The Clach Eiteag, ( stone of white pebble) is the name given to a celebrated natural boulder of irregular shape of a pure white quartzite but it is impossible to give a precise geological provenance, and it may well have been carried by glacial movement. This type of rock is exceptional in Easter Ross and outstanding in its white colour.
Local tradition firmly holds that an annual fair was held wherever the Clach Eiteag happened to be at the time. As a local fair was a considerable asset to any village, it is said that the stone was secretly moved from parish to parish. Stories tell that it originated in Assynt, famous for its quartz, was moved to Invershin, to Bonar Bridge and then to Kincardine parish. We know that an annual fair was already established in this parish by the middle of the 18th century and must assume the Clach Eiteag was in the parish by that date. As the fair was called the Feill Eiteachan and took its name from the burn that runs near the old church of Kincardine, it is reasonable to believe the fair was held near this church.
After the building of Telford's bridge at Bonar, in 1812, the present village of Ardgay became the junction of roads leading east, north and west and also the centre of population; an old farmhouse was enlarged into an hotel in 1817 and it seems likely that the Clach Eiteag was then built into its wall, to prevent any possible theft and thus establish the Feill Eiteachan in Ardgay. The stone remained in the north wall of the ruin of Balnagown Arms Hotel in Ardgay in the parish of Kincardine until 1958, when it was set upon a plinth and proudly displayed in the village.
Chemically, quartz is silica, or silicon dioxide, SiO2. It is found in most types of rocks: igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary.
Quartz is rather hard, 7 on the Moh’s hardness scale, and has a glassy (vitreous) luster. When a crystal is broken, the fracture surface is curved, like a shell. This is referred to as conchoidal fracture; glass fractures in the same way.
When crystallized in an open cavity in rocks, quartz forms easily-identifiable 6-sided (hexagonal) prismatic crystals. When formed without open spaces, deep within the earth, quartz crystallizes in small, roundish masses.
Quartz is physically and chemically resistant to weathering. When quartz-bearing rocks become weathered and eroded, the grains of resistant quartz are concentrated in the soil, in rivers, and on beaches. The white sands typically found in river beds and on beaches are usually composed mainly of quartz, with some white or pink feldspar as well.
When water-clear, quartz is known as rock crystal or mountain crystal. However, quartz can contain a number of different impurities, which create different color varieties. Purple quartz is known as amethyst; white is milky quartz; black is smoky quartz; pink is rose quartz, and yellow or orange is citrine.
White Quartz, often referred to as “Frozen Light,” or “Ice of Eternity,” is perhaps one of the most powerful stones used by healers and other Magical practitioners. It comes in a range of shapes, and ranges from crystal clear to translucent. The clearest stones have a masculine, projective energy, while the more milky and translucent stones have a feminine, or receptive energy. (Not wanting to sound sexist, but these terms have been used for thousands of years, and it may be too late to change now.) The frosty white version of this stone, almost milky in its whiteness, is sometimes called “Snow Quartz.” The cloudiness of milky quartz comes from microscopic inclusions of fluids that have been encased in the crystal from the time the crystal first grew.
Quartz is one of the most useful natural materials. Its usefulness can be linked to its physical and chemical properties. It has a hardness of 7 on the Moh’s hardness scale which makes it very durable. It is chemically inert in contact with most substances. It has electrical properties and heat resistance that make it valuable in electronic products. Many solid-state devices, including transistors and microchips owe much to the physical properties of silicon, the primary ingredient in Quartz. It is no coincidence that the center of computer development in the United States has been nicknamed “Silicon Valley.” Its luster, color and diaphaneity make it useful as a gemstone . Other uses include glass making, abrasive, foundry sand, hydraulic fracturing proppant. And Quartz sand is used as a filler in the manufacture of rubber, paint and putty. Screened and washed, carefully sized quartz grains are used as filter media and roofing granules. Quartz sands are used for traction in the railroad and mining industries. These sands are also used in recreation on golf courses, volleyball courts.
To claim this earthcache, please send the answers to the questions below to the cache setter by email - do not post in your online log.Your log may be deleted if this criteria is not met. Educational guidelines for Earthcaches are set by Geocaching.com and GeoSociety.org (Earthcache) and have to be adhered to.
While not compulsary, it is always nice to see photos of your visit
Q1 Describe the boulder, how high and wide is it ? What type of white colour would you best describe this as, frozen light, snow or milky ?
Q2 Looking closely, can you see any of the crystals ? Would you say they are angular in shape or not ?
Q3 Rub your fingers along the boulder, how does it feel ? Is it smooth like glass or can you feel the "joints" of the crystals ? Does it leave any residue on your fingers ?
Q4 The boulder may not of arrived exactly here by glacier, but do you think it has originally come with a glacier from elsewhere ? Give your reasons for this.
Q5 How common is quartz ? Can you name any other places around the world where you find it ? ( google may help)