Anthophyllite is an amphibole mineral: (Mg, Fe)7Si8O22(OH)2, magnesium iron inosilicate hydroxide. Some forms of anthophyllite are lamellar or fibrous and are used as asbestos. The name is derived from the Latin word anthophyllum, meaning clove, an allusion to the most common color of the mineral.
Characteristics[]
Anthophylite is the product of metamorphism of magnesium-rich rocks especially ultrabasic igneous rocks and impure dolomitic shales. It also forms as a retrograde product rimming relict orthopyroxenes and olivine, and as an accessory mineral in cordierite-bearing gneisses and schists. Anthophyllite also occurs as a retrograde metamorphic mineral derived from ultramafic rocks along with serpentinite.