Granite

Granite was a type of hard igneous rock found in many places in Faerûn and beyond.

Description
Granite was commonly grey in color, but grey-green, black, pink and white varieties also existed. Its hardness made tunneling into granite a difficult enterprise.

History
Sages versed in the topic assumed that granite was formed at high pressure within the earth.

Quarries
Granite was quarried in the following places in the Realms:
 * Atalyan hills
 * Furrowed Mountains
 * Mulhorand, where granite was abundant.
 * Red Cliffs in the High Moor
 * The Ridge
 * Teshendale
 * Yhaunn in Sembia

It was also quarried on the planes:
 * Pluton, Gray Waste
 * Mountains around Tantlin on Stygia, Baator

Other Granite Deposits in the Realms

 * Aglarond's coastal cliffs
 * The Battle of Bones
 * Cliffs of Tanghai above the Hungtse River
 * Djerad Thymar, Tymanther
 * Dry ranges in the Endless Wastes
 * Dusthawk Hill outside Baldur's Gate
 * Fochu Peninsula
 * Gorge of the Silver Wyrm, Hartsvale
 * Haptooth Hill in Battledale
 * Castle Hartwick's island in the Clear Whirl River
 * Haunted Lands
 * High Moor
 * Isle of Gargantuas
 * Kera Valley
 * Kobar Valley mountains
 * Lance Rock
 * Machran Spire in the Gulthmere Forest
 * Moonsea region
 * The Moonshae Isles' cliffs
 * Mount Kus
 * Myth Drannor
 * Nathlekh
 * Novularond mountains
 * Old Skull Tor
 * Pelankai Mountains of Far Payit
 * Pit of the Ghuls and surrounding hills
 * Queen's Bluff outside of Ravens Bluff
 * Ra-Khati
 * The Running Rocks in Rashemen
 * The Serpent Hills
 * Sheir Peninsula
 * Skullport's cave
 * Smoking Mountains
 * The Snowflake Mountains
 * Spire of Kor in the High Desert
 * Split Mountain
 * The Stonelands
 * Thonn's Fist
 * Tor of Swords
 * Turnback Mountain
 * Undermountain
 * Vishap's Teeth in the High Desert
 * Yehimal Mountains
 * Yichan at Mount Fukawa

Beyond Toril
As a common type of stone, granite also occured and was used beyond Toril on the worlds of Athas, Krynn and Oerth.

On the planes, granite occured in the Barrens of Doom and Despair, and, like any other type of stone, in the Elemental Plane of Earth. Earth pockets within the Para-Elemental Plane of Magma manifested as granite pillars or rocks. Granite figures could sometimes be found on the Quasi-Elemental Plane of Mineral: They were unfortunate visitors fallen victim to fossilization.

White granite deposits were also common in the deep valleys of Eronia, the second layer of the Outer Plane of Elysium.

Uses
Granite was a common building material for stone fortifications. In Mulhorand, it was also favored for monuments, such as for the central crypt of a pyramid, and for the construction of tall, broad, ornate temples. In Chessenta, granite was used for construction of temples.

Granite Buildings in the Realms

 * Citadel Adbar
 * Aefindar Ultokhurnden's exterior walls
 * Anglund Hall in Ravens Bluff
 * Ahz'ahk's Palace in the Pit of Ghuls
 * Temple of Talos in Bezantur
 * Temple of Tempus in Bezantur
 * Abode of the Eye in Undermountain
 * The Arena in Hillsfar
 * Blackstone House, Elaith Craulnober residence in Waterdeep
 * Blackstone House inn in Immilmar
 * Blingdenstone's main gate
 * Boareskyr Bridge across the Winding Water
 * Caer Callidyrr, palace of the High King of the Moonshaes, and surrounding roads
 * Citadel of Black Ash
 * Duathamper bridges
 * Endar Aglandtor, abbey dedicated to Haela Brightaxe
 * Faerntarn, the Royal Palace of Tethyr
 * Fochu Crypt
 * Glory of Morning, Lathander's temple in Archenbridge
 * Granite cube of the pech in the Nether Mountains
 * Granite Tower of Melegaunt Tanthul
 * Great Library of Perpustakaan
 * Hafayah
 * Halls of the Beast-Tamers in Myth Drannor
 * House of Silvanus on Ilighôn
 * Ilikur's Bridge, the "Haunted Bridge" on the Long Road
 * Imperial Retreat at Saihoji, Shou Lung
 * Inner Temple walls in Solon
 * Jamal temple within the Jamal Oasis
 * Lighthouse fortress of Ravens Bluff
 * Lihat Observatory atop Mount Penjaga
 * Lone Tower between Zhentil Keep and Thar
 * Maddgoth's Castle
 * Megalith of Dougan's Hole, Icewind Dale
 * Metalmasters' Hall in Waterdeep
 * Midnight Mosque of Hajama in Liham
 * Temple of Tempus in Mulmaster
 * Nycopolis
 * Bridges of Orofin
 * Orosul's Tower in Archenbridge
 * Ostraer Hall in Ravens Bluff
 * Phlan's City Hall
 * Prayer Stone, temple of Amnwater
 * Pyramid of the Stars in Tulom-Itzi
 * Qudra's mighty walls
 * Cairns of the rom in Sokkar and elsewhere
 * Rashala's Towers in Ravens Bluff
 * Saharkhan keep in Tethyr
 * Main temple of Jergal in Seventon
 * Serpent's skull statue of the Order of the Snake in Wa
 * Shrine to Torm near Shadowdale
 * Shrine of the Claw
 * The Silver Halls, Temple of Tyr in Ravens Bluff
 * Stone Bridge over the River Dessarin
 * Sumitra Tower in Kumandang Valley
 * Suryvlashadah, the villa of the Caleph Arcane of Calimport
 * The tower for the elven casting of the First Sundering
 * Twin Towers of the Eternal Eclipse
 * Valjevo Castle in Phlan
 * Vahtov Crypt
 * Wall surrounding Atorrnash, the capitol of Ilythiir.
 * Windstand House, the sister building to Rashala's Towers
 * Walls of Wyrm's Rock, stronghold of the Flaming Fist in Baldur's Gate
 * The Wyvernstones of Hullack, a circle of twelve menhirs that marked a place sacred to Eldath.
 * Zhentil Keep's walls

