BAMIAN. 



53 



The same series continues into the valley of the Bamian river, and 

 the conglomerates of the Red Grit series extend from Kala-i-Zohak, a 

 picturesque ruin on the cliffs ahove the right bank, to Paimuri at the 

 mouth of the Kalu gorge. It also extends up the right bank of the river 

 for some miles, and is overlain on the northern slopes of the Kok-i-Baba 

 by the Upper Cretaceous limestone. 



Below Topchi an old brecciated limestone is found on the left bank 

 of the river ; it is more or less crystalline and apparently unfossiliferous ; 

 but is presumably part of the Fusulina limestone series. It is similar to 

 the grey limestone of the gorge between Bamian and Ak Robat, and to 

 the Ghorband limestone. 



About 1^ mile above Topchi, the centre of the valley is occupied by 

 The Bamian valley above a g 10ll P °f hills of grey carbonaceous shale (the 

 To P £n ' Saighan series) overlain by the Red Grit series J 



this is associated with Cretaceous limestone, but all three series have been 

 greatly disturbed, and are jumbled together in inextricable confusion. 

 To the north of this locality, the hills on the left side of the valley 

 contain lark limestones, occasionally containing Fusulina, infolded with 

 and Lnterfaulted among the Saighan and Red Grit series. The structure 

 of this area is extraordinarily complicated, and might be compared to 

 that of a gigantic fault-breccia. Similar conditions, due no doubt to 

 overthrusts, prevail in parts of Ghorband and in lower Saighan. 



The upper part of the Bamian valley is filled by soft fluviatile clays 



and argillaceous conglomerates, all of which are 

 The Koh-i-Baba. _ _ __ " . 



presumably ox Upper lertiary age (PI. 10). 1 They 



lie almost horizontal, and extend up tbe flanks of the Koh-i-Baba on the 



one side and of the Koh-i-Ghandak on the other. The main mass of the 



Koh-i-Baba is formed of slate and quartzite — probably the continuation 



1 Mr. Griesbach states that these beds include members of the whole Teitiary 

 system as developed in Kahmard and Afghan Turkistan. When he passed through 

 Bamian, however, he was suffering from an attack of malaria and, being unable to 

 examine the valley personally, was dependent for his information on tbe observations 

 of fellow-travellers who were perhaps not expert geologists. I could find nothing 

 resembling the eocene of Kahmard. 



