Rocks and Rock Formations allows everyone, amateur or professional, to successfully distinguish these amazing masses of minerals, using only careful observation, a magnifying glass, a pocket knife?and a bit of patience. Jürg Meyer provides a structured approach to the identification of all rocks within the three groups: sedimentary, igneous, and metamorphic. Bringing together more than 530 diagrams and photographs to illustrate essential characteristics, Meyer highlights some basics on rocks?their mineral constituents, structures, textures, fossils, weathering patterns, and more?which are important for a determination. The main part of the book is a handy and thorough identification key, which takes into account all possible rock variations, mixtures, and structural differences. The concluding section of the guide delves into rock systematics.