Wünschelburger sandstone

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The Wünschelburg sandstone (Polish: Piaskowiec Radków ), also called Albendorfer Sandstein and Radkow Sandstone , is a sandstone that is mined in Poland near Radków ( Wünschelburg ) and Wambierzyce ( Albendorf ). It is a historically significant sandstone that is widespread nationwide. It originated in the Upper Cretaceous ( Middle Turon ).

Occurrence

During the Cretaceous period 130 to 65 million years ago, sands of different grain sizes were transported into the Inner Sudetian Depression by water and wind , which sedimented layer by layer. Silica-containing solutions flowed into the pore space. Silica and overlying sediments solidified the sands into sandstone. The younger sediments weathered and exposed the sandstones in the Heuscheuergebirge near the surface.

Rock description

The Wünschelburger sandstone is a weakly pebbly bound medium to fine-grain sandstone. There are three types of sandstone: light yellowish-gray (sometimes slightly reddish with quartz grains up to 4 mm in size), yellowish white (finely banded) and gray-white (with 8 mm quartz grains). The different colors of this rock resulted from different iron oxide contents. The quartz content is 89.5%. Its feldspar and mica content is low. The stratification of this rock is not very pronounced and its grain structure is characterized by a small pore space.

use

The earliest evidence of dismantling in the 13th century relates to the construction of the Grüssau monastery . However, the extraction of sandstone extended to the use of natural fall blocks on the slopes of the Heuscheuergebirge for a long time. After the county of Glatz , to which Wünschelburg belonged, was conquered by Frederick II , along with Silesia , the sandstones came into the focus of Prussian builders, as the king ordered an inventory of building and raw materials in 1756. As early as 1763, deliveries of the Wünschelburg sandstone to Potsdam for the Communs of the New Palace have been proven. In the 19th century the demand for Silesian sandstones in Prussia increased. As a result, the quarries and quarry areas gained in importance. The royal court stonemasons Zeidler and Wimmel and the Schilling company contributed significantly to this development .

Today the Wünschelburg sandstone is used for restorations and new buildings, in new buildings in particular for facade cladding, floor coverings, cover plates and stone . Large blocks can be extracted from this natural stone deposit. This sandstone is frost-resistant. The fine-grained sandstone type obtained in the quarries is suitable for sculpting work , the others for stone work.

In today's Poland, the castles in Lublin and Brzeg , the Warsaw Royal Castle , the Wawel Castle in Krakow , Bulwary on the Vistula , the Bishop's Square and the Dorothee Church in Wroclaw and the pilgrimage basilica in Wambierzyce were built from this stone. In Germany, this sandstone was mainly used in Berlin , for example on the Reichstag building , the theater , the Reichsbank , the French Cathedral , Charlottenburg City Hall , the Imperial Patent Office and Schöneberg City Hall . In addition, the Hamburg City Hall and the historic Cologne Central Station were built from Wünschelburg sandstone.

Buildings made of Wünschelburg sandstone

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Angela Ehling: The Upper Cretaceous sandstone building blocks of Silesia . University of Hanover [1999], Diss., P. 117
  2. ↑ a b c Karlfried Fuchs: Natural stones from all over the world, discover, determine, use . 2nd volume, card sheet 211. Callwey, Munich 1997, ISBN 3-7667-1267-5
  3. ↑ a b millenium.pnet.pl : Wünschelburger Sandstein , accessed on December 9, 2012
  4. ↑ Angela Ehling, Heiner Siedel et al .: Building sand stones in Germany . Vol. 2. BGR , Hannover 2011, pp. 277–278