Document Type
Thesis
Abstract
The Maidens gneiss is the largest component of the Goochland terrane in the central Piedmont province of Virginia. Most previous research done on the Maidens gneiss has focused on areas north of the Appomattox River, including work by Farrar (1984), Shirvell (2004) and Owens et al. (2010). Owens et al. (2010) concluded that the protolith in the area near Goochland was broadly granitic (quartz monzonite) and had been highly deformed due to its proximity to the Spotsylvania high strain zone. However, Shirvell (2004) noted an intriguing report from older literature (Pegau, 1932) which included a description of an apparently less deformed version of the Maidens gneiss near Amelia, VA. Pegau also interpreted the rocks near Goochland and Amelia to both have a quartz monzonite protolith. My basic research questions are: (1) Is the Maidens gneiss in the Amelia area similar to occurrences near Goochland, including similarities in field characteristics, mineralogy, whole- rock composition, and protolith; followed by a subsequent question: (2) Do rocks in the Amelia area represent a lessdeformed variety of Maidens Gneiss? Research and field observations show that the Maidens gneiss near Amelia have a similar protolith to rocks near Goochland, but do not represent a lessdeformed variety of the Maidens gneiss. This study was significant because it was the first study to focus on characteristics of the Maidens gneiss south of the Appomattox River.
Date Awarded
2011
Department
Geology
Advisor 1
Brent E. Owens
Recommended Citation
Hancox, Christina Nicole, "A Field Mineralogical and Geochemical Investigation Of the Maidens Gneiss near Amelia, Virginia" (2011). Geology Senior Theses. William & Mary. Paper 252.
https://scholarworks.wm.edu/geologyseniors/252
