362 T. Davidson — Tertiary Brachiopoda. 



France, 2nd ser. vol. xxvii., p. 444, March, 1870. In this communi- 

 cation M. Bayan divides the Eocene of the Vicentin territory into 

 six stages, which he distinguishes by the letters A, B, C, D, E, and F. 

 The stage A is divided into two series of beds, of which the lowest, 

 with Pentacrinus, occurs at Mossano, etc. Above this he places those 

 reddish compact limestones which at Monte Spilecco contain Rhyn- 

 chonella polymorpha, etc. These beds had been considered by Baron 

 Schauroth as forming part of the Cretaceous series ; but as they lie 

 above the Chalk (or " Scaglia," of the Italians) would be referred by 

 M. Bayan and Sig. Meneghini to the lowest portion of the Tertiary 

 period of that part of Italy. It represents also Dr. Suess's Horizon of 

 Spilecco, In stage B, M. Bayan places Rhyn. Bolcensis and other 

 species to which I will refer in the sequel, as that gentleman 

 and Sig. Meneghini have placed their entire collection of Eocene 

 Brachiopoda in my hands for examination and publication. 



I must also mention that in the paper above referred to, M. Bayan 

 divides the " Oligocene " period of Italy into two stages, G and H, 

 reserving the letters I, J, and K, for the Miocene ; but Sir C. Lyell 

 informs me that he considers Prof. Beyrich's " Oligocene " to be 

 synonymous with part of his own Lower Miocene.^ 



The Cavaliere Eovasenda of Turin tells me likewise that those 

 who have made a lengthened study of the Greology of Piedmont, 

 have been led to divide the Miocene into three stages, and to attri- 

 bute great importance to the Middle Miocene ; that, on the contrary, 

 the Geologists of Central and Southern Italy, as well as strangers, do 

 not appear to attach so much value to the Piedmontese Middle 

 Miocene, for the reason that it is very difficult to form an exact idea 

 of the thickness and importance of this stage, the best fossiliferous 

 localities being little known, and of difficult access, but that the great 

 bulk of his magnificent series of fossils were derived from it. In 

 the hill of Turin, the Middle Miocene attains the greatest thickness, 

 while the Lower and Upper Miocene is much less developed. 

 Sig. Sequenza has also been led to attribute great importance to the 

 Lower Pliocene, and proposes to substitute the term " Zancleano " for 

 that of Older Pliocene. 



I must now proceed to announce that the study of Italian Tertiary 

 Brachiopoda has at intervals since 1759 attracted the keen attention 

 of Italian Paleeontologists, who have themselves well described and 

 illustrated the larger number of their species, but in no separate 

 paper or work have they been hitherto combined, and several of 

 those from the Eocene period remain undescribed. 



In 1759 Scilla illustrated two Sicilian species ; in 1814 Brocchi 

 described and figured some few forms he had found in Tuscany. In 

 1836 and 1844 several Calabrian and Sicilian species were described 

 and illustrated by Philippi. In 1851 and 1852 Costa published 

 those known to him from the kingdom of Naples ; Sig. Michelotti, in 



^ M. Deshayes still persists in attaching the " Oligoce'ne" to the Lower Tertiary 

 period, while the Germans, who possess the largest development of the series, are 

 unanimous in considering it as an independent and intermediate period, lying 

 hetween the Eocene and Miocene. 



