He proceeded to analyse the samples. He described the methods by which it was done. There was the original microscopic examination and then a further one after he had received Professor Pye's report, when he used the new rather more sophisticated piece of machinery. Dr. Pirrie described the nature of the equipment used. They were highly technical, and I am not going to go into that, but each involved the use of electro microscopes of a type probably well beyond the experience of any of us. The later tests, however, permitted an even closer example than the earlier tests had permitted, and the new machine he said gave a better idea of the chemical composition of the rocks or stone material being examined.
The essence of Dr. Pirrie's evidence was that our rock and four of the samples recovered from Bluestones contained certain recognisable similar characteristics. In contrast he said the samples recovered from the shores of Coniston were of a different composition. The initial conclusion was that each of the items was a fine grained sandstone or siltstone dominated by quartz, along with a substance which is described as muscovite vita. I do not know whether that is anything to do with Moscow, but it may have been once back in history, and by use of his scanning electron microscope examination he concluded initially that each of the items contained diagenetic monazite. Now we have in tab 15 and perhaps we can just look at that, Dr. Pirrie's helpful glossary. I do not think there is any dispute about these terms, but just to refresh your memories as to what those were, diagenetic contrasts with detrital, and we see those two definitions in the middle of the page. Diagenetic, "This term refers to a mineral which has been precipitated as a crystal from a fluid within a pre-existing rock, i.e. these minerals effectively 'grow' in the rock, rather than being physically transported and deposited." Detrital is the opposite, deposited. The diagenetic monazite which Dr. Pirrie originally identified in the samples he thought post-dated the mineral which was either rutile or anatase, and those terms are also described, the next definite. "Rutile and anatase are two minerals which have the same chemical composition. Titanium dioxide, TiO2."