strati.ch - Lithostratigraphic Lexicon of Switzerland

Representation and status

Historical Variants: calcaires spathiques rose clair = brèches du type macchia vecchia = brèche du Canavese = brèche granitique = brèches de Levone (Elter et al. 1966), brèche de Levone (Trümpy 1976), calciruditic to calcarenitic synsedimentary tectonic breccia (Biino & Compagnoni 1989), Liassic polyphase pink sedimentary breccia = sedimentary breccia of "Macchia vecchia" type (Borghi et al. 1996)

Description: Borghi et al. 1996: sedimentary breccia of "Macchia vecchia" type with polyphasé arenaceous-carbonate cernent and clasts of red micritic limestone and arenaceous limestone (Lower to Middle Liassic)

Age at top

Age at base

Definition: Biino G., Compagnoni R. (1989) : The Canavese Zone between the Serra d*Ivrea and the Dora Baltea River (Western Alps). Eclogae geol. Helv. 82/2, 413-417

p.421: The top of the dolomitic limestone is marked by an irregular erosional surface,

which is covered by a fine-grained pinkish to pinkish-violet calcarenite to calcirudite

limestone. Interbedded in the pinkish limestone, encrinal limestones are locally found,

which have given a fauna dated as Liassic by Spitz (1919) and as lower Sinemurian by

Sturani (1964). This Liassic facies is well correlated with shallow-water facies such as

the Hierlatz limestones and the Adneth limestones of the Swiss Austro-Alpine and Broccatello of the Luganese region (Spitz 1919, Baggio 1965, Carraro & Sturani 1972).

After the deposition of the pinkish limestone a calciruditic to calcarenitic synsedimentary tectonic breccia developed, locally very coarse-grained, containing clasts of Triassic dolomitic limestone, pinkish Liassic limestone and reddish calcarenite. The matrix may either be a reddish haematite-stained marl or recrystallized sparry calcite. This calciruditic to calcarenitic limestone, also considered to be Liassic in age, is locally injected as sedimentary dykes into the underlying Triassic and crystalline basement rocks.