In 1938 large crystals of almandine garnet were collected by the writer from a cutting excavated during road-widening operations, on the main Huntly—Keith road, near Cairnie church, about 4½ miles from Huntly. In view of their exceptional size and excellent crystal form, it is felt that the occurrence is worth recording. Garnet crystals of comparable size have been recorded by Heddle from several localities. The Cairnie crystals, considering their size and excellent form, must rank with the finest recorded from Scotland.

The rocks at this cutting are coarsely banded garnet-biotite-sillimanite-gneisses with abundant quartz, oligoclase, orthoclase, and biotite, subordinate muscovite, and accessory magnetite, apatite, and zircon. Sillimanite is sporadic in occurrence, forming elongated colourless prisms up to 2 mm. across. The biotite-rich bands generally contain only small garnets, if any, but garnet is very abundant in bands rich in quartz and felspars, and often forms a large part of the rock.