- Time of past OR future Camino
- VdlP(2012) Madrid(2014)Frances(2015) VdlP(2016)
VdlP(2017)Madrid/Sanabres/Frances reverse(2018)
I’m indulging myself here, as an ex geologist. When I visited the Mezquita in 2018, I was astonished at the beauty and variety of source rocks for the celebrated 850 columns of the hypostyle hall. I shouldn’t have been, because apparently they were recycled columns from previous Roman and Visigoth sites from all over Spain. Columns are particularly effective at displaying petrology on a grand scale, because of course they are polished fresh rock. One example particularly engaged my attention.
This is a classic example of an olistostrome breccia. These rocks outcrop extensively on the southern side of the Guadalquivir valley. They represent what are called mass transport deposits, giant slump features on a scale of cubic kilometres, formed during the severe deformation of sedimentary layers when continental plates collide - in this case the African and European plates about 15 million years ago. On this map you can see the occurrence of slump deposits on the northern front of the Betic Cordillera, extending from east of Jaen as far as Cadiz.
There is a postscript to this. In 2019 I stayed at an airbnb in the centre of Avignon, a converted apartment in a 17th century house close to the Palais des Papes. In the lounge was this fireplace. the owner called it marble. I disagreed.
This is a classic example of an olistostrome breccia. These rocks outcrop extensively on the southern side of the Guadalquivir valley. They represent what are called mass transport deposits, giant slump features on a scale of cubic kilometres, formed during the severe deformation of sedimentary layers when continental plates collide - in this case the African and European plates about 15 million years ago. On this map you can see the occurrence of slump deposits on the northern front of the Betic Cordillera, extending from east of Jaen as far as Cadiz.
There is a postscript to this. In 2019 I stayed at an airbnb in the centre of Avignon, a converted apartment in a 17th century house close to the Palais des Papes. In the lounge was this fireplace. the owner called it marble. I disagreed.