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I think that the material mainly referred to in this article is in fact bassanite (with double s). I think that basanite (with 1 s) is a black iron rich variety of chert or jasper.

• Basanite - http://www.mindat.org/min-9173.html
• Bassanite - http://www.mindat.org/min-557.html

Thanks, but see the hatnote on the article, which already states that the name is also used for a variety of Jasper. This article is about the igneous rock, not a mineral. The similarity in names is very confusing, but it's what we're stuck with. Mikenorton (talk) 20:55, 27 April 2012 (UTC)Reply

The original material is described in this publication:
Ferruccio Zambonini. Mineralogia Vesuviana. 1910. P.327—328
It also appears as "Bassanite" in the most recent edition of Dana's New Mineralogy (8th edition, 1997) which is the retitling of Dana's System of Mineralogy, one of the definitive texts on mineralogy. (By the way, the jasper "Basanite" also appears in earlier editions.)
The greek word for the black jasper is "basanos" (latinised spelling) from which the Romans derived "basanites lapis". In English, we get it from the French "basanite". "Bassanite" on the other hand is named after Francesco Bassani.
--O crandell (talk) 16:12, 15 May 2012 (UTC)Reply

The references in the article and science articles from a quick google search use basanite for the petrological term as used here. Bassanite is one of the hydrated calcium sulfates and is a redirect to gypsum. Vsmith (talk) 20:37, 15 May 2012 (UTC)Reply

You're right. I was confusing it with the sulfate.--O crandell (talk) 08:58, 16 May 2012 (UTC)Reply