A 'monolith' is a geological feature such as a
mountain, consisting of a single massive
stone or rock, or a single piece of rock placed as, or within, a monument.
Erosion usually exposes the geological formations, which are most often made of very hard and solid
metamorphic rock.
The word derives from the
Latin word ''monolithus'' from the
Greek word μονόλιϑος (''monolithos''), derived from μόνος ("one" or "single") and λίϑος ("stone").
Geological monoliths
The three largest on Earth are:
#
Mount Augustus, in
Western Australia - 860m
#
La Peña de Bernal, in
Mexico
#
Stone Mountain, in Stone Mountain Park,
Stone Mountain, a suburb of
Atlanta,
Georgia,
USA
Others include:
North America
★
Beacon Rock,
Columbia River Gorge,
Washington,
United States
★
Bottleneck Peak and Moon, Sids Mountain,
Utah,
United States
★
Devils Tower National Monument,
Wyoming,
United States
★
El Capitan,
Yosemite National Park,
California,
United States
★
Enchanted Rock,
Llano County,
Texas,
United States
★
Haystack Rock,
Clatsop County,
Oregon,
United States
★
Looking Glass Rock,
Transylvania County,
North Carolina,
United States
★
Peña de Bernal,
Querétaro,
Mexico
★
Petroforms,
Manitoba,
Canada,
Wisconsin,
USA
★
Stawamus Chief,
Squamish,
British Columbia,
Canada
★
Stone Mountain,
Stone Mountain, Georgia,
United States
Europe
★
Frau Holle Stone, near
Fulda,
Germany
★ Humber Stone,
Humberstone, near Leicester, England.
★
King Arthur's Stone (Cornwall)
★
Logan Stone (
Trereen, Cornwall)
★
Odin Stone (
Stenhouse,
Orkney; destroyed in
1814)
★
Rock of Gibraltar
Africa
★
Ben Amera,
Mauritania
★
Brandberg Mountain,
Namibia
★
Aso Rock,
Nigeria - 400m
★
Zuma Rock,
Nigeria
Asia
★
Savandurga
★
Gilbert Hill
Australia
★
Bald Rock, near
Tenterfield,
New South Wales
★
Mount Coolum,
Queensland
★
Mount Wudinna, near
Wudinna,
South Australia
★
Kokerbin Rock,
Western Australia
★
Uluru, despite some beliefs, is a monolith. Also known as Ayers Rock, Uluru is one of the most famous landmarks in Australia.
South America
★
Towers of Paine,
Chile
Antarctica
★
Scullin monolith
★
leargh Rock
Many of these have legends attached.
Monumental monoliths
A structure which has been excavated as a unit from a surrounding matrix or outcropping of rock.
[1]
★ Top stone on the
Mausoleum of Theodoric,
Ravenna
★
Aztec calendar "Stone of the Sun"
★
Stonehenge contains several
★
Ellora Caves -
UNESCO World Heritage Site
★
Rune stones
★
Stone circle
★
Standing stones
★
Stelae
★
Obelisks - see this article for a list
★
Ogham Stone,
Dingle Peninsula,
Ireland
★
Adam and Eve Stones,
Avebury,
Wiltshire,
England
★
Manzanar National Historic Landmark, USA
★
Vijayanagara Empire#Architecture medieval South Indian carved examples
See also
★
Megalith
★
Monolithic architecture
★
Monadnock (or inselberg)
Notes
1. Glossary
External links
★
★ Regarding Uluru/Ayers Rock and earlier representations of it as the largest monolith -
★ http://www.ga.gov.au/education/facts/landforms/uluru.htm
★ http://www.abc.net.au/science/k2/moments/s1469595.htm
★ http://www.wayoutback.com.au/uluru-geology.php
العربية
ä¸å›½
Français
Deutsch
Ελληνική
हिनà¥à¤¦à¥€
Italiano
日本語
Português
РуÑÑкий
Español
