Short Stuff: Trovants

Summary

Stuff You Should Know: Short Stuff Episode on Trovants

Release Date: April 30, 2025
Hosts: Josh Clark and Chuck Bryant
Producer: iHeartPodcasts

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Introduction to Trovants

In this episode of Short Stuff, Josh Clark and Chuck Bryant delve into the intriguing geological phenomenon known as trovants. These peculiar rocks, primarily found in Romania's Carpathian region, have fascinated both locals and scientists alike due to their unique appearances and mysterious behaviors.

Appearance and Local Myths

Trovants are easily recognizable by their distinctive structure—larger rocks seemingly sprouting smaller ones, giving the illusion that these formations are "growing." This bizarre characteristic has sparked various myths and folklore among the local population. Chuck Bryant shares:

"They look like they're growing smaller rocks out of the bigger rocks. Not supposed to happen to anybody outside the field of geology, but they are."
— Chuck Bryant (01:16)

These formations have led some to believe that the rocks are living entities capable of movement and reproduction, with legends even suggesting that they can pose threats if disturbed.

Geological Composition

Initially, many hypothesized that trovants were concretions, which are typically formed when minerals deposit around a nucleus, gradually building up layers over time. However, further investigation revealed a different story. Chuck explains:

"A concretion is something that starts out as a little pebble or something, or a leaf maybe, and then starts getting depositions... That's a concretion."
— Chuck Bryant (03:04)

Contrary to this definition, it was discovered that trovants are composed entirely of calcium carbonate sandstone, lacking a central nucleus. This composition differentiates them from traditional concretions and pointed researchers to explore alternative formation theories.

Formation and Growth

The formation of trovants is attributed to a combination of ancient geological processes. During the middle Miocene subepoch (~5.3 million years ago), prehistoric rivers transported sandy sediments rich in calcium carbonate. These sediments formed a slurry that, under the immense pressure of gravity and frequent earthquakes, began to compress and solidify. Josh highlights:

"It's those places in between. It's not happening like the whole thing's not growing at once. It'll be like a little pocket where this stuff gets lodged and expands and then it literally grows off little pieces."
— Josh Clark (08:33)

This gradual deposition and compression result in the spherical growth patterns observed in trovants. The porous nature of the sandstone allows for mineral-rich solutions to seep in, creating pockets where new layers can form, giving rise to the "baby rocks" that contribute to their unique appearance.

Movement Claims

Adding to their mystique, some observers have reported that trovants appear to move. Chuck recounts an anecdote:

"This researcher went and said, I filmed this thing moving a tenth of an inch, two and a half millimeters in two weeks."
— Chuck Bryant (09:14)

While such movements are minimal and occur over extended periods, they fuel local legends of living rocks. Comparisons are drawn to phenomena like the sailing stones of Death Valley, where environmental factors such as ice and wind contribute to the gradual movement of large rocks, leaving behind visible trails.

Marine Fossils and Ancient Environment

A significant discovery supporting the geological narrative of trovants is the presence of marine fossils within these formations. Fossils of bivalves and gastropods found in the sandstone indicate that the area was once an ancient marine environment. Chuck summarizes:

"They said, well, the best we can come up with is that the area where they're found used to be an ancient marine environment... it was probably a marine environment in ancient times."
— Chuck Bryant (11:20)

This marine origin aligns with the calcium carbonate composition, as calcium carbonate is a primary component of many marine organisms' shells.

Location and Conservation

Trovants are predominantly located in specific areas within Romania, notably the Trovants Museum Natural Reserve in Valcia County. Villages such as Odesani and Kostesti have become central to their study and preservation. Josh notes:

"They're still... in this very limited area of the world in Romania."
— Josh Clark (12:08)

Recognizing their unique geological and cultural significance, UNESCO has stepped in to protect these formations, ensuring they remain undisturbed and preserved for future generations. Chuck emphasizes the importance of conservation:

"Shout out to the Otesani village and the other one is the Kostesti village... You can't go and break them and run off with them. UNESCO is protecting these things now."
— Chuck Bryant (12:48)

Conclusion

Trovants are a captivating example of nature's artistry and complexity. From their enigmatic "growing" appearances and minimal movements to their deep-rooted geological origins, these rocks continue to intrigue and inspire both locals and the scientific community. Protected by international conservation efforts, trovants stand as a testament to the Earth's ever-evolving landscapes.

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For more engaging content, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or your preferred podcast platform to explore the Stuff You Should Know series.

Transcript

[Chuck Bryant]

You're listening to an iHeart podcast.

[Josh Clark]

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[Chuck Bryant]

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[Josh Clark]

This information is provided by Lilly USA, LLC. Hey, and welcome to the Short Stuff. I'm Josh and there's Chuck and Jerry's here sitting in for Dave. And this is Short Stuff about trovants or trovants or trovane.

