Allanite phenocrysts and co-existing glass from the perlitic obsidian of Sandy Braes have been analysed for nine rare earths (RE), uranium, and thorium by instrumental neutron activation analysis and for the major elements by electron microprobe. The chondritenormalized RE plot for the allanite shows a steep slope with a negative Eu anomaly. Allanite/glass partition coefficients show a smooth variation with ionic radius (except for Eu), the variation spanning two orders of magnitude. The partitioning behaviour, which is distinct from that shown by the RE in sphene, apatite, and zircon, can be explained by the allanite structure. The pronounced affinity of the light RE for allanite makes this an important mineral in considerations of RE concentrations during the evolution of granitic liquids.