White Hexagonal Stone <Miyagi Prefecture> [Famous Stones of Japan]

HAKUCHI Hexagonal stone

Hexagonal stone on white background

It is an intrusive rock made of amphibole dacite, formed when lava solidified underground and formed pentagonal to hexagonal columnar joints that emerged from the ground (columnar joints).
When mined, it is a light blue color, but because it contains iron, it rusts and turns reddish over time.
Because of its unusual shape, it has been placed in gardens as an object of art and has been loved for many years.
Hexagonal stone can only be obtained from limited locations in Japan, and most of the locations cannot be mined due to environmental protection reasons.
In Japan, the same structure can be seen in Genbudo Cave in Hyogo Prefecture and Sasebo in Nagasaki Prefecture.

It is an intrusive rock of amphibole dacite, formed when lava hardened underground and jointed into pentagonal or hexagonal columns (columnar jointing) that emerged from the ground. When mined, it is in light blue color, but over time it rusts and turns reddish because it contains iron. Because of its strange shape, it has been loved for many years as an ornamental piece placed in gardens. Hexagonal stone can only be obtained from limited locations in Japan, and most of it cannot be mined due to environmental protection reasons.
In Japan, the same structure can be seen in Genbudo Cave in Hyogo Prefecture and Sasebo in Nagasaki Prefecture.