Shungite is a black and lustrous mineraloid that was first described from a deposit near Shunga village, in Karelia, Russia, from where it gets its name. Shungite can be low-carbon, medium-carbon and high-carbon percent by weight of carbon and the carbon base of shungite is a multilayered fullerene-like globule with a diameter of 10-30 nm. Shungite has been reported to contain trace amounts of fullerenes
Shungite has two main modes of occurrence, disseminated within the host rock and as apparently mobilised material. Migrated shungite, which is bright (lustrous) shungite, has been interpreted to represent migrated hydrocarbons and is found as either layer shungite, layers or lenses near conformable with the host rock layering, or vein shungite, which is found as cross-cutting veins. Shungite may also occur as clasts within younger sedimentary rocks.
