The BGS Lexicon of Named Rock Units — Result Details
Whitchurch Sands Formation
| Computer Code: | WHS | Preferred Map Code: | WhS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Status Code: | Full | ||
| Age range: | Valanginian Age (KV) — Valanginian Age (KV) | ||
| Lithological Description: | White, buff, yellow, orange and red to dark brown, generally unconsolidated fine- to medium-grained sand, with seams and irregular masses of limonite-cemented sandstone and rare siliceous or calcareous concretions, localized beds of grey to white silt and clay or mudstone, and rare ooidal limonitic ironstone. | ||
| Definition of Lower Boundary: | The base is an unconformable contact with sands of the Whitchurch Sand Formation resting on limestone, calcareous sandstone or calcareous mudstones of the Haddenham Formation (formerly the Purbeck Limestone Formation) or on fossiliferous limestones or calcareous sandstones of the Portland Group, or rarely on mudstones or siltstones of the Kimmeridge Clay Formation. | ||
| Definition of Upper Boundary: | The upper boundary is a discordant contact between the sands of the formation and overlying coarse gritty sandstones of the Lower Greensand Group, or calcareous mudstones of the Gault Formation. Mostly occurs as outliers without any succeeding strata. | ||
| Thickness: | To 20m. | ||
| Geographical Limits: | Outliers in the Aylesbury to Oxford area, Swindon and in the Vale of Pewsey near Devizes, Wiltshire (Casey and Bristow, 1964; Horton et al., 1995). | ||
| Parent Unit: | Wealden Group (W) | ||
| Previous Name(s): | Lower Greensand [Obsolete Name and Code: Use WBS, LGS, WHS]
(-1024)
Shotover Ironsands [Obsolete Name and Code: Use WHS] (-3762) Whitchurch Sands [Obsolete Name and Code: Use WHS] (-4974) Portland Group (PL) Purbeck Group (PB) Lower Greensand Group (LGS) Shotover Sands [Obsolete Name and Code: Use WHS] (-1274) Shotover Sands/Shotover Iron Sands [Obsolete Name And Code: Use WHS] (SHS) Portland Group (PL) Purbeck Group (PB) Lower Greensand Group (LGS) Portland Purbeck [Obsolete Name and Code: Use WHS] (-2533) |
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| Alternative Name(s): | none recorded or not applicable | ||
| Stratotypes: | |||
| Type Area | Oxford to Aylesbury area, Shotover Hill to Whitchurch and the Oving Hills, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire. Casey and Bristow, 1964; Horton et al., 1995. | ||
| Type Section | Temporary trench section, Whitchurch, Bucks. Casey and Bristow, 1964, 119-120. | ||
| Reference Section | Monks Farm Pit, Risinghurst, Shotover Hill, Oxford. Horton et al., 1995, p.87. | ||
| Reference(s): | |||
| Waters, C N, Smith, K, Hopson, P M, Wilson, D, Bridge, D M, Carney, J N, Cooper, A H, Crofts, R G, Ellison, R A, Mathers, S J, Moorlock, B S P, Scrivener, R C, McMillan, A A, Ambrose, K, Barclay, W J, and Barron, A J M. 2007. Stratigraphical Chart of the United Kingdom: Southern Britain. British Geological Survey, 1 poster. | |||
| Horton, A, Sumbler, M G, Cox, B M and Ambrose, K, 1995. Geology of the country around Thame. Memoir of the British Geological Survey, Sheet 237 (England and Wales). | |||
| Casey, R and Bristow, C R. 1964. Notes on some ferruginous strata in Buckinghamshire and Wiltshire. Geological Magazine, Vol.101, 116-128. | |||
| 1:50K maps on which the lithostratigraphical unit is found, and map code used: | |||
| E220 E237 E252 E282 E219 | |||