GENERAL CHARACTERS. 149 . 



muschelkalk, horizon of Ceratites trinodosus), (2) carnic and (3) noric 

 Hallstatt beds, contain red fossiliferous limestones. 



Whitish and grey limestones occur along with the red, and the 

 red noric Hallstatt limestones pass in places into the dachsteinkalk. 

 While the red yield great numbers of fossils, chiefly cephalopoda, 

 the grey limestones are poor in organic remains. 



There also occur breccias, made up of red, earthy and grey lime- 

 stones. All the lithological varieties of the facies pass rapidly into 

 each other, even within one and the same layer. 



Red Alpine Lias — The red liassic limestones of the Alps resemble 

 in many ways those of the Hallstatt trias with which they are also 

 closely connected geographically. Changes of facies are common 

 although on the whole red limestones prevail. In the Hagengebirge, 

 south of Salzburg in Austria, I myself ' observed coarse breccias 

 which answer in description those recorded from the Hallstatt beds. 



Red Alpine limestones, no deep sea deposits. — The red Alpine 

 limestones have been looked upon by some authors as deep sea 

 deposits, a theory which owing to its bearing on the origin of the 

 Tibetan series will have to be shortly discussed here. 



As to the Hallstatt limestones, an observation, made by Prof. 

 Koken, who described their Gastropod fauna, 2 is of great importance. 

 Koken noticed that large specimens and species almost invariably show 

 traces of old fractures, which had healed during the lifetime of the 

 animals and which had locally interrupted the sculpture, without in any 

 way hindering the normal growth. From this Koken concludes that 

 the animals lived in comparatively shallow, very rough water, perhaps 

 in the vicinity of cliffs, which were washed by a strong surf. " Any 

 deep sea character is hereby excluded." This conclusion is in accord- 

 ance with the occurrence of breccias as recorded by Schlosser. 



I arrived at similar conclusions with respect to the red liassic lime- 

 stones of the Hagengebirge- 



1 Jahrbach Geol. Reichsanstalt Vienna, Vol. 47, part 2, 1897. 



2 Abhandlungen Geol. Reichsanstalt Vienna, Vol. XVII, part 4, 1897, p. 3. 



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