Bunter Pebble Beds is the name formerly given to a set of
sandstone deposits within the
New Red Sandstone
The New Red Sandstone, chiefly in British geology, is composed of beds of red sandstone and associated rocks laid down throughout the Permian (300 million years ago) to the end of the Triassic (about 200 million years ago), that under ...
containing rounded pebbles. They are thought to be alluvial deposits and, judging from the rounding of the mainly
quartzite pebbles, to have resulted from prolonged transportation in a large and turbulent river, resulting in powerful abrasion.
Etymology
The name "Bunter" derives from the
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ge ...
term "
Buntsandstein
The Buntsandstein (German for ''coloured'' or ''colourful sandstone'') or Bunter sandstone is a lithostratigraphic and allostratigraphic unit (a sequence of rock strata) in the subsurface of large parts of west and central Europe. The Buntsandst ...
", "bunt" meaning "variegated" or "colourful", referring to the colour of the sandstone deposit, which varies from reddish to greenish.
Utility
The
pebbles, also called
cobbles
Cobblestone is a natural building material based on cobble-sized stones, and is used for pavement roads, streets, and buildings.
Setts, also called Belgian blocks, are often casually referred to as "cobbles", although a sett is distinct f ...
, which can be used as
gravel
Gravel is a loose aggregation of rock fragments. Gravel occurs naturally throughout the world as a result of sedimentary and erosive geologic processes; it is also produced in large quantities commercially as crushed stone.
Gravel is classifi ...
, as
ballast
Ballast is material that is used to provide stability to a vehicle or structure. Ballast, other than cargo, may be placed in a vehicle, often a ship or the gondola of a balloon or airship, to provide stability. A compartment within a boat, ship ...
or as
cobblestone
Cobblestone is a natural building material based on cobble-sized stones, and is used for pavement roads, streets, and buildings.
Setts, also called Belgian blocks, are often casually referred to as "cobbles", although a sett is distinct f ...
s, are mainly milky-white quartzite but can vary in colour and composition, including some that are hard, reddish-coloured sandstone. The sandstone in which these pebbles are deposited can be used for building or as an aggregate for
cement
A cement is a binder, a chemical substance used for construction that sets, hardens, and adheres to other materials to bind them together. Cement is seldom used on its own, but rather to bind sand and gravel ( aggregate) together. Cement mi ...
or
concrete.
The sandstone can be hard enough for building, yet easy enough to "work", resulting in
bridges,
castle
A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...
s,
cathedral
A cathedral is a church that contains the ''cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominat ...
s and
churches constructed of reddish sandstone, throughout the relevant areas of Europe (e.g. Germany, Luxembourg, Switzerland,
Alsace
Alsace (, ; ; Low Alemannic German/ gsw-FR, Elsàss ; german: Elsass ; la, Alsatia) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in eastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine next to Germany and Switzerland. In 2020, it had ...
in France, Denmark, Poland). A notable example is
Heidelberg in the German
state of
Baden-Württemberg
Baden-Württemberg (; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million inhabitants across a ...
, whose old town, including the
Old Bridge and the
castle
A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...
, is built mostly from the local Odenwald sandstone. Within the parkland surrounding the castle ramparts, there is also a publicly accessible
outcrop mentioned in many local nature guides, where the succession from greyish
granite to reddish buntsandstein is marked clearly by an eroded gap.
[https://lgrbwissen.lgrb-bw.de/geotourismus/geotope/aufschluesse/schlossgraben-heidelberg (German)] The architecture of the surrounding former
Palatinate territory, as well as the neighbouring
Rhenish Hesse,
modern Palatinate,
Odenwald
The Odenwald () is a low mountain range in the Germany, German states of Hesse, Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg.
Location
The Odenwald is located between the Upper Rhine Plain with the Bergstraße Route, Bergstraße and the ''Hessisches Ried' ...
and
Alsace
Alsace (, ; ; Low Alemannic German/ gsw-FR, Elsàss ; german: Elsass ; la, Alsatia) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in eastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine next to Germany and Switzerland. In 2020, it had ...
areas traditionally make use of the building material for representative and public buildings, among them the historically important
Straßburger Münster, and the
Imperial Cathedrals of
Speyer,
Mainz, and
Worms, as well as many burgeois residences, manors and medieval castles like
Trifels and the
Château du Haut-Kœenigsburg.
