The chemical composition and microstructure of rutile grains in a ultra-high pressure metamorphic gneiss of the Saxonian Erzgebirge, Germany have been studied by Raman spectroscopy, SEM, EMPA and TEM. Rutile inclusions in garnet contain free dislocations, iron-enriched dislocations and exsolved ilmenite lamellae, while subgrain boundaries are observed in rutile grains of the rock matrix. The previously reported alpha-PbO2 type TiO2 phase could not be confirmed by our TEM observations. On the basis of Zr solubility in the rutile and the presence of microdiamonds, minimum metamorphic peak conditions of 3.95 GPa and 915 degrees C are estimated.