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| When you think
of famous rocks what do you think of? Diamonds that sparkle in
the sun and opals that look like lightening were trapped inside
for centuries? Well you are going to see now that not all famous
rocks look like they came out of a fairy tale. |
| Monument Valley |
| Have you ever
heard of the Monument Valley? It stretches for 1,500 square miles
and is one mile high. This wonderful rock started forming 70
million years ago. The Monument Valley is one of the most photographed
landscapes on the face of the earth. |
| Devil's Postpile |
| One of natures
greatest building projects is the Devil's Postpile. It is located
in Sierra Nevada and is 60 million years old. This fantastic
wall is 798 acres of pure basalt and is 60 feet high. This wall
is the only monument of its kind in the world. |
| Pyramids at
Giza |
| One of the seven
wonders of the world is the pyramids at Giza. These amazing pyramids
are 481 feet high and were built between 2700-2500 BC. They are
made of limestone and were made by hand because they didn't have
any machines when they were built. The pyramids took 20 years
to build. |
| Stonehenge |
| The United
Kingdom has some awesome rocks that are 3,500 to 5,100 years
old. These rocks are called the Stonehenge. They are shaped in
a circle and it is so huge that the outer circle is 320 feet.
Scientists believed that this mysterious rock structure was a
prehistoric calendar. |
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| Carlsbad Caverns |
| One place in New Mexico has
the Carlsbad Caverns. This place was created by 60 million years
of running water which hollowed out this cave. The main type
of rock that formed it is limestone. This cave is 37 miles long
and is the world's largest subterranium chamber. |
| Grand Canyon |
| There is a well known place
in Arizona that is called the Grand Canyon. This canyon is about
one million years old and is 277 miles long and 4-18 miles wide.
Some rocks at the bottom of the canyon are about 2 billion years
old. |
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| Delicate Arch |
| The is in Utah. This neat arch
is about 200 million years old. Its size and height is about
70,000 acres and the opening is 33 feet wide and 45 feet high.
There are more natural arches in Utah then in any other place
in the whole world. |
| Ayers Rock |
| An attraction to many tourists
in Australia is the Ayers Rock. This rock is 1 1/2 miles long
and is 1,142 feet high. This fantastic rock has many small caves
and is also famous for the paintings on its walls made long ago
by the Aboriginal artists. |
| Gems |
| Even though we have showed
you that not all famous rocks are beautiful gems, there are a
few of them that are amazing and beautiful stones. These rocks
take millions of years to grow. There is more to these rocks
than just fame and beauty. |
| Hope Diamond |
| You have probably heard of
the Hope Diamond. It is BIG and I mean BIG. Its weight to be
exact is 45.52 carats and it has 16 white diamonds around it
and 32 white diamonds for the chain. The Hope Diamond is wonderful
in many ways but it has a slight draw back. The Hope Diamond
is said to be cursed. The curse is said to make anybody who owns
it die a violent death. |
| Spessartine Garnet |
| Have you ever heard of the
Spessartine Garnet? It's color is a magnificent reddish brown
color. It is a 7.5 on the hardness scale. |
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| Here is a list of some
of the famous rocks that you can look up: |
| The Spessartine Garnet |
| Canary Diamond |
| Hooker Emerald Brooch |
| Bismark Sapphire |
| Marie Antoinette's
earrings |
| Napoleon 1 Diamond
Necklace |
| Portuguese Diamond |
| Star Of Bombay |
| Anna Case Mckay Necklace |
| The Black Opal |
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