Novaculite is a sedimentary rock composed mostly of microcrystalline quartz and is a recrystallized variety of chert. It is dense, hard, white to grayish-black in color, translucent on thin edges, and has a dull to waxy luster. It typically breaks with a smooth conchoidal (shell-like) fracture. The word novaculite is derived from the Latin word novacula, meaning razor stone. Flake scar edges often appear white under magnification.
Because it is highly resistant to erosion, it forms prominent ridges. It ranges in thickness from about 250 to 900 feet.
Arkansas novaculite is recognized worldwide for its use as whetstones and oilstones, which are used for sharpening knives, surgical instruments, and wood-carving tools. Early Native Americans in Arkansas gathered novaculite boulders and, in the vicinity of Hot Springs in Garland County, quarried the stone to make weapons and tools. In the early 1800's, a quarry of honestone near Magnet Cove in Hot Spring County was mined by early settlers. Records show that novaculite mining in Arkansas was intermittent from 1885 to 1905, but continuous ever since.
