Petrographic investigation of sarsens (Cenozoic silcretes) from southern England

Abstract

The petrography of sarsens (Cenozoic silcretes), which occur extensively as scattered surface deposits over southern England, is investigated through thin-section observations and scanning electron microscopy. Attention is focused on the general characteristics of the various types of sarsen fabric (GS-(grain-supported), F-(floating) and C-(conglomeratic)), and on the nature of quartz-overgrowth development. Evidence for possible host materials is considered and some provisional conclusions are drawn about the diagenesis of these sediments and the environment in which they formed.