These rocks are from my father’s collection, which we have both been adding to over the years. They've been sitting on a shelf a little forlorn so I thought I'd give some groupings a shot and shed  light on these pretty specimens. This is the first one. 1. Red Basalt from Haleakala, Hawaii (2012): From the top of Maui’s 10,000ft volcano where, on a clear day, you can see the outline of the island all around you. Haleakala means 'The House of the Sun' and takes its name from a Polynesian legend.

2. Black Basalt from Dimmuborgir, Iceland (2009): From the mysterious black lava field peppered with tall, spiky rock towers, literally meaning 'Black Castles'. Icelandic lore states that Dimmuborgir is the spot where Satan landed when he fell from heaven.

3. Black Basalt from Nea Kameni, Greece (2005): From the sun-drenched, uninhabited island which lies in the flooded Santorini caldera. Many believe that the eruption of this volcano is the source of the legend of Atlantis.