This post is to satisfy my inner need to write about these rocks, or mixes thereof … equally I don't want to bore you – I'm generous that way, aren't I? – tempt/inform you … but let you do the wandering …
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| Various crystals - found in Canada |
Many scientists had wondered why so many of the Roman buildings are still intact after 2,000 years, while recent ones fall down or 'think about' collapsing …
I'd visited Canterbury Cathedral (in 2015) where repairs were being carried out after part of the stone tracery from the Great South Window had collapsed … details in links.
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| Scaffolding seen when I visited Canterbury Cathedral |
Recently scientists appear to have found the magic ingredient behind ancient Rome's self-healing concrete …
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| A large volcanic Tephra at Brown Bluff, Antartica - a particularly large tephra |
It is believed that Tephra ... a fragmental material produced by volcanic eruption … is the magic ingredient the Romans added into their building mix … allowing damaged areas to self-heal before further building disaster occurred.
Next – Polyhalite – a natural multi-nutrient fertiliser – a by-product from the potash mined under the North York Moors/North Sea.
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| North York Moors |
It's only recently been realised how environmentally valuable Polyhalite is – they use it on the hallowed turf at Wimbledon - four nutrients are found in one product - the Anglo-American site is informative.
The Polyalite layer of rock happens to be of motherlode proportions … the only known deposit being mined anywhere in the world, now shipped where needed as an organic agricultural fertiliser – so this country suddenly can add mining back onto its export list …
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| Poldice Mine, east of Redruth |
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| Crown Mines Botallack |
The Cornish landscape honeycombed with mine shafts is once again being opened up to exploration for essential minerals – copper, tungsten and importantly lithium …
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| Artisinal miners, Kalio, Republic of Congo |
Maybe we don't like mining our own lands – but surely we 'do it' more ethically, carefully and frugally as far as the environment is concerned – which has to be 'way better' than ripping the earth apart with little care in the world – as happens in for instance the Democratic Republic of Congo … or because of greed insist the populace work in inhuman conditions with little care for their health or lives.
As Ed Conway mentions in his book 'Material World: A Substantial Story of Our Past and Future' … dirty and grimy though mining may be – it is part of the human story.
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| Ed Conway's book - that inspired some of this post |
The blurb notes 'Sand, salt, iron, copper, oil and lithium. They built our world, and they will transform our future.'
I have to say I really want to read this book – but am immersed in rather a large number of others – so it'll have to wait – but I will get there … it sounds extremely informative.
Our ancestors were, really, quite wise - I hope we take more note of their ways and knowledge ...
Anglo-American -
Polyhalite and Potash - what's the difference?
The Woodsmith Project - about the new polyhalite fertiliser mine
Canterbury Cathedral Scaffolding tour in 2015 (my blog post)
Julia and Hans Rausing Trust - informative article on the Cathedral and their donation towards saving the window.
Tephra - more info c/o Wiki
Massachusetts Institute of Technology article on Why Roman Concrete was so durable ... 'Riddle Solved'
Hilary Melton-Butcher
Positive Letters Inspirational Stories
29 comments:
Hari OM
The polyhalite part was news to me - the other two I was aware of. It is true that humankind has always delved and scrabbled in search of 'stuff' for all sorts of reasons. YAM xx
It's amazing that builders in those days harnessed the resources so well to constuct nearly solid structures.
What is "self healing" when it comes to building materials? How does it heal itself?
More rabbit holes to wander down. Thank you. I think.
And a big yes to learning from our long ago ancestors. On lots of levels and subjects.
I hope this doesn't seem silly to you, Hilary, but I smiled because you used the word "motherlode." One year on Christmas Day the bowling alley where we liked to take our children duck pin bowling was open in the evening. We didn't have any obligations and had no relative around, so we went duck pin bowling. Two gentlemen in the lane next to ours would celebrate a strike by calling out MOTHERLODE!!! Before long we were celebrating their strikes and they were celebrating ours and it was such a lovely way to bring an end to Christmas Day. It's a happy memory for me.
Love,
Janie
@ Yam - yes ... I hadn't heard of polyhalite - so was interested to see what was happening with the potash mine ... and to learn more ...
@ Pradeep - I agree ... this self-healing concrete has fascinated me for a while and eventually I've been able to write about it ...
@ Liz - I've added a link - which I meant to put in earlier ... apologies ... it's self-explanatory I think ... I hope it satisfies: let me know - thanks ...
@ EC - yes ... lots of rabbit holes over here ... and oh don't we need to pay attention to our forebears' ideas ...
@ Janie - not at all - I'm delighted 'motherlode' brought back happy memories for you ... not quite the same context - but who cares - I don't, just happy commenters are happy!
Cheers and thanks to you all for visiting and commenting - Hilary
And to think they found these things back in those days.
How interesting! Here in the USA, more and more of the Native American practices have been shown to be much better for the environment than first thought.
Interesting stuff as usual, Hilary.
Polyhalite is new to me, Hilary, but the Romans obviously were aware of it and used it to good advantage. They really were masters of construction and on visits to Britain I have been fortunate to see many of the roads, walls and other structures that have survived since that time. When last we visited the UK Miriam had expressed a great desire to visit Hadrian’s Wall, and thanks to the kindness of fellow blogger, Richard Pegler, she got her wish. We have picture to memorialize the event. Stay well, be good, drink wine, have fun. Toujours ton ami - David
Very informative, as ever, and much to follow up. Thank you, Hilary x
I would say that I am not terribly interested in rocks, then I have to admit that there are gorgeous rocks out there! Jade, diamond, emerald, ruby, sapphire, opal, red beryl, garnet, topaz etc etc. :) I haven't even mentioned the most beautiful of all, gold and silver.
