A Manual of Elementary Geology: or, The Ancient Changes of the Earth and its Inhabitants as Illustrated by Geological MonumentsLyell, Charles, Sir
Science
A Manual of Elementary Geology: or, The Ancient Changes of the Earth and its Inhabitants as Illustrated by Geological Monuments
Lyell, Charles, Sir
Geology
It is, however, in countries where hard limestone rocks abound, that inland
cliffs retain faithfully the characters which they acquired when they
constituted the boundary of land and sea. Thus, in the Morea, no less than
three, or even four, ranges of what were once sea-cliffs are well
preserved. These have been described, by MM. Boblaye and Virlet, as rising
one above the other at different distances from the actual shore, the
summit of the highest and oldest occasionally exceeding 1000 feet in
elevation. At the base of each there is usually a terrace, which is in some
places a few yards, in others above 300 yards wide, so that we are
conducted from the high land of the interior to the sea by a succession of
great steps. These inland cliffs are most perfect, and most exactly
resemble those now washed by the waves of the Mediterranean, where they are
formed of calcareous rock, especially if the rock be a hard crystalline
marble. The following are the points of correspondence observed between the
ancient coast lines and the borders of the present sea:--1. A range of
vertical precipices, with a terrace at their base. 2. A weathered state of
the surface of the naked rock, such as the spray of the sea produces. 3. A
line of littoral caverns at the foot of the cliffs. 4. A consolidated beach
or breccia with occasional marine shells, found at the base of the cliffs,
or in the caves. 5. Lithodomous perforations.
In regard to the first of these, it would be superfluous to dwell on the
evidence afforded of the undermining power of waves and currents by
perpendicular precipices. The littoral caves, also, will be familiar to
those who have had opportunities of observing the manner in which the waves
of the sea, when they beat against rocks, have power to scoop out caverns.
As to the breccia, it is composed of pieces of limestone and rolled
fragments of thick solid shell, such as _Strombus_ and _Spondylus_, all
bound together by a crystalline calcareous cement. Similar aggregations are
now forming on the modern beaches of Greece, and in caverns on the
sea-side; and they are only distinguishable in character from those of more
ancient date, by including many pieces of pottery. In regard to the
_lithodomi_ above alluded to, these bivalve mollusks are well known to have
the power of excavating holes in the hardest limestones, the size of the
cavity keeping pace with the growth of the shell. When living they require
to be always covered by salt water, but similar pear-shaped hollows,
containing the dead shells of these creatures, are found at different
heights on the face of the inland cliffs above mentioned. Thus, for
example, they have been observed near Modon and Navarino on cliffs in the
interior 125 feet high above the Mediterranean. As to the weathered surface
of the calcareous rocks, all limestones are known to suffer chemical
decomposition when moistened by the spray of the salt water, and are
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account