties
Hardness of 7 on the Mohs scale, color typically grey, brown, or black with a waxy to vitreous luster, cryptocrystalline structure, conchoidal fracture with no true cleavage, and specific gravity around 2.6
Formation & geological history
Formed as nodular masses in sedimentary rocks such as chalk and marine limestones through the replacement of calcium carbonate by silica-rich groundwater over millions of years
Uses & applications
Historically used for making stone tools, arrowheads, and fire-starting flintlock mechanisms; currently used in abrasives, ceramics, and as decorative beach pebbles
Geological facts
Flint is extremely durable and breaks with a sharp conchoidal fracture, making it one of the most widely used materials by early humans for stone tool technology during the Stone Age
Field identification & locations
Commonly found along chalk cliffs and beaches (such as the southern coast of England or parts of northern Europe); identifiable by its smooth water-worn surface, grey/brown color, waxy luster, and conchoidal chipping
More like this
Other sedimentary specimens
Sandstone or Siltstone
Arenite (if sandstone)
Sedimentary
Fossiliferous Concretion
Septarian Concretion containing Brachiopods/Crinoids
fossil
Quartz pebble
Silicon dioxide (SiO2)
sedimentary
Generic Pebble / Rock Fragment
Lithic fragment / Weathered rock
sedimentary
Sedimentary Sandstone
Arenite (Sedimentary Rock)
sedimentary
Banded Siltstone / Mudstone Pebble
Siltstone / Argillite
sedimentary