Glacial Striations at Spielberg near Böhlitz

The glacial striations are located at the foot of Spielberg, a rocky hill that rises above the village of Böhlitz. The inland ice masses of the Elster and Saale glacial period that advanced from Scandinavia 350,000 to 125,000 years ago abraded the porphyry hills of Geopark Porphyrland. The glaciers passing over the bedrock carried away the sub-surface even though the thick ice is much softer than the porphyry rocks. Moving ice carrying pebbles and sand grain “polished” the underlying rock, creating the typical glacial striations. These surface structures, i. e. scratches or gouges cut into bedrock by glacial abrasion, provide valuable information on the direction of the glacial movements.

location
04808 Thallwitz district Böhlitz

coordinates
N 51° 26′ 33.522252; E 12° 44′ 23.88228 (WGS 84)
4551554,0; 5701147,0 (Gauß-Krüger)
3342937,9;  5701470,9 (UTM 33)

contact
Gemeindeverwaltung Thallwitz
Dorfplatz 5
04808 Thallwitz
Tel. 03425 999910
Internet: www.gemeinde-thallwitz.de

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MDV Fahrtenplaner

Today we know that during the glacial period the glaciers arriving from Scandinavia advanced as far as south of Leipzig (Flint Line). From there they also carried rock blocks inside masses of ice called erratic blocks or erratic boulders. In the 19th century geologists differed in their opinion on the origin of these blocks. According to the boulder or mud flood theory, giant deluges of water were said to have brought mud and rocks from northern Germany. The drift theory assumes there was a sea that stretched from Scandinavia to the edge of the Central German Uplands. The erratic blocks are said to have been transported along with drifting blocks of ice to the northern European lowlands. It wasn’t until 1875 that the Swedish geologist Otto Martin Torrel (1824-1900) was able to verify the theory of a large-scale northern German inland glaciation which is still acknowledged today. A whole 31 years previously Carl Friedrich Naumann and other scientists verified the effect of the inland ice in the Hohburg Mountains (see geotope wind and glacial striations on the Kleiner Berg near Hoburg). The glacial striations bear witness of this until today.

Gletscherschliffe am Spielberg

Glacial striations, Spielberg

Gletscherschliffe am Spielberg, Detailaufnahme Foto: Anja Hartmann

Glacial striations at the Spielberg

Gletscherschliffe am Spielberg

Glacial striations at the Spielberg   

Auf den Porphyrkuppen um Böhlitz nachgewiesene Gletscherschliffe, Foto: Anja Hartmann

Proven glacial striations on the porphyry hilltops around Böhlitz