436 MR. R. B. NEWTON ON THE 



During 1873 Dr. W. T. Blanford * published his views 

 regarding tlie Salt swamps and lakes of Persia, including the 

 lake of Urmi ; and iu 1876 the same author f, in his ' Eastern 

 Persia,' gives a special chapter on the geology of Persia 

 generally with an exhaustive 7^esume of all previous work on 

 the subject. 



A distiuct advance was made by Dr. Abich J in his great work 

 of 1882, which includes a geological profile section of the 

 islands (p. 275) on Lake Urmi, representing them to be composed 

 of Miocene rocks resting on a Palaeozoic base, having the Ostrea 

 Virleti-heds at the top of the series. The elevation of the 

 principal island, that of Koyun Daghi, is stated to be 5258 feet 

 above sea-level. 



In this work the following species of Miocene age are described 

 and (mostly) figured as having been collected on the " Urmia. 

 Plateau " :— 



AcTiNozoA (Corals) : 



Pliyllangia grandis, Keuss. 



alveolaris, Catullo. 



CyathomorpTia gregaria, Catullo. 



conglohala, lieuss. 



A&irangia princeps, Keuss (allied). 

 Solenastrasa astroiies, Groldfuss. 

 lieliastrcBa Guetfardi, Defr. 

 Poriies polymorpha, Abich. 



ECHINODEEMATA : 



Clypeaster turrltus, Phil. 



Scillce, Desm. 



Ecliinolampas complanatus, Abich. 



Lamellibeanchiata : 



Venus Aglau7'ce, Brongn. 

 Pecten suburmiensis, n. sp. 



convexocostatus, Abich. 



lychnulus, Pontannes. 



* Blanford, W. T. — " On the Nature and pi'obable Origin of the Superficial 

 Deposits in the Valleys and Deserts of Central Persia," Quart. Journ. Geol. Soe. 

 1873, Tol. xxix, pp. 493-503. 



t Blanford, W. T. — ' Eastern Persia, an Account of the Journeys of the 

 Persian Boundary Commission, 1870-1872 ' : 1876, -vol. ii. p. 439-506. 



\ Abich, H. — ' Ueologie des Armenischen Hochlandes.' 1882. 



