The Salt Lake Temple was constructed of quartz monzonite, otherwise known as temple granite. This stone was quarried from a site near the mouth of Little Cottonwood Canyon southeast of Salt Lake City. Much of the stone used came from large boulders lying in the canyon rather than being extracted from the mountain. The rock was reduced to manageable size and hauled to Temple Square where most of the finishing was done. Some of the stones weighed as much as 5600 pounds. The temple took forty years to construct.
