The Secret Life of Stones

Price: ₹250.00 - ₹478.78
(as of Oct 12, 2025 20:33:12 UTC – Details)

‘A delightful storybook . . . a portrait of our whole world created from the contents of the ground’ Literary Review
‘A real cabinet of curiosities’ Sunday Times
From the hematite used in cave paintings to the moldavite that became a TikTok sensation; from the stolen sandstone of Scone to the unexpected acoustics of Stonehenge; from crystal balls to compasses, rocks and minerals have always been central to our story.
3,000 years ago Babylonians constructed lapidaries – books that tried to pin down the magical secrets of rocks. In Lapidarium, renowned art critic Hettie Judah explores the unexpected stories behind sixty stones that have shaped and inspired human history, from Dorset fossil-hunters to Chinese philosophers, Catherine the Great to Michelangelo.
Discover why alchemists sought cinnabar and sulphur. Unearth the mystery of the tuff statues of Rapa Nui, the lost amber room of Frederick of Prussia and the scandal of Flint Jack. Find out how a Greek monster created coral, moon rock explains the history of Earth’s only satellite and obsidian inspired the world’s favourite computer game.
Stone by stone, story by fascinating story, Lapidarium builds into a dazzling, epoch-spanning adventure through human culture, and beyond.

Publisher ‏ : ‎ John Murray (24 October 2024)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 336 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1529394953
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1529394955
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 41 g
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 2.54 x 2.54 x 2.54 cm
Net Quantity ‏ : ‎ 750.00 Grams
Best Sellers Rank: #561,633 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #608 in Geography Textbooks #800 in Earth Sciences Textbooks #974 in Geography Books
Customer Reviews: 4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 114 ratings var dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction; P.when(‘A’, ‘ready’).execute(function(A) { if (dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction !== true) { dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction = true; A.declarative( ‘acrLink-click-metrics’, ‘click’, { “allowLinkDefault”: true }, function (event) { if (window.ue) { ue.count(“acrLinkClickCount”, (ue.count(“acrLinkClickCount”) || 0) + 1); } } ); } }); P.when(‘A’, ‘cf’).execute(function(A) { A.declarative(‘acrStarsLink-click-metrics’, ‘click’, { “allowLinkDefault” : true }, function(event){ if(window.ue) { ue.count(“acrStarsLinkWithPopoverClickCount”, (ue.count(“acrStarsLinkWithPopoverClickCount”) || 0) + 1); } }); });