Gritstone
Gritstoneorgritis a hard, coarse-grained, siliceoussandstone. This term is especially applied to such sandstones that arequarriedforbuilding material. British gritstone was used formillstonesto mill flour, to grind wood into pulp for paper and forgrindstonesto sharpen blades. "Grit" is often applied to sandstones composed of angularsandgrains. It may commonly contain smallpebbles.
"Millstone Grit" is an informal term for a succession of gritstones which are to be found in the Pennines (including the Peak District) of northern England. These sediments were laid down in the late (upper) Paleozoic era, in the Carboniferous period, in deltaic conditions. The Millstone Grit Group is a formal stratigraphic term for this sequence of rocks.
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The gritstone edges of the Peak District are an important climbing area and the rock is much relished by English climbers, among whom it has almost cult status and is often referred to as "God's own rock". The rough surface provides outstanding friction, enabling climbers to stand on or grip the subtlest of features in the rock. (See the main article on rock climbing in the Peak District.)