Lamprophyre (redirected from Lamprophyres)

lamprophyre [′lam·prə‚fī·ər]

(petrology)

Any of a group of igneous rocks characterized by a porphyritic texture in which abundant, large crystals of dark-colored minerals appear set in a not visibly crystalline matrix.

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Lamprophyre 

melanocratic igneous dike rock that differs from the corresponding igneous rocks to which it is genetically related by its sharply increased content of dark minerals (usually at least 30 percent of the rock). The color of lamprophyre varies from dark gray to black. Its constituents include feldspar (sometimes feldspathoid) and dark minerals (biotite, amphibole, pyroxene, and sometimes olivine). In the porphyritic varieties of lamprophyre the phenocrysts are usually represented by dark minerals—this is called lamprophyric texture. There are calcalkalic lamprophyres (spessartite, kersantite) and alkalic lamprophyres (camptonite, alnöite). Lamprophyres sometimes grade into porphyrites.