Geological Society. 495 



(rohte-todte liegende), magnesian conglomerate, zechstein, and the 

 Trias of German geologists, the authors reserve their opinions on 

 such details until they have accomplished a tour to the Ural Moun- 

 tains, on the western flanks of which they hope to detect the evi- 

 dences required 5 it being very difficult to trace the exact sequence 

 in the flat and obscure regions over which they followed these de- 

 posits to so wide an extent. 



Oolitic or Jurassic Series. — Certain rocks of the oolitic series have 

 been long known to exist in the centre of Russia, and some of the 

 fossils of this series were sent to England by Mr. Strangways. 



The beds of black shale which rest at once on the great red forma- 

 tion along the banks of the Volga, between Kostroma and Nijnii 

 Novogorod,.belong unquestionably to the middle oolite, as they con- 

 tain Ammonites and Belemnites, closely approaching, if not identical in 

 species with those of the Oxford clay and " Kelloway Rock" of Smith. 

 Other fossils found near Jelatma, Kacimof and Moscow exhibit 

 close relations to the fauna of the Lias as well as to that of the mid- 

 dle and lower oolite. Having examined a suite of specimens from 

 Moscow, Professor Phillips confirms the views of the authors, who 

 are disposed to think that the middle and lower oolite, as well as 

 the Lias, are all represented in Central Russia simply by beds of 

 black shale with subsidiary courses of oolitic marlstone, concretions, 

 &c. Near Moscow these shales repose directly and conformably 

 upon the carboniferous limestone. Among the fossils of the group 

 on the Volga and the Okka are Ammonites flexistria, A. Gulielmi, 

 A. Konigii, A. sublcevis, with Gryphcea Maccullochiil ', &c Among 

 the fossils from Moscow are Ammonites of many species, some of 

 which are figured by Fischer, others are described by Professor 

 Phillips, for this memoir. Belemnites absolulus (B. sulcatus, Miller); 

 Serpula tetragona, Sow.; Amplddesma? donaciforme, Phill. ; Lima 

 proboscidea?, Sow.; Pecten Fisherii, N.S., Inoceramus dubius, Sow.; 

 (P. rugosus, Fischer) Terebratula serrata, Sow.; T. acuta, Phill, 

 These forms characterize the lower oolite and lias of the British Isles, 



Ferruginous Sand.-r-The shales of the oolitic series are covered 

 by ferruginous sands, occasionally green, which contain large flat- 

 tened concretions of grit (the Moscow millstones) ; but never having 

 observed fossils in this rock, the authors are unwilling as yet to 

 hazard an opinion regarding its age. With the exception of certain 

 very recent deposits, these grits are the youngest solid strata in the 

 northern half of Russia in Europe. 



Chalk. — The cretaceous system is largely developed in the south, 

 near Simbirsk, and in the Crimea ; but on this occasion the authors 

 did not extend their tour to the chalk districts. 



Tertiary Deposits. — The white shelly limestone of Crimea, and 

 its relations to the underlying chalk, have already been described by 

 one of the authors*. Such deposits have not yet been discovered 

 in any of the northern or central regions of Russia. 



Post Pleiocene (Pleistocene). — It was formerly the general belief, 



♦ M. E, de Verneuil. 



