Geology

Mystery of Mona Lisa’s background may have been solved

A geologist claims to have identified the landscape in Leonardo Da Vinci’s famous work as being that of a particular city in northern Italy, but some experts disagree

Booksreview

The magical and divine in ancient stones revealed in a game-changing new book

A revolutionary study based on Enlightenment theories explains what coloured marbles meant, from Egypt to the 17th century

Booksreview

Of fossils, prisms and volcanoes: the scientific and imaginative investigations of the polymath Goethe

This extensive volume explores the relationship between the German writer's visual imagination and his fascination with natural science

Interview with artist Richard Wilson: The topsy-turvy tendency

These works of art take a global perspective and are literally geologically based

Unescoarchive

At last, an agreement to save unstable Burgos cathedral is reached

UNESCO threaten to de-list the building if central and regional governments refused to cooperate