Stainton gravel beds, and clay deposits.

The image below i believe shows the same red clay that covers all the areas in the south west Cleveland area and sits directly below the Stainton gravel beds, the first image was taken at Fanny Bells Gill just before its confluence with the river Leven

This image shows what i believe to be a very good exposure of Triassic Mercia mudstone about a mile down river.

This exposure just up river from the image above, is i believe also Mercia mudstone, and is also the site of an old mill that was built upon the Triassic bedrock.

A good image of the bedrock.

This image i think shows Mercia mudstone that has been exposed earlier in time and weathered.

The last image shows the whole natural weir.

 I believe that because the surrounding banks are so steep that what has and is now to be seen, could easily be mistaken for glacial till, but is infact a mixture of individual fluvial layers that have eroded over time with the help of the more modern Leven flow.

 

 

More can be viewed regarding tthe Stainton gravel beds by clicking the link below

The Stainton gravel beds

Agar 1954 on the deposits in the south west area of Cleveland.

Agar covered in detail the deposits to the north of Stainton created by the ice-dammed water-body that is said to have stood far below the 50 metre elevation of the Stainton site's.  Neither of the papers i have now looked at explicitly cover the south west area of Cleveland, but Agar ( 1954) maps the area as being till- covered with no detail on other beds in the area.

I can now with some confidence state that Agar mapped the area wrong, the area is far from a till covered glacial mess in fact i am yet to come across anything that resembles a till deposit or indeed any glacial erratics on the surface, every area i have excavated is proof in itself that Agar mapped the area wrong, and in doing so tells me he never actually looked hard enough to have the right to map it at all .

Magnetic rock found in the Stainton gravel beds.

This Basalt was excavated two days ago from the same excavation as the slab in the previous post. This i believe to be Basaltic Andesite from the nearby Cleveland Dyke, the Quartz or calcite veins i first thought were filled vesicles, but ime now sure there not.

The basalt is by far the most magnetic ive found so far, it attracts a magnet from 10mm away.

In my experience the tell tale signe to id Whinstone ( Basaltic Andesite ) can be seen to the top right of this image, its the white half circle that is the point of impact of the hammer blow that cracked the rock. Obviously the unique crystals also give a big clue!

 

More can be viewed regarding the Stainton gravel beds by clicking the link below

The Stainton gravel beds

 

 

The magnetic properties of the Cleveland dyke in t...

New fossil rich slab dug from the Stainton gravel beds

This slab was excavated today it has the normal Gryphaea trace as a lot of the others but the bivalve? to the centre ime not sure of yet.

More can be viewed regarding the Stainton gravel beds bThe Stainton  clicking the link below
The Stainton gravel beds
 

Large mammal c7 cervical vertabrae

These images show a c7 cervical vertebrae that probably belonged to a horse.

It was not excavated directly from the Stainton gravel beds, but could well have been washed from them.

  You can tell it is a cervical vertebrae because of the para vertebral foramen on each side of the centrum.  But it also has a facet for the head of the first rib.  The only cerv vert with a rib facet is the 7th.I receive a lot of welcome advice from very experienced Friends from the United States.

Rosedale ironstone and Stainton whinstone.

This image shows the magnetic properties of the Rosedale iron stone, that was mined about 30 miles south east of the Stainton area, its stated that no other ironstone has been found with such  strong magnetic properties.
This is the only image i have been able to find of a rock with a magnet stuck to it other than rock from the Cleveland dyke ( basaltic andesite) and magnetite.

                              More info and images can be viewed regarding my  research into this subject  by clicking the link below.

                                      The magnetic properties of the Cleveland dyke in t...

Stainton Quarry ( magnetic Whinstone)

This structure was built to mark the entrance to the old quarry, it has been transformed over the last 10 years into a very attractive nature reserve.

Most of the structure appears to be sand stone, but the stone in this image is a piece of the mined whinstone ( Basaltic Andesite) as with all the Whinstone boulders and cobbles and smaller pieces that remain in the quarry plantation, it attracts a magnet note the green, red, and pink magnets stuck to the stone. 

Radius possibly Cervidae

This radius was found at Maltby beck, during a search for the same Geological layers i have found in other areas of the south west area of Cleveland,

I did indeed find the same deposits, and low and behold then found this Radius sticking out of the clay just down stream from a Stainton gravel bed exposure !

This mineralised bone as ive explained before has been washed dried and rubbed a bit with a cloth nothing else !

Fossil content of a 3 metre square section of the Stainton gravel beds.

Some of the items I've recently excavated from a 3 metre square section of the Stainton gravel beds, averageing 300mm thick . They include mineralised mammal bones, a Septerian nodule, and various fossil rich rocks, all can be viewed in more detail in older posts.

 

More can be viewed regarding the Stainton gravel beds  by clicking the link below.

 

 The Stainton gravel beds

Septarian Nodule dug from the Stainton gravel beds.

This piece was excavated from around 3 metres into the gravel bed just south of Stainton, there is lot of well preserved fossils on the surface.

                      More can be viewed regarding the Stainton gravel beds by clicking the link below
                                                                                   The Stainton gravel beds 

Flint ( burrow ) Nodule         Fossill slabs