In our ongoing series about
stone monoliths around the world, we turn our attention
to Europe and the colossal formations that make up the
French Alps. In particular,
Mont Aiguille (Needle Mountain) is much like the
structures from the Amazonian region of South America that
were discussed in a
previous Picture of the Day.
Flat-topped
mesas are common throughout the southwestern United States,
as well as in the Amazon. Arizona’s
Monument Valley includes elevations that almost exactly
mirror those found in the
Alps, although they are composed of different rock
matrices. Those in Arizona are
sandstone tors with sharply delineated sidewalls and
those in the
French Alps, such as
Mont Aiguille, are composed of limestone.
According to
geologists, the mountainous uplift known as
Massif du Vercors dates from the
Variscan era when Laurasia and Gondwana collided,
forming the supercontinent of Pangaea. As conventional
theories indicate, the consolidation of the two landmasses
caused a mountain-building event that folded the crust and
initiated a metamorphic phase in the development of the
Alps. Volcanic activity during this metamorphic period
caused a restructuring of the pre-Variscan iron-rich rocks
into the hard, magnesium-rich composition that now exists.
Mountains such
as
Mont Blanc and the
Massif du Bauges are said to be the remains of plutonic
intrusions that have subsequently eroded into the shapes we
see today. However, the inconsistencies with traditional
mountain-building scenarios and the conventional dictates of
volcanic deformation leave much to be explained. The Vercors
Plateau also contains many caverns that are sculpted in
similar fashion to those in other mountain ranges.
Choranche Caves is only one example of several in the
Massif Central region. We have
brought to light the possibility that they might have
their origin in electrical activity. Those in the Alps could
have been formed in the same way.
Many of the
so-called plutons have “eroded” into shapes that defy
orthodox explanation. One example is probably the most
famous monolithic structure in the Swiss Alps:
The Matterhorn. The Matterhorn is a pyramid-shaped,
limestone monolith resting on top of strata that is not
consistent with its morphology. In fact, when compared with
the overall stratigraphy surrounding it,
The Matterhorn is inverted and twisted. It appears to
have been wrenched out of the ground, wrung by incredible
forces and then thrown back to Earth approximately 500 miles
east of where it was originally located. What could create a
titanic pyramid of solid rock, toss it like a pebble and
then stand it on its head?
Fronting The
Matterhorn and near
Mont Blanc is a circular
dome-shaped bulge that is reminiscent of the large
mounds that we have highlighted in other Picture of the Day
articles.
Shapes that
appear identical to The Matterhorn can be found in other
countries, but on a much smaller scale. In the Cumbria Lake
District of Great Britain is a pyramid of stone that
resembles its larger cousin so closely that it is known as
Matterhorn Rock. A trek through Coniston Fells in the
north of England will reveal other such strange rock-shapes.
The Alps, in
general, follow a
sweeping curve through the European Continent. Perhaps
the electric arcs that may have cut the Arabian Sea and
transformed the African Continent crushed and twisted Europe
too. In time, more examples of possible plasma discharge
scarring should come to light.
Written by
Stephen Smith from an idea
submitted by Klaas Geertsma
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