Explore the building blocks of the earth—from minerals and earths to salts and crystals—and learn how nature transforms them over time.
This edition offers a comprehensive look at minerals, their varieties, and how they form. It covers earths derived from dust and water, explains how crystals grow, and describes the role of salts in rocks and landscapes. You’ll also find discussions on petrifaction, the origins of stones, and the way different substances interact under heat and fire. The material is organized to help readers grasp the connections between geology, chemistry, and natural history.
- Clear definitions of minerals, earths, salts, and their properties.
- Explanations of crystalline growth, fractures, and the effects of heat.
- Descriptions of how stones and rocks form and transform over time.
- Context on how these topics fit into a broad natural history framework.
Ideal for readers of historical natural science who want a detailed, age-appropriate reference to the minerals, salts, and related natural phenomena described in this edition.