So interesting! I'd wondered how the Romans still had significant portions of buildings standing. This makes a lot of sense.
@ Nas - I know ... I wonder what else we're missing in this day and age - still it's fascinating to learn about new discoveries ...
@ Kay - I gather the USA are looking at Native American practices ... as other countries are ... cures from India and Far East happen here, as too from the African countries ... - all apparently much better for the environment as you suggest ...
@ Jacqui - thanks ... you uncover so many interesting facts about past history ... I just love the learning ...
@ Janice - that's great - I'm sure you'll enjoy looking around the links ...
@ Hels - I've always loved geography ... but once I got to Africa and saw the land - I appreciated the value the earth gave us ... also the science had expanded by then ... yes beautiful stones ...
@ Elizabeth - well I'm glad the post enlightened you as to how the Roman buildings are still standing ...
Thanks for your visits and being interested in my 'inner need to write about these materials: I appreciate you engaging with it - cheers Hilary
Hi David - sorry yours went to spam - why I've no idea ... they usually come through.
Yes - polyhalite was new to me ... til I read the article about it and the fact it was being used at Wimbledon. We have a lot of Roman builds here - not many standing high - but even those buried by wear and tear of the earth over the years survive once excavated.
I've certainly never been back to Hadrian's Wall - I know I've seen it at the west end (Cumbria area) ... and probably at the east too - but 'donkey years' ago!!
I must check out Richard Pegler ... I'm glad you and Miriam had that experience when you were here ... we have a Roman fort here - that is now mostly under the English Channel, pier and promenade (our seafront).
Me - you should know ... I'm well, never sure I'm good, drinking wine on occasion and making sure fun is nearby ... you two (and you too) be well and happy - love the banner photo of you both ... cheers Hilary
This was such an interesting read! The Tephra structure at Brown Buff is beautiful. Thank you for sharing, Hilary!
I leave wiser than when I arrived! Both informative and interesting Hilary.
In some regards our ancestors were much wiser than we are, weren't they?
This is fascinating, Hilary. I've read about the durability of Roman Cement before, but with only speculation as to what was the reason.
I continue to learn a great deal from your blog, Hilary. That, and your wonderful writing style, keeps bringing me back for more!
@ Damyanti - I'm delighted ... I'm always somewhat anxious about some of my odd posts - but these are subjects I'm interested in ... self-healing concrete is just brilliant - it's only taken 2,000 years + to find out 'the how' ...
@ Keith - great - glad you enjoyed it ... Gough's Cave looks fascinating - a place I'd love to visit. Also to see the Cheddar cheese stored there!
@ Sandra - yes ... our ancestors understood how the world worked better than we appear to ... so much more to learn from those days ...
@ Dan - oh that's good ... another enlightened soul! I have to say I was pleased to come across the explanation ...
@ Donna - thanks for this comment - really appreciate it ... I just enjoy the learning - while for someone who was a flunk at school in any form of academia - to be praised for my writing style gives me a happy smile: thank you!!
So pleased you've all been receptive to this eclectic post - lovely to see you - cheers Hilary
I find Tephra, which I know absolutely nothing about, fascinating and need to research it.
Another wonderfully informative post, Hilary. I always feel smarter having visited ;-) Tephra is a fascinating concept. Surely they haven't stopped using it? Take care!
Thanks for visiting my blog!....you have a very interesting blog!....I remember that in the old times, maybe 16th century, they used to make a kind of "concrete" with egg white....very durable...Abrazotes, Marcela
Really interesting topic! Tephra is particularly fascinating.
Fascinating! I had never heard of Tephra. I did quite enjoy geology in college and live in a region where geological actions are visible in our every day lives. And yes, we could certainly do with mining in our own regions so that care was taken, rather than exploiting other people/countries.
@ Sandra - I'm so pleased Tephra is hitting the right spot ... thanks ...
@ Diedre - great ... I just enjoy writing snippets about various subjects, which can lead commenters/readers to check out further. I'm not sure how 'tephra' is used now ... I'm sure they're including it - but I don't have authoritarian proof!
@ Marcela - good to see you here; yes you're right about the egg-white - it was used in the art world ... but at this minute I can't think beyond that bit of info! I'll look into it later on ...
@ Lynda - thanks ... just different to most blogposts ... another tephra lover ... good to know!
@ Shannon - yes I only did geography, but having worked in South Africa in the mining industry - I picked up various ideas - and loved the learning. I know - we could mine more locally and more cleanly in the future - it seems to be happening ... but we need to share and reap the rewards more fairly ...
Thanks to you all for visiting - and I'm delighted 'tephra' has hit an interesting spot ... cheers Hilary
Late to comment but brilliant post. So interesting. I do like rocks and such. Having been to Rome a few years ago and being in awe of ancient buildings, etc - it's amazing what certain materials do and how they last. Sounds like America needs some insight for their infrastructure as bridges crumble around us. You are tremendous in your research and how you intrigue us with these blog posts. Kudos
Hi Joanne - no worries re lateness - I'm glad you've been to Rome and seen the buildings there - they've certainly stood the test of time. The self-healing article came from MIT - and I'm sure engineers will have taken note of the new developments ... so let's hope changes are afoot and our buildings are more secure.
So pleased you endorse my blog posts - thanks ... at least eyes are being opened ... cheers Hilary
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