Syenite
“Granite's feldspar-rich cousin”
Igneous
Syenite is a coarse-grained intrusive igneous rock that looks similar to granite but contains very little or no quartz. It's named after Syene (modern Aswan) in Egypt, though ironically the rock quarried there is actually granite.
Composition
alkali feldspar, hornblende, biotite, clinopyroxene, minor nepheline
Where Found
Kola Peninsula (Russia), Oslo Rift (Norway), Ilímaussaq Complex (Greenland), Bancroft (Ontario, Canada)
Mohs Hardness
6-7
Fun Fact
The ancient Egyptian obelisks, often called 'syenite' by early geologists, are actually made of granite — a naming mix-up that stuck for centuries.
Test Your Knowledge
How does the mineral composition of syenite fundamentally differ from that of granite?
Related Specimens
Want to identify rocks yourself?