What is 'geoheritage'?
...and why does it matter?
We, more than often, take things for granted.
The fact that we are where we are is remarkable: on a planet with a breathable and somewhat predictable atmosphere. We've come to exist in a world that just came out of an ice age. Moreover, we as animals have been given physiological benefits that have allowed our species to live on every continent.
Here in Cork, we exist as a consequence of decisions our ancestors took many years ago. Some of us may have moved to the city recently, but we all come from places where our ancestors took similar decisions: stay or leave.
Our environment and what it offers are crucial when making such dramatic choices. And the environment is a consequence of powerful processes that have taken place over millions of years.
Understanding geoheritage through Cork
Local Cork artist Ciara Rodgers visualises a limestone quarry. Quarries are a prominent part of Cork city's geoheritage.
Using charcoal, Ciara's work represents an intersection between resource extraction, nature and historical representation.
Hundreds of millions of years have shaped the landscape around us. The River Lee carved its way mostly through the less erosion-resistant limestone, making much of its course align in an almost east-west orientation.
And therefore, The River Lee is also geology.
The Lee, the hills, the valleys and the rocks themselves have all been factors for our predecessors as they decided to settle in the area.
Over thousands of years, humans have built infrastructure on top of the landscape. As such, our history and society blends with geology seamlessly. For us today, that means we need to understand nature better: climate, weather, landslides, life, river morphology, tides and of course the rocks below to understand ourselves better.
In Cork, this is mostly evident in the wavy appearance of the Devonian Old Red Sandstone and the Carboniferous limestone. After these rocks were laid, continental collisions deformed the rocks giving them an undulating and fractured appearance at many different scales. As such, walking south from Patrick's Hill to Grange, you'll encounter Old Red Sandstone, limestone and then Old Red Sandstone again.
The Old Red Sandstone has stood the tests of time and the elements more so than the limestone and, as such the former makes up the hills while the latter marks the valleys of Cork - both across county and city.
Through appreciating our geoheritage, we can connect with the land combined with other aspects of our natural environment: birds, plants, mammals, fish, our atmosphere, insects, arachnids etc. These elements contribute to our well-being and therefore, their existence is tied to our existence. And this is also the case with geoheritage.
In terms of architecture, many of Cork's buildings and walls are comprised of Devonian and Carboniferous rocks. And once in a while, you may spot the original bedrock protruding through the soil or concrete.
In terms of architecture, many of Cork's buildings and walls are comprised of Devonian and Carboniferous rocks. And once in a while, you may spot the original bedrock protruding through the soil or concrete.
Old maps of the city show us that quarries were abundant throughout the city centuries ago. They show us locations of lime kilns; large furnaces that were burning at remarkably high temperatures near productive limestone quarries. These kilns produced lime which is still today used for neutralising soil acidity.
Though these industries have moved out of the city, we can still visit the remains of these quarries and kilns.
Geoheritage and the story of life
And then there is the story of life itself. While life had already existed billions of years before the first sediment grain of Cork was laid, some milestones in the history of life on Earth are recorded in the rocks of Ireland.
In Cork, we have evidence of some of the oldest forests on our planet. Beautiful fossils of one of the earliest trees Archaeopteris have been found near Lower Glanmire Road.
In Kerry, Valentia Island's tetrapod footprints show some of the earliest evidence of vertebrate life moving around on land. Perhaps these were our distant ancestors?
And finally, the end of the Devonian was marked by several dramatic events that killed off many species and groups of animals and plants. In fact, the mass extinction at the end of the Devonian is recorded as one of the great five known mass extinctions in the long history of life on Earth.
Geologists use this disappearance of certain species to specify the boundary between the Devonian and Carboniferous periods. But we're still not sure what caused so many species to disappear. A prominent theory is that the expansion of plants on land, another achievement of the Devonian period, had overwhelming effects on ecosystems back then.
So, again, what is geoheritage?