Known granite buildings on the planes were:
 * Blood Tor, Beshaba's tower
 * Stone Chime of Qui

Sculpting
Mulhorand granite was popular among foreign sculptors in the late 1350s DR. For example, Chessentan sculptors typically worked in Mulhorand granite; it was also the custom to paint their finished works.

In Kara-Tur, granite was a common material for sculpting.

Granite was also the most common basis for dwarven runestones.

Known works of art made of granite in the Realms were:
 * Aencar Vigilant statue in Essembra
 * Beast-Tamers' coffins in Myth Drannor
 * Bishamon monumental statue in Ojichizu
 * Black Leopard Cult statues in Opawangchicheng
 * Colossus of Uruk on Sahu
 * Colossus of Ostoria below the Sunset Mountains
 * Sarcophagus of the Crocodile Princess of Ysawis
 * Fountain of Flowers in Undermountain
 * Glemp in Granite in Gillian's Hill
 * Hall of Red Ravens relief facade in Ravens Bluff
 * Hoteo statue in Kareki
 * Sarcophagus of halfling Duke Corcytar Huntinghorn of Imristar
 * Living idol of Death's Gate in Al-Anwahr
 * Statue of King Dhalmass Obarskyr in Arabel
 * Obelisks of the temple of Jubilex in Bezantur
 * The coffin of the Old Tomb
 * Thrones of the Sleeping Kings in Undermountain
 * Sphinx statues lining the Avenue of the Sphinxes in Sokkar
 * The Watchful Defender statue in Ravens Bluff
 * The Walking Statue of Waterdeep known as The Griffon.

Magical Uses
Granite was a necessary component in several spells: The stone was also basis for some magic items:
 * Protection from telekinesis: A block of black granite.
 * Standfast: A piece of granite
 * Stone bones: A tiny skull carved of granite
 * Stoneskin: Granite dust
 * Strength of stone: A chip of granite
 * Wall of stone: A small block of granite
 * The tree-stones bindng the Star Worm in Ixtzul, Maztica, were formed of white granite.
 * Granite was the most common material for fashioning stone golems. E.g. the Walking Statues of Waterdeep were made of that stone.  Granite could also be part of a ring of golem control.
 * The magical throne inside the palace of Dangwaru on the Snout of Omgar was fashioned from granite.
 * The portals leading from Lunia, the first of the Seven Heavens, to the adjacent planes of Arcadia, the Twin Paradises and the Concordant Opposition were blocks of differently colored and textured granite.

Religious Significance

 * Dark granite was sacred to the Chultan demigod Eshowdow.
 * Temples of the dwarven deity Clangeddin Silverbeard usually contained a huge block of granite as an altar.
 * Altars dedicated to dwarven deity Dugmaren Brightmantle were also often fashioned from granite.

Trivia

 * Dwarves as well as dao often had skin the color of granite.
 * The body of a galeb duhr most often resembled granite.
 * Stone flyers looked like they were fashioned from flecked granite.
 * Astral color pools leading to the Elemental Plane of Earth had a moss granite hue.
 * Topaz and as well as some garnets occured in granite deposits.
 * Granite was one of the many materials the Infinite Staircase was made of.
 * The Gilded Nugget, legendary founding price of the hidden gnomish kingdom of Songfarla, was rumored to be a large piece of either iron pyrite or gilded granite.
 * For stone giants, granite was the preferred material for book covers (and bookshelves).
 * Azer used basalt, metal and granite to construct their towered cities.
 * The stone appeared in the name of the Granitefang orcs of Faerûn's North
 * Kara-Turan graves were sometimes equipped with granite markers, which had a chance to attract a benefical djangkong memedi spirit.
 * The evil stone spirits of Kara-Tur liked to possess granite statues as their bodies.
 * The granite destrier was a specific elemental which could be summoned.
 * The army of southern Shou Lung stationed in Tempat Larang were magically turned into granite stone warriors to prevent them from perishing in a volcanic eruption.
 * The road created by the hovering road spell resembled black granite.

Appearances

 * Novels
 * The Nether Scroll • The Summoning