Abstract
IN 1964, Gunther reported1 Lithodomus borings in the columns of the Temples at Paestum at a maximum elevation of 18.5 m above sea-level. He explained them by a “fall of the land” and by subsequent uplift, and corroborated his hypothesis with numerous observations along the coasts of Italy, Sicily and Malta. His account of the evidence in the Illustrated London News of the same year prompted me to visit the site; I later discussed my findings with N. C. Flemming at Cambridge. I have now seen the letters written by Flemming2 and A. N. Burton3 to Nature in reply to Gunther's communication. Flemming considers that if there has been any earth movement it must have been very localized, which is possible in a seismic coast like that of west Italy; Burton states that, to judge from his own work on raised beaches in Calabria, uplift at the rates implied by Gunther is impossible.
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References
Gunther, A. E., Nature, 201, 909 (1964).
Flemming, N. C., Nature, 203, 1060 (1964).
Burton, A. N., Nature, 203, 1060 (1964).
Pettijohn, F. J., Sedimentary Rocks, 409 (New York, 1957).
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VITA-FINZI, C. Historical Marine Levels in Italy. Nature 209, 906 (1966). https://doi.org/10.1038/209906a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/209906a0
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