Hinton Charterhouse Pit

Site of Special Scientific Interest · 51.3144, -2.3289

Also within

Somerset County

Condition (Natural England)

Unfavourable Declining (1)
UnitFeatureConditionArea (ha)Assessed
ST771573 Unfavourable Declining 0.38 2023-01-18

Geology & landscape

Geological Period: Jurassic · Rock Type: Marble

Description

Area, 0.4 ha. 1.0 ac. Description The Hinton Sands, an unusual sandy facies developed in the middle of the Forest Marble Jurassic Formation, are well exposed at their type locality at Hinton Charterhouse. This rock unit has strong associations with William Smith, 'Father of English Geology', who used the name Hinton Sands for the facies early in the 19th century. A sparse bivalve fauna has been found and the site is important in the study of lateral facies variations in the Forest Marble of Southern England.