Location
The deposits in the
English Midlands
The Midlands (also referred to as Central England) are a part of England that broadly correspond to the Mercia, Kingdom of Mercia of the Early Middle Ages, bordered by Wales, Northern England and Southern England. The Midlands were important in ...
are thought to have been transported in this way northwards from
Brittany
Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica during the period o ...
,
France. This supposed river has been called the "Budleighensis", after the Devon village of
Budleigh Salterton
Budleigh Salterton is a seaside town on the coast in East Devon, England, south-east of Exeter. It lies within the East Devon Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and forms much of the electoral ward of Budleigh, whose ward population at t ...
, a site where such deposits were discovered. Their deposition took place in the early
Triassic
The Triassic ( ) is a geologic period and system which spans 50.6 million years from the end of the Permian Period 251.902 million years ago ( Mya), to the beginning of the Jurassic Period 201.36 Mya. The Triassic is the first and shortest period ...
period. Some newer conglomerates, e.g. near
Ryton in Warwickshire, are thought to have arisen during the
Ice Age by reworking and southward transportation of older deposits by ice flows.
They can be found in
Warwickshire,
Cheshire
Cheshire ( ) is a ceremonial and historic county in North West England, bordered by Wales to the west, Merseyside and Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east, and Staffordshire and Shropshire to the south. Cheshire's county tow ...
,
Staffordshire,
Nottinghamshire,
Yorkshire,
Devon and
Dorset in
England.
This sandstone is widespread across central Europe, notably in the
Black Forest
The Black Forest (german: Schwarzwald ) is a large forested mountain range in the States of Germany, state of Baden-Württemberg in southwest Germany, bounded by the Rhine Valley to the west and south and close to the borders with France and S ...
and
Odenwald
The Odenwald () is a low mountain range in the Germany, German states of Hesse, Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg.
Location
The Odenwald is located between the Upper Rhine Plain with the Bergstraße Route, Bergstraße and the ''Hessisches Ried' ...
region of Germany, as well as the
Vosges Mountains
The Vosges ( , ; german: Vogesen ; Franconian and gsw, Vogese) are a range of low mountains in Eastern France, near its border with Germany. Together with the Palatine Forest to the north on the German side of the border, they form a single ...
in northeastern France.
The land under which these beds lie is generally very well drained, creating heathlike conditions. Because of the drainage, the soil tends to be of low fertility. A notable area in Britain that has these characteristics is
Cannock Chase
Cannock Chase (), often referred to locally as The Chase, is a mixed area of countryside in the county of Staffordshire, England. The area has been designated as the Cannock Chase Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and is managed by Forestry En ...
, a designated
Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty
An Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB; , AHNE) is an area of rural area, countryside in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, that has been designated for protected area, conservation due to its significant landscape value. Areas are desig ...
(AONB).
The long
shingle
Shingle may refer to:
Construction
*Roof shingles or wall shingles, including:
**Wood shingle
***Shake (shingle), a wooden shingle that is split from a bolt, with a more rustic appearance than a sawed shingle
*** Quercus imbricaria, or shingle oa ...
tombolo of
Chesil Beach
Chesil Beach (also known as Chesil Bank) in Dorset, England is one of three major shingle beach structures in Britain.A. P. Carr and M. W. L. Blackley, "Investigations Bearing on the Age and Development of Chesil Beach, Dorset, and the Associat ...
in Dorset and the
raised beach
A raised beach, coastal terrace,Pinter, N (2010): 'Coastal Terraces, Sealevel, and Active Tectonics' (educational exercise), from 2/04/2011/ref> or perched coastline is a relatively flat, horizontal or gently inclined surface of marine origin, ...
of
Portland, Dorset are partly composed of Bunter pebbles.
Further reading
References
{{Reflist
Sandstone
Masonry
Stone (material)
Geology of England
Triassic Europe