Nubian Sandstone - Appearance

Appearance

Nubian Sandstone is most commonly brown or reddish, but in places it shows a much wider variety of color. The ancient temples and tombs in Petra were carved from this rock. In certain places it is extremely friable, and in others compact and hard. Sand in the Arabian deserts was primarily derived from it, carried by prevailing western winds. Where it is covered by a sheet of eruptive rock (charrah), it is protected from erosion. Nubian sandstone frequently includes strata of clay and shale and thin seams of coal or lignite. This indicates that it was deposited in seas that were relatively shallow at the time.

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