The Giant's Causeway is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Northern Ireland. It was classified as UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1986, and a national nature reserve declared by the Department of the Environment for Northern Ireland in 1987.
Heidi visited this site last June and sent me a card with a matching stamp. The 2nd card was sent 6 years ago by Morag.
© Art Ward
The Giant’s Causeway and Causeway Coast is a spectacular area of global geological importance on the sea coast at the edge of the Antrim plateau in Northern Ireland. The most characteristic and unique feature of the site is the exposure of some 40,000 large, regularly shaped polygonal columns of basalt in perfect horizontal sections, forming a pavement. This dramatic sight has inspired legends of giants striding over the sea to Scotland. Celebrated in the arts and in science, it has been a visitor attraction for at least 300 years and has come to be regarded as a symbol for Northern Ireland.
The property’s accessible array of curious geological exposures and polygonal columnar formations formed around 60 million years ago make it a ‘classic locality’ for the study of basaltic volcanism. The features of the Giant’s Causeway and Causeway Coast site and in particular the strata exposed in the cliff faces, have been key to shaping the understanding of the sequences of activity in the Earth’s geological history. - in: http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/369
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