Kakortokite

Kakortokite is a rare intrusive rock that is igneous of a combination of varying amounts of Nepheline syenite (white), Arfvedsonite (black) and Eudialyte (red). It is found in outcrops on top of the walls of cliffs on the side that is south of the eastern end of Kangerdluarssaq Fjord (also spelt Kangerdluarsuk Fjord) in far-southern Greenland. The outcrops are about 700 meters above the fjord and must be backpacked down a tremendous path that is treacherous. The Specific Gravity of the rock is 2.7-2.8. Limited quantities are available due to the inaccessibility of this area.

Kakortokite’s name is derived from Qaqortoq, a town in the Kujalleq municipality in southern Greenland near where the material is discovered. The name “Qaqortoq” is Greenlandic that is western and “(the) white one”.

Chemical Formula:	A mixture of the minerals Nepheline syenite (white), Arfvedsonite (black) and Eudialyte (red) and possibly also occasionally Sodalite and Rinkite.

 

Color:	Varying mixtures of white to off-white, red and black.
Transparency:	Opaque
Luster:	Vitreous
Specific Gravity:	2.7-2.8