{{short description|Variety of sandstone from Yorkshire, England}} [[File:Bar Walls, York (26670635721).jpg|thumb|Yorkstone is used for the footpaths of York city walls]] {{Use dmy dates|date=August 2020}} {{Use British English|date=April 2014}} thumb|Yorkstone used to build a house and pave its yard. thumb|Yorkstone slabs thumb|Newly-laid '''Yorkstone''' or '''York stone''' is a variety of sandstone, specifically from quarries in Yorkshire that have been worked since the middle ages.<ref name="Gould">{{cite news | url=https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/gardening-blog/2012/feb/29/stone-patios-choosing | title=Designing small gardens: choosing stones | work=The Guardian | date=29 February 2012 | access-date=9 April 2014 | author=Gould, Kate}}</ref> Yorkstone is a tight grained, Carboniferous sedimentary rock. The stone consists of quartz, mica, feldspar, clay and iron oxides.
The ratio of quartz to mica varies considerably. The stone can be split along mica-rich layers: it has a slaty cleavage and may therefore be called sandstone slate.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Blumenbach |first1=Johann Friedrich |last2=Gore |first2=Richard Thomas |title=A manual of the elements of natural history [electronic resource] |url=https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:A_manual_of_the_elements_of_natural_history_(electronic_resource)_(IA_b21305638).pdf |page=360 |quote=The true Sandstone Slate has commonly intermixed with it Mica, by which it is also generally traversed on its slaty fracture, as in the English Yorkstone, Bremingstone, &c. The proportion of Quartz to Mica, however, varies considerably as well with regard to the quantity as to the distribution.}}</ref> Formerly riven (split with a chisel along the bedding planes between the sedimentary layers), it is now also often sawn. It is used for flagstones and for building walls.<ref name=CB>Articles apparently produced by Dermot Kennedy at http://www.cbstonesales.co.uk/, and also published in 2011 on Ezinearticles.com: {{cite web |title=What is Yorkstone? |url=http://www.cbstonesales.co.uk/what_is_yorkstone.html |language=en}}, {{cite web |title=Making Sawn Yorkstone Paving |url=http://www.cbstonesales.co.uk/making_sawn_paving.htmll |language=en}}, {{cite web |title=Making Riven Yorkstone Paving |url=http://www.cbstonesales.co.uk/making_riven_paving.html |language=en}} {{cite web |title=About Yorkstone Walling |url=http://www.cbstonesales.co.uk/about_yorkstone_walling.html |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Building Stones 3 – Sedimentary rocks: How do the sedimentary rocks used for building stones differ? |url=https://www.earthlearningidea.com/PDF/140_Building_stones_sed.pdf |website=Earthlearningidea}}</ref>
Known for its hard-wearing and durable qualities, Yorkstone has been used in a wide array of building, construction and landscaping applications around the world for many years. In Yorkshire, split stones called ''thackstone'' (Scots ''thack'', English ''thatch'') were employed as roofing. The traditional London paving stone has been cut and pressed from quarries in Holmfirth, West Yorkshire. Yorkshire Stone is most commonly used for paving and garden walls, but it is also a popular choice for new builds as well as home extensions and conversions due to its durability under harsh weather conditions.<ref name="auto">{{cite web|url=https://www.abacusstonesales.co.uk/about-us|title=About Abacus Stone Sales | Leading Supplier of New and Reclaimed Yorkshire Stone|website=Abacus Stone Sales|access-date=17 September 2020}}</ref>
The colour of Yorkstone depends on the minerals within its makeup and differs throughout the quarries from which it is mined. It also depends on the age of the stone and turns darker with weathering. Reused Yorkstone paving, salvaged from demolished sites, is valued for its naturally weathered surfaces. Reclaimed Yorkshire stone is popular for its colouring and for environmentally friendly builds.
Yorkstone often shows features such as laminations with cross bedding, and rusty Liesegang bands.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Siddall |first1=Ruth |last2=Kirk |first2=Wendy |url=https://www.ucl.ac.uk/~ucfbrxs/Homepage/walks/UCL%26UoL.pdf |publisher=University of London |title=The Urban Geology of UCL and the University of London’s Bloomsbury Campus |series=Urban Geology in London |volume=1 |access-date=12 September 2020 |archive-date=15 September 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200915002533/https://www.ucl.ac.uk/~ucfbrxs/Homepage/walks/UCL%26UoL.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>
==See also== * Bargate stone * Brownstone * List of stone * Old Red Sandstone
==References== {{commons category|Yorkstone}} {{reflist}}
Category:Building stone Category:Sandstone in the United Kingdom Category:Mining in Yorkshire