Access to the stopping point.
The Geology Centre of Menorca, in the town of Ferreries, features a permanent exhibition entitled Landscape, Colours and Geology, which seeks to show how any landscape depends heavily on its geological features. The exhibition is devoted to the concept of “the Colours of Menorca” and uses panels and different collections of rocks, minerals and fossils from the island to show the huge geological diversity and wealth of Menorca, and how this determines the landscape, in a way that is accessible to the general public. As a result, and considering that the story told by the Geology Centre follows the same concept as this route, we think it is worth including a stop at the visitors’ centre.
The exhibition is divided into four areas determined by the colour of its rocks. Each one highlights several aspects such as the location and the formation process of the rocks that can be found in Menorca, as well as the reason for their peculiar shapes and colours and the applications they have been given throughout history
Exterior and interior view of the Geology Centre of Menorca (top) and close-ups of the exhibition (bottom).
As regards the fossils, the exhibition tells us about some of the most characteristic life forms that have lived in Menorca since the island was formed. The Geology Centre carries out work recovering these pieces and its display cases show samples belonging to organisations, institutions and private individuals who have freely loaned or donated their collections. It should be remembered that many palaeontological sites in Menorca have been seriously plundered and that it is often very difficult to identify fossils in situ. This way, visiting the centre is a chance to discover interesting samples of fossils of the animals and plants that lived in Menorca millions of years ago
Examples of samples on display at the Geology Centre of Menorca: fossil of a vertebral column of a large fish (White Menorca), fossil of a plant in the conifer group (Red Menorca), fossils of Trilobites (Dark Menorca), stone from El Toro (Grey Menorca), sandstone from the Dark Menorca fired in a lime kiln and with “honeycomb” erosion and pieces of different types of marès from the White Menorca.
