EARLY ALBIAN (FOLKESTONE BEDS)

Stratigraphy at Folkestone

Section of Folkestone Beds (Early Albian) at Bakers Gap, East Cliff, Folkestone

The Folkestone Beds section at Baker's Gap, about 30 yds short of the eastern end of the promenade, was described in detail by Casey (1961, p. 528) as follows. It is now largely obscured, but in the cliffs between Bakers Gap and Copt Point, Casey's Bed 35 through 20 can still be readily seen.

Douvilleiceras mammillatum Zone
35	“Sulphur Band”. An indurated layer of phosphatic nodules, the nodules veined and encrusted with pyrites and embedded in a matrix of clayey greensand, the whole coloured yellow and reddish-brown by decomposition products. Two distinct concentrations of nodules recognisable.	1ft to 1ft 3”
34	Coarse grey sand, somewhat clayey at top	1ft 6” to 2ft
33	Main mammillatum Bed. Seam of coarse yellow-green sand and grit with clusters of phosphatic nodules	6” to 1ft
32	Very coarse yellowish sand and grit	1ft to 1ft 6”
31	Incoherent yellowish greensand	3ft
30	Hummocky band of indurated sand and grit with pockets of small pebbles weathered out as knobs on the upper surface	1ft 3”
29	Very coarse yellowish sand and grit with small pebbles and shell fragments	2ft 2”
28	Sonneratia kitchini Bed. Line of small black phosphatic nodules scattered irregularly through coartse yellowish sand. Wisps of grey clay.	4” to 8”
Leymeriella tardefurcata Zone
27	Very coarse sand and grit as 32	2ft 2”
26	Hummocky band of indurated calcareous grit	1ft 2”
25	Yellowish greensand with small ferruginous nodules scattered and in lines	10ft
24	Band of carious spicular sandstone, porcellanous and cherty in places	9”
23	Yellow greensand with lenticles of sandstone as above. Comminuted lamellibranch shells	1ft 2”
22	Yellowish greensand	3ft 9”
21	Sandstone as 24	6” to 10”
20	Yellowish greensand	3ft 9”
19	Impersistent sandstone as 24	0 to 5”
18	Yellowish greensand	2ft 5”
17	Tough grey calcareous sandstone	1ft 4”
16	Yellowish greensand	11”
15	Impersistent sandstone as 24	0 to 3”
14	Yellowish greensand	3ft
13	Hummocky tough grey calcareous sandstone	9” to 1ft
12	Sandstone as 24	9” to 1ft
11	Yellowish-green, slightly clayey sand with patches and wisps of iron-staining	4ft 4”
10	Impersistent sandstone as 24	0 to 3”
9	Sand as 11. Obscured by talus	Est. 7ft
8	Sandstone as 24	6”
7	Greenish loamy sand, weathering brown	1ft 3”
6	Bright-green loamy sand	1ft 4”
5	Pockets of small phosphatic nodules and pebbles of black chert. Large Exogyra numerous	0 to 2”
4	Tough grey-green, glauconitic, calcareous sandstone band	1ft 9”
3	Nodular bed as 5	0 to 2”
2	Well compacted clayey greensand with abundant shell fragments and very small pebbles of black chert	2ft
Hypacanthoplites jacobi Zone
1	Firm glauconitic loamy sand, weathering brown, holding a great quantity of pebbles and black phosphatic nodules, with large spherical concretions of ferrugino-phosphatic rock at the base. Ecrusting oysters common.	1ft

Reference:

Casey R. 1961. The Stratigraphical Palaeontology of the Lower Greensand; Paleontology, Vol 3, Part 4, pp. 487-621

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