Under a Metal Sky
A Journey Through Minerals, Greed and Wonder
Published on 12. February 2026
Book
Paperback/Softback
978-1-78378-963-4 (ISBN)
Description
The discovery of minerals beneath our feet has transformed our species. Ochre first prompted humans to express themselves in art; tin and copper helped instigate the Bronze Age and later the Industrial Revolution; silver kick-started the engines of global trade. Each of these substances generated a leap forward in technology, each one opened the imagination a little further - and each one brought with it a cache of unexpected dangers.
Under A Metal Sky begins and ends in Philip Marsden's homeland of Cornwall, one of the world's great geological hotspots.Travelling eastwards into Europe, he examines how the extraction of peat propelled the Netherlands to world prominence but also imperilled its very existence. Continuing on up the Rhine by barge, into the heart of the continent, he uncovers more stories of potent and tempting resources, from iron-rich meteorites to radium and mercury, and the gold-bearing mountains of Georgia. At the same time he explores precious seams of ideas, from science to alchemy, mysticism to ecology - and those questing souls who pursued them, likeParacelsus, the Habsburg Emperor Rudolf II, Goethe,William Blake and Marie Curie.
Rich with revelations, Under A Metal Sky traces the dazzling achievements and dark consequences of our ability to extract what we want from the earth, and presents a fascinating new perspective on European history and on our troubled relationship with the natural world.
Under A Metal Sky begins and ends in Philip Marsden's homeland of Cornwall, one of the world's great geological hotspots.Travelling eastwards into Europe, he examines how the extraction of peat propelled the Netherlands to world prominence but also imperilled its very existence. Continuing on up the Rhine by barge, into the heart of the continent, he uncovers more stories of potent and tempting resources, from iron-rich meteorites to radium and mercury, and the gold-bearing mountains of Georgia. At the same time he explores precious seams of ideas, from science to alchemy, mysticism to ecology - and those questing souls who pursued them, likeParacelsus, the Habsburg Emperor Rudolf II, Goethe,William Blake and Marie Curie.
Rich with revelations, Under A Metal Sky traces the dazzling achievements and dark consequences of our ability to extract what we want from the earth, and presents a fascinating new perspective on European history and on our troubled relationship with the natural world.
Reviews / Votes
A lyrical meditation on the riches beneath our feet... Marsden's sense of awe is palpable... he sees geology as a metaphor for civilisation, the earth's layers echoing those of human memory * FT * [Marsden's] enthusiasm for the subject is contagious, and he writes with a rock-collector's eye for glittering details. One senses this is a book he has been longing to write for years * Guardian * Mind-boggling... deeply thoughtful, well-written and illuminating journey through the world of minerals and an exploration of their impact on the life and history of our planet * Literary Review * Philip Marsden's new book is a wunderkammer, and well worth reading ... The charm and the genius of this book is in its ability not to pigeonhole itself * Daily Telegraph * A love letter to these key resources hidden within rocks and buried beneath the earth... Under a Metal Sky is a gracefully meticulous book, full of lyrical nature writing and didactic memoir. Accompanied by a lively cast of characters - from heavy-metal obsessed miners in Austria to the copper-loving poet William Blake - Marsden takes the reader on a tour of our metallic history * New Statesman * Glorious... a nuanced work... This is a scholarly work rich in history, science and ecology... [Marsden] has a gift for fusing the technical facts with his personal travel narrative * Country Life * Under a Metal Sky takes the reader through a strange and mystical history of metals that is as dark as it is dazzling... As compelling and sometimes fantastical as a novel... A timely reminder of the dangers of an economy of extraction, detailed in a similarly dreamlike prose to Robert McFarlane and WG Sebald * Irish Times * Absorbing... It is a vast subject, and Marsden has a prospector's eye for finding glitter * TLS * A luminously rich exploration of the mineral wonderland beneath our feet. Imaginatively travelled and beautiful written -- Colin Thubron A book of breathtaking wealth and depth, as passionate as it is clear-eyed (and funny). Marsden takes the history of metals and, from it, creates a dazzling history of humanity and our relationship with this planet. It can only be alchemy -- Tom BulloughMore details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Dimensions
Height: 195 mm
Width: 126 mm
Thickness: 22 mm
Weight
242 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-78378-963-4 (9781783789634)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Previous edition
Book
02/2025
Granta Books
€44.76
Shipment within 3-4 weeks
Person
PHILIP MARSDEN is the award-winning author of a number of works of travel writing, fiction and non-fiction, including The Bronski House, The Spirit-Wrestlers and The Levelling Sea, and for Granta: Rising Ground and The Summer Isles. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and his work has been translated into fifteen languages. He lives in Cornwall.