Thread by @MiningNS

Been watching season 3 of #TheCrown?
Despite 2000 years of stone construction, #London has no indigenous building stone. Its geology is sand, gravel and clay. Stone has been imported since #Roman times along the #RiverThames to build that amazing city.
#nspoli #NovaScotia #mining

To build #Londinium (starting in 47 AD), Romans imported stone from many places in #England and from as far away as #Egypt, #Greece and #Italy. Part of the Roman defensive wall is still visible and many buildings have been uncovered (amphitheatre, forum, bath houses, etc)
#nspoli

Medieval #London had narrow streets and timber-framed, thatch houses so the #GreatFireofLondon destroyed much of it in 1666. Legislation afterward required stone or brick construction to prevent future fires. #Halifax NS passed a similar bylaw in 1857 after several fires.
#nspoli

#London's #geology became helpful in #construction at this point. Its #clay, a key ingredient in #bricks, was used to make bricks for rebuilding. (London's #clay also made for relatively easy tunneling when its #subway was built in the 1800s but that's another story.)
#nspoli #NS

White #limestone from the #IsleofPortland became the main #stone used in important #London buildings after the #GreatFireofLondon. For example, #PortlandStone was used in 51 #churches including iconic #StPaulsCathedral which was rebuilt from 1675-1710.
#nspoli #NovaScotia #mining

#Portland remained the dominant stone until the 1800s when rail made it easier to ship stone from all over the #UK to #London. The #Thames was no longer the only practical way to transport cut stone for the city's building needs.
#nspoli #NovaScotia #NS #mining #minerals #geology

After an 1834 fire destroyed much of the #parliamentbuildings, a survey of 100+ #UK #quarries was done to pick stone for the rebuild. This further diversified the stone used in #London - even tho the stone chosen was mostly replaced cuz it decayed in London's smokey air.
#nspoli

In 1913 the east side of #BuckinghamPalace was redone with #PortlandStone. While #Portland isn't the dominant #stone in #London it was for 150 years post-Great Fire, it's still important and was used in the #UnitedNations building in #NY and many others around the world.
#nspoli

Many scenes in #TheCrown are set in #BuckinghamPalace but nothing's shot there. Various buildings (#LancasterHouse, the #OldRoyalNavalCollege, #UniversityofGreenwich, etc) are used for different rooms and the footage is pieced together to make it look like one palace.
#nspoli #NS