Iddefjord granite

The first known quarrying of the granite was in the 12th century, for construction of stone churches in the area. Post-medieval wars made needs for fortifications and castles, for which the granite was employed. However, it was during the industrial revolution that productionand exports grew to co considerable size. The Iddefjord Granite was applied for a wide range of natural stone products: building- and ornamental stone, paving stone, drywall-stone, constructional stone (quays and bridges) and sculpture stone. Collectively, the Iddefjord granite was applied in large volumes in buildings and other constructions in Norway and abroad, including fashionable hotels in United Kingdom, castles in Norway, docks of Devonport, Gibraltar, Cape Town, Singapore, Vera Cruz, Bermuda and Mumbai, and paving stones in Havana and Buenos Aires. The most prominent cultural heritage site made of the Iddefjord Granite is the Vigeland Sculpture Park in Oslo, Norway. The Norwegian sculpturer Gustav Vigeland made the Iddefjord granite his favorite choice, and all the stone sculptures in the Vigeland sculpture park in Oslo were made from this granite. The most famous piece known as the Monolith depicts 121 human figures and was carved from a 17 m tall and 270 tons heavy single block.