[Chuck Bryant]

I bet it's trovant. I don't know why I didn't look it up, but I'm going to go with that.

[Josh Clark]

It's got to be. It doesn't matter. No one knows how to pronounce it. No one outside of Romania. And the reason I just mentioned Romania is because in the Carpathian area of Romania, there's a specific kind of rock that has captured the imagination of any human who's seen it because they are very weird looking.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah.

[Josh Clark]

In fact, they look like they're growing smaller rocks out of the bigger rocks. Not supposed to happen to anybody outside the field of geology, but they are. And so some people are like, these rocks are living. They move around. They're gonna kill you and your entire family if given the chance.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah. They have babies. Yeah.

[Josh Clark]

Yeah. It's amazing. Did you look up some of the pictures of them?

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah, they're awesome. They're pretty smooth looking. They're lumpy. Yeah. It looks, you know, look up a picture of these things. You know, not if you're driving, obviously, but so you can get it in your mind's eye. They can be little, they can be smaller than an inch and just weigh a few grams, or they can very, very large, like Boulder esque, like 15ft high, several tons in weight. And people since the 18th century have been like, what are these things? They look like dinosaur eggs or alien pods. What's happening here?

[Josh Clark]

Yeah. And they were wrong on both accounts. They really are rocks. They do grow, they do kind of calve off baby rocks, but they're not alive in any sense that we understand it. They're rocks.

[Chuck Bryant]

That's right when they started getting serious. And we're like, guys, can we move past alien pods? And dinosaur eggs and really try and figure this out.

[Josh Clark]

I took it to be alien pods, is what people are saying on the Internet now.

[Chuck Bryant]

Well, probably so, because that's where all that stuff takes place. But when they finally got serious, they were like, you know, what's going on here? This is a concretion. And a concretion is something that starts out as a little pebble or something, or a leaf maybe, and then starts getting depositions, maybe sandstone, other kinds of grit and minerals washed along a river, just building up and sort of cementing almost like a snowball rolling downhill. That is a concretion.

[Josh Clark]

Yes. And In Oslo, in 2008, the International Geological Conference Congress man said, the parties of that place. Yeah, that's the rocks that they were doing, I'm sure.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah.

[Josh Clark]

And they said, no, we don't think it's a concretion at all. I don't know who they were scolding, because I'm sure all the members were the ones who came up with the idea that it was a concretion. But they said, no, this is different than that. A concretion is a rock where you have a nucleus, and then over time, sediments are deposited over it and it grows and grows and grows. It's understandable why people said that trovants were concretions for a very long time, but then somebody thought to cut one open. And when they did, they said, there's no nucleus here. And with a typical concretion rock, the sediments are whatever got attracted to it. So it's made up of a bunch of different stuff. Turns out trovants are made entirely of sandstone, and in particular they're made of calcium carbonate. Sandstone. So they're like, these are not concretions. What are they? We're not entirely certain, but we're going to take a stab at explaining them.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah. And they closed that session of the International Geological Congress in Oslo by chanting, open bar, open bar. And they all got busy. So they. In Oslo, they hypothesize that the minerals were carried by a prehistoric river along these little sandy sediments and formed a kind of a slurry solution, like you said, of mainly calcium carbonate. Along with calcium carbonate, you can also get sandstone from iron oxide and quartz, but in this case, the sandstone is calcium carbonate.

[Josh Clark]

Yeah, precisely. And so they figured out, okay, some sort of compression took place. The force of gravity can push these things together. And then apparently they were like, even more pushed together by earthquakes that took place back in, I think, the middle Miocene sub epoch, which, as everyone knows, is about 5.3 million years ago and they smushed the sandstone together. And if you look at a lot of the trovants, especially the parts that are coming out of the ground. Yeah, it just looks like a smushed normal rock. Right. Like pretty large, but it doesn't look weird. What makes it look weird is the spherical shaped rocks growing out of the other rocks. And that actually has to do with the way that these rocks actually grow. And I say, Chuck, we take a break and we come back and talk about how they grow after this.

[Chuck Bryant]

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[Josh Clark]

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[Chuck Bryant]

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[Josh Clark]

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[Chuck Bryant]

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[Josh Clark]

Do you know the symptoms of moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea or OSA in adults with obesity? They may be happening to you without your knowing.

