Selected Virginia Minerals (Part 4)
Mica
• Both muscovite and biotite mica are extremely common in igneous and metamorphic rocks in the Blue Ridge and Piedmont.
• Muscovite mica was previously mined in Henry and Pittsylvania Counties.
• Excellent muscovite mica specimens have been found in pegmatites in Amelia and Bedford Counties.
Micas (Left: photograph by Stan Johnson; right: photograph courtesy of the Virginia Division of Geology and Mineral Resources)
These muscovite mica crystals were found in a pegmatite in Amelia County. Muscovite, also called isinglass, is used in electric insulators and paint.