ABSTRACT
Natural stone has been used in construction for thousands of years. Magnificent constructions still remain from Roman times and many other ancient cultures, and natural stone is one of the main components of structures of many World Heritage Sites and cities. Many different cultures used stone to build constructions that today are recognised as World Heritage Sites. All those stones are recognised today for their important heritage value or candidates for being designated, as Global Heritage Stone Resources (GHSRs). The procedure for recognition of a stone as a GHSR is supervised by Heritage Stones Subcommission, a working group within International Union of Geological Sciences. The existence of several natural stones that share geographical location, historical buildings and/or geological history give place to another concept: Global Heritage Stone Province (GHSP). Natural stone is a durable construction material, but it is affected by same processes of weathering by water, wind, frost, heating and biological activity as bedrock exposures of rocks.
