Stone rosettes as indicators of ancient shorelines: examples from the Precambrian Belcher Group, Northwest Territories

• Published in: Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences
• Main Authors: Rlcketts, B. D., Donaldson, J. A.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Canadian Science Publishing 1979
• Subjects: General Earth and Planetary Sciences; Northwest Territories; Belcher; Swash
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/e79-174; http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/e79-174

Flat-pebble conglomerates in the McLeary Formation of the Belcher Group display close packing of intraformational slabs in near-vertical arrays that appear distinctively polygonal in sections parallel to bedding. Such arrangements of flat pebbles, known by names such as stone rosettes and slone packings, are common on modem beaches, especially within the swash and backwash zone of shore platforms. Association of the McLeary stone rosettes with sedimentary features suggestive of shallow subtidal to supratidal origin (herringbone cross-bedding, reactivation surfaces, desiccation cracks, tepee structures, gypsum casts, oncolites, stromatolites, and probable beachrock) supports a hydrodynamic origin for these polygonal arrays of flat pebbles, an origin that has been demonstrated for modern occurrences. Where associated structures corroborate interpretation of a shallow-water origin, such stone rosettes provide evidence for ancient strandlines, and the designation "beach rosettes" is suggested as appropriate to distinguish them from stone rosettes formed by periglacial processes.