[Chuck Bryant]

If anyone's ever said you snore loudly, or if you spend your days fighting off excessive tiredness, irritability and concentration issues, it may be due to osa. OSA is a serious condition where your airway partially or completely collapses during sleep, which may cause breathing interruptions and oxygen deprivation. Learn more@don'tsleeponosa.com this information is provided by Lilly USA LLC. So another little oddity here we have to talk about is the fact that these things secrete cement. And this is sort of what lends people to think like these things are alive. It's after a big rain. They will absorb the minerals from that rain and then those minerals come in contact with the chemicals that are already in that stone, that, that calcium carbonate and the other stuff. And there's a pressurized reaction that makes the rock grow. It grows in girth. And that sandstone is very porous. And so it's those places in between. It's not happening. Like the whole thing's not growing at once. It'll be like a little pocket where this stuff gets lodged and expands and then it literally grows off little pieces and they can fall off. And that's when people are like, look, it had a little rock baby.

[Josh Clark]

It had a baby. Yeah. So I mean, that's it. That's how they grow rocks. A chemical reaction that creates pressure in the rock that's so strong and they're so porous that it can actually bubble up. And then over time, as it grows and grows and grows, it can take on a spherical shape. Right. So that's pretty amazing. What would be more amazing is if you could see this happen in real time, but you can't because the human lifespan is fairly short compared to how long it would take to watch a trovant grow. Right?

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah. I think the deposition rate is about an inch and a half, maybe a couple of inches every year? No. Every hundred years? No. Every 500 years?

[Josh Clark]

No.

[Chuck Bryant]

Every thousand years, yes. Yeah. So an inch and a half to two inches every 1,000 years. That has not stopped certain patient people from sitting there and looking at them. From a long time though, right?

[Josh Clark]

Yeah, for sure. There was one researcher who said that they filmed trovants for two weeks and said that not that they were growing but that they were moving. This is another thing about it too. People say these rocks move. And again, this is in Romania, in the Carpathian region. People have lived there for a really long time. They've lived around these rocks for a really long time. They've been observing them for a really long time. So you can't exactly pooh, pooh some of the things that they've observed about these very special rocks. But. And apparently walking or moving is part of them. So this researcher went and said, I filmed this thing moving a tenth of an inch, two and a half millimeters in two weeks. And don't ask me for the film or any follow up question.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah. He's like, so what do you think of that? And everyone's like, oh boy, this guy, does he know there's an open bar in the back?

[Josh Clark]

Right. So the thing is, they're not discounting it fully that these things can move, but the rocks wouldn't be moving, say like the heating and cooling of the soil could cause some sort of movement of the rocks, moving them along. And there are rocks that move. They don't move by their own locomotion. There's not a rock in the world that moves by itself. Even if it's rolling downhill, it's under the force of gravity. But there are rocks in, oh, Death Valley, I think. The sailing stones. Have you seen them?

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah, I feel like we talked about those in a video. It sounded familiar, or maybe I just had heard of them.

[Josh Clark]

But they leave a track behind them. They are definitely moving. And they're too big for a human to push as a prank or a joke, like the crop circles were. And they figured out that very thin layers of ice form on the floor of Death Valley sometimes. And as it melts, it breaks into little sheets that actually kind of move the rocks along for distances.

[Chuck Bryant]

Amazing. Another pretty cool thing that they found out in Oslo. Where else is. They were like, hey, how do we explain the fact that we have found these fossils in here, though? These marine fossils? There's bivalves in here. There's gastropod fossils sometimes. And they said, well, the best we can come up with, and this makes total sense, is that the area where they're found used to be an ancient marine environment, because they're finding those fossils in there. And also that calcium carbonate, and we kind of been holding onto this till the end. That is the essential ingredient in marine shells. So it seems pretty clear it was probably a marine environment in ancient times.

[Josh Clark]

Boom.

[Chuck Bryant]

Pretty good.

[Josh Clark]

That was the fact of the podcast.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah. And most of them are found at just. Not even just Romania. But this one sand quarry, right?

[Josh Clark]

Yeah, I've seen both. I've seen them. You can find them around the Carpathia region, but there is definitely a huge population of them in what's now the Trovants Museum Natural Reserve in Valcia County, Romania. And there's a village in particular, Odesani Village, which is very well known for it, so much so that I think that's where the idea that they can only be found there comes from. But they're still. I mean, you're not going to find them in, like, Peru or Zimbabwe or something. They're just in this very limited area of the world in Romania.

[Chuck Bryant]

That's right. So shout out to the Otesani village and the other one is the Kostesti village.

[Josh Clark]

Very nice, Chuck. And I guess, since I said very nice, I don't have anything else, do you?

[Chuck Bryant]

No. We should just let people know they're protected, so you can't go and break them and run off with them. UNESCO is protecting these things now.

[Josh Clark]

Do not do that.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah, don't do that.

[Josh Clark]

Leave nature alone.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah, that's right. But I have nothing else aside from that.

[Josh Clark]

Okay, Short Stuff is out.

[Chuck Bryant]

Stuff youf Should Know is a production of iHeartRadio. For more podcasts My Heart Radio, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite show.