Abstract
IN his attempt to establish as Eocene the age of the salt of the Salt Range of the Punjab, Prof. B. Sahni1 has succumbed to the temptation of generalizing too far from a particular instance. In 1925 I discovered fossil evidence indicating a Cambrian age for the Hormuz Series of the Persian Gulf, and in Consequence I became an advocate for a similar age for the Saline Series of the Salt Range. Sahni now wishes to reverse this result and to make the Persian Salt Eocene—but the reaction is not reversible. The Persian salt domes occur in an area which is unquestionably autochthonous and, as they intrude rocks of Middle Cretaceous age in some cases, the salt must be of that age or older. Some of the associated rocks brought up by the salt are of a saline facies, with salt pseudomorph sandstones, gypsum, etc., and the fossil control establishes Cambrian, therefore the presumptive evidence is that the salt is also Cambrian. The map accompanying J. V. Harrison's2 paper shows the breadth of the normally folded zone and the impossibility of assuming any large-scale thrust faulting. Also the Cambrian, where it appears in normal exposure farther to the north-west, has a similar salty facies.
Similar content being viewed by others
Article PDF
References
NATURE, 153, 462 (1944).
Harrison, J. V., Quart. J. Geol. Soc., 86, Pt. 4 (1930).
Krejci-Graf, Centr. Min. Geol. und Cal. (1927).
Kossmat, F., "Paläogeographie und Tektonik" (Berlin, 1936).
"Science of Petroleum", 142.
Vologdin, A. G., and Smirnov, L. P., Inter. Geol. Congress Abstracts, 23 (1937).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
LEES, G. Age of the Saline Series in the Salt Range of the Punjab. Nature 153, 654 (1944). https://doi.org/10.1038/153654a0
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/153654a0
This article is cited by
-
Age of the Saline Series in the Salt Range of the Punjab
Nature (1945)
-
Age of the Saline Series in the Salt Range of the Punjab
Nature (1944)
Comments
By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.