Updated

Updated · bbc.co.uk · Aug 18

National Trust Removes 10,000 Coins From Giant's Causeway as Rust Threatened 40,000 Basalt Columns

Updated

Updated · bbc.co.uk · Aug 18

National Trust Removes 10,000 Coins From Giant's Causeway as Rust Threatened 40,000 Basalt Columns

Q: How did 20 kilograms of wishing coins nearly cause the collapse of Northern Ireland’s iconic Giant’s Causeway?

The coins threatened the Giant’s Causeway because they were not just sitting on the surface; visitors had jammed roughly 10,000 coins deep into cracks between the basalt columns, where the metal then corroded and expanded. According to the National Trust and the Geological Survey of Northern Ireland, that expansion created pressure inside the rock. Rusting coins effectively acted like tiny wedges or jacks, forcing apart natural fissures in the basalt. In some places, conservationists said the swelling metal was pushing up against the stone above, destabilising sections of the columns. The damage was both physical and chemical, with corrosion also causing staining and deterioration on the rock faces. The risk was not theoretical. The removal project was prompted in part by a partial collapse of one column, and experts warned that leaving the coins in place would allow the pressure and decay to worsen. Some tourists had even hammered coins deeper using other stones, making the problem more severe. That is why specialist stonemasons spent months carefully extracting more than 20kg of coins. Some came out quickly, but others took more than 20 minutes each to remove. The case shows how a seemingly harmless “wishing coin” ritual can destabilise an ancient natural formation by turning narrow rock cracks into points of mechanical stress.

3 articles · Updated · bbc.co.uk · Aug 18

More than 20kg of coins — roughly 10,000 pieces — have been removed from Giant's Causeway after visitors spent years wedging them between the basalt columns.
The National Trust said the coins were rusting, expanding and staining the rock, with some capable of pushing up sections of stone and causing both physical and chemical damage.
Work began in May last year, with specialist stonemason Nathan Morrow using pliers and a grouting tool; some deeply stuck coins took more than 20 minutes to extract.
New signs and social media messages now urge visitors not to leave coins in the World Heritage Site and to donate them instead, while the Trust considers turning the removed coins into an awareness exhibit.