Public opinion reflects new stance
The monumental red granite statue of Amenhotep III on display in the British Museum in London dates back to 1370 BCE. It was excavated from the Temple of Khonspakhered.
One of the most recognized pieces of sculpture in the world, Mount Rushmore depicts four US presidents—George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln—carved into the granite face of a mountain in South Dakota.
St. Patrick's Church in Fall River, Massachusetts, was built in 1881 from local Fall River granite. The church is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The names of those service members who died or remain missing as a result of their deployment to Vietnam during the war are engraved on two black granite walls, the centerpiece of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C.
Ploumanac'h Lighthouse on the Brittany coast dates back to 1860. It's composed from the pink granite rock that is a natural feature of the Côte de Granit Rose coast.
Located southwest of Évora near the village of Nossa Senhora de Guadalupe, the Cromeleque dos Almendres is the largest existing group of structured menhirs in the Iberian Peninsula. Many of the weathered granite stones date back to 6000 BCE.
One of the best preserved of all ancient Roman buildings, the Pantheon in Rome was built using Egyptian granite. It has been in continuous use throughout its long history.
Clad in granite, St. Mary's Cathedral Basilica in Halifax, Nova Scotia, boasts the tallest granite spire in North America.
The 15th-century New Castle of Manzanares el Real is constructed entirely of granite stone. Located near La Pedriza, at the foothills of Sierra de Guadarrama, the palace-fortress is one of the best preserved historical landmarks in the region.
The Colorado State Capitol in Denver was built in the 1890s using locally quarried white granite. The building's distinctive gold dome consists of real gold leaf, first added in 1908, commemorating the Colorado Gold Rush.
Typical of the northwest of the Iberian Peninsula are espigueiros, granite stone lofts used to store grain. The granaries are raised off the floor by pillars to deter rodents. Pictured are those found at the village of Lindoso, in northern Portugal.
The Magheragallan Byre dwelling is found at the Ulster Folk and Transport Museum at Cultra, in County Down. Built in the 1870s from blocks of granite stone, the abode originally stood overlooking the Atlantic Ocean at Gweedore Bay before being dismantled and moved its present site in 1974.
A famous work created by Norwegian sculptor Gustav Vigeland is located at Frogner Park in Oslo. The Vigeland installation features 212 bronze and granite sculptures, the ornate monolith (pictured) being one of the most recognized.
Incongruous against its steel and glass neighbors is Tour Granite in the business district of La Défense, Paris. It was built to complement the Société Générale twin towers, and stands out for its granite wraparound facade.
Perched in the courtyard of the Temple of Edfu is a statue of the god Horus, depicted as a falcon in the crown of Upper and Lower Egypt. The raptor's image is carved smooth out of Egyptian granite.
The neo-Gothic towers of Brooklyn Bridge, one the most iconic structures in the world, are partly composed of granite, with limestone and concrete also used to add strength and aesthetic appeal.
Brihadeeswara Temple, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is especially celebrated for the vimana tower above the shrine. Built entirely out of granite, it's one of the tallest of its kind in South India.
Built as a commemoration of the Library of Alexandria, once one of the largest libraries worldwide, which was lost in antiquity, Bibliotheca Alexandrina features an astonishing wall of gray Aswan granite, carved with characters from 120 scripts.
The Avukana Buddha statue found standing near Kekirawa in north-central Sri Lanka is hewn entirely out of a large granite rock face. It's one of the best examples of a standing statue built in the country.
The Roman Aqueduct of Segovia was likely completed around 112 CE. Built of unmortared, brick-like granite blocks, this fine example of ancient engineering is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Looming over Palace Square in St. Petersburg is the impressive Alexander Column, a single piece of red granite, 25.45 m (83 ft 6 in) long and about 3.5 m (11 ft 5 in) in diameter. It's named for Emperor Alexander I.
Also known as the Giant's Griddle, the portal tomb of Tawnatruffaun stands in County Sligo. The impressively sized capstone is a defining feature of this prehistoric granite wonder.
Thought to have been built to serve as the tomb of the Fourth Dynasty Egyptian Pharaoh Menkaure, the pyramid of Menkaure—the smallest of the three main Pyramids of Giza—is unusual in that it was constructed of limestone and Aswan granite. The first 16 courses of the exterior were made of red granite. The upper portion was cased in the normal manner with Tura limestone.
Santa Ifigenia Cemetery in Santiago de Cuba is the final resting place of Fidel Castro. A wooden box containing Castro's ashes was placed into the side of a granite boulder— Cuba's only official monument to the late revolutionary and politician who led the country from 1959 to 2008.
Cornish granite was used to construct Tower Bridge, though Portland stone was also chosen to protect the underlying steelwork. The bridge, opened in 1894, is another great span.
Deserving of its UNESCO World Heritage status, the Group of Monuments at Mahabalipuram comprise an outstanding collection of ancient stone-cut monuments, Hindu temples, and ornate rock reliefs all crafted from pink granite.
One of the most beautiful railway stations in the world, Helsinki Central Station is mostly clad in Finnish granite. Distinguishing the facade are the Lyhdynkantajat—four monumental torchbearers bearing spherical lamps in their hands.
The Washington Monument is composed of 36,000 New England granite blocks faced with white Maryland marble.
Italian architect Nicolau Nasoni ordered granite be used to build the Torre dos Clérigos in Porto. The 75-m (246-ft) bell tower is one of the city's most characteristic symbols.
Sources: (Britannica) (USA Today)
See also: It's time to meet the most amazing clock towers in the world
Stone is one of the world's oldest building materials, and granite has been used in the construction of monuments and other structures for millennia, in fact as far back as the prehistoric era. The ancient Romans and Egyptians used granite widely, and ever since the properties of this tough and durable igneous rock have made granite a favorite material in the creation of some of the world's most recognized and celebrated buildings. So, what are these impressive structures, and where can they be admired?
Click through and build up a picture of some of the world's greatest granite designs.
Impressive structures crafted from granite
The greatest structures made from this tough and durable igneous rock
LIFESTYLE Architecture
Stone is one of the world's oldest building materials, and granite has been used in the construction of monuments and other structures for millennia, in fact as far back as the prehistoric era. The ancient Romans and Egyptians used granite widely, and ever since the properties of this tough and durable igneous rock have made granite a favorite material in the creation of some of the world's most recognized and celebrated buildings. So, what are these impressive structures, and where can they be admired?
Click through and build up a picture of some of the world's greatest granite designs.