Rochester, VT – Vermont Verde Antique owner, Tom Fabioli, recently discovered a new material running adjacent to the historical Vermont Verde Serpentine quarry in Rochester, Vermont. The Fabioli’s are introducing a new stone product to market, Green Mountain Schist, which they began extracting in 2023.

The green schist is softer and easier to split than the very hard serpentine, making it perfect for landscape design and decorative uses. The word schist is derived from the Greek word schízein meaning “to split”, which is a reference to the ease with which schists can be split along the plane in which the platy minerals lie. Schist is a medium-grained, strongly-foliated crystalline metamorphic rock, formed by dynamic metamorphism, that can be readily split into thin flakes or slabs. Individual mineral grains are discernible by the naked eye, and this property sets it apart from slate. There are many varieties of schist and they are named for the dominant mineral comprising the rock, e.g. mica schist, green schist (green because of high chlorite content), garnet schist, actinolite schist, biotite schist etc.

Green Mountain Schist is more subtle than Vermont Verde in its color, which ranges from olive to soft forest to muted gray-green and is visibly flecked with elongated minerals that give it variation and a bit of sparkle. “It’s a beautiful stone, which may become even more popular than our world-famous serpentine,” said Fabioli, who purchased the Vermont Verde quarry in 2007.

The Fabioli family has over 30 years experience in the stone industry. They are processing the new schist alongside the serpentine at their stone fabrication plant in Barre, VT. The current Green Mountain Schist product line includes: pavers, pool surrounds, steps, wall caps, and other exterior design products. It is also suitable for decorative interior uses such as backsplashes, hearths and coffee tables.