It's more or less everything we see around us. It's the hundreds of millions of years of plants evolving from tiny sprouts to the plethora of vegetation we see across the planet today. It's you sitting here reading this using devices that depend on materials extracted from rocks and minerals. Geoheritage is also you getting exhausted cycling, walking or running up a hill in Cork city!
We invite you to take a moment to appreciate that geoheritage is accessible for you all the time. It allows us all to connect with the land and nature while making us aware of how dependent we are on the rocks and overall landscape for our basic survival.
Visit Cork's Geological Landmarks
Map illustrated by Cork artist Margaret Mohally
1. Glen River Park. A glacial valley.
2. Beaumont Quarry. The great limestone quarry. Enjoy the view!
3. Shandon Bells & Tower. Red: Sandstone. White: Limestone.
4. The Lough. The closest thing to Jurassic Park we have.
5. St Fin Barre's Cathedral. Lovely marbles inside.
6. University College Cork. Limestone buildings with fossils.
7. School of Biological, Earth & Environmental Sciences, UCC. An Irish geological garden.
8. Tramore Valley Park. Nice view over the city, (and its geology!).
9. Brickfield/Flaherty's Quarry. A huge Old Red Sandstone quarry.
You can't miss it!
10. Diamond Quarry. Sorry not diamonds, just amethysts!
11. Japanese Gardens and a limestone wall. Fossils of coral reefs.
12. Old Red Sandstone folds Upper John St. Structural geology.
13. Dundanion Castle.
14. St. Patrick's Church. With limestone.
15. Hibernian Rd. Limestone quarry.
16. Strawberry Hill. Sandstone hills are steep!
17. River Kiln/Bride. A buried river
18. Cork City Council. Limestone building.
19. Cork Public Museum.
20. Berwick Fountain. You can play with the water here.
21. Courthouse.
22. Sandstone Quarry. Near St Lukes.
2. Beaumont Quarry. The great limestone quarry. Enjoy the view!
3. Shandon Bells & Tower. Red: Sandstone. White: Limestone.
4. The Lough. The closest thing to Jurassic Park we have.
5. St Fin Barre's Cathedral. Lovely marbles inside.
6. University College Cork. Limestone buildings with fossils.
7. School of Biological, Earth & Environmental Sciences, UCC. An Irish geological garden.
8. Tramore Valley Park. Nice view over the city, (and its geology!).
9. Brickfield/Flaherty's Quarry. A huge Old Red Sandstone quarry.
You can't miss it!
10. Diamond Quarry. Sorry not diamonds, just amethysts!
11. Japanese Gardens and a limestone wall. Fossils of coral reefs.
12. Old Red Sandstone folds Upper John St. Structural geology.
13. Dundanion Castle.
14. St. Patrick's Church. With limestone.
15. Hibernian Rd. Limestone quarry.
16. Strawberry Hill. Sandstone hills are steep!
17. River Kiln/Bride. A buried river
18. Cork City Council. Limestone building.
19. Cork Public Museum.
20. Berwick Fountain. You can play with the water here.
21. Courthouse.
22. Sandstone Quarry. Near St Lukes.
23. Cork-Dublin Train. Tunnel Goes under the hill.
24. Old Red Sandstone walls with folds. The bowels of the hill.
25. Cathedral of St Mary and St Anne.
26. Griffith College.
27. Collins Barracks.
28. Trinity Church. With limestone.
29. Elizabeth Fort. So much limestone!
30. Beautiful limestone quarry wall.
31. Douglas St. Limestone quarry.
32. Limestone quarry at Capwell.
33. Cork City Gaol.
34. Limestone Quarry.
35. Nano Nagles Place.
36. Honan Chapel. Limestone building.
37. Lewis Glucksman Gallery.
38. UCC Main Gates.
39. Anglesea St Garda Station (brachiopods!).
40. Sandstone Outcrop.
41. Ss. Peter & Paul's Church.
42. Former Provincial Bank.
43. Cork Savings Bank.