Mokattam Formation

Last updated
Mokattam Formation
Stratigraphic range: Middle Eocene (Late Lutetian to Bartonian)
Ꞓ
O
S
D
C
P
T
J
K
Pg
N
↓
Egypt, Mokattam Hills, A Quarry, Cairo.jpg
A limestone quarry in the Mokattam Hills
TypeSedimentary
Sub-unitsBuilding Stone Member, Giushi Member
Underlies Maadi Formation
Overlies Minia Formation
Lithology
Primary Limestone
Location
Coordinates 30°00′N31°18′E / 30.0°N 31.3°E / 30.0; 31.3
Approximate paleocoordinates 17°06′N33°00′E / 17.1°N 33.0°E / 17.1; 33.0
Country Egypt
Type section
Named for Mokattam Hills
Egypt relief location map.jpg
Lightgreen pog.svg
Mokattam Formation (Egypt)

The Mokattam Formation [1] [2] is a Middle Eocene-aged geological formation in northern Egypt. Consisting of nummulitic marine limestone outcropping across the Mokattam Hills, it has been extensively quarried from Ancient Egypt to the present day, and represents the source material for most of the famous archeological sites of Greater Cairo, most notably the Giza pyramid complex, the Great Sphinx, and much of Historic Cairo. [3]

Contents

The Great Sphinx was carved entirely out of the Mokattam Formation Great Sphinx of Giza 9049.jpg
The Great Sphinx was carved entirely out of the Mokattam Formation

The age of the formation is thought to span from the late Lutetian to the Bartonian, depending on the member (Building Stone or Giushi). However, some authors treat the Giushi Member as its own geologic formation, which would restrict the Mokattam to just the Lutetian. [2] [5] [6] [7]

Numerous fossil fishes are known from this formation. [5] [8] Sirenian bones have been reported. This formation is the type locality of the early whales Protocetus atavus , and the sirenians Eotheroides aegyptiacus and Protosiren fraasi. [7] [9]

Paleobiota

Cartilaginous fish

Based on Leriche (1921): [10]

GenusSpeciesMemberLocalityNotesImage
Galeocerdo G. latidens Gebel MokattamA relative of the tiger shark. [11] Galeocerdo cuvier01.jpg
Isurus I. desori A mako shark. [12] Isurus oxyrinchus.jpg
Myliobatis M. goniopleurus An eagle ray. [13] Myliobatis aquila sasraja.jpg
Nebrius N. blanckenhorni A relative of the tawny nurse shark. [14] Nebrius ferrugineus Day.jpg
Otodus O. obliquus A megatooth shark. [15] Otodus obliquus.jpg
Physogaleus P. alabamensis (=Galeocerdo aegyptiacus)A ground shark. [16] Tiger Shark to Galeocerdo alabamensis edit.jpg

Bony fish

GenusSpeciesMemberLocalityMaterialNotesImage
Arius A. fraasi A sea catfish. [17] Arius falcarius Mintern 106.jpg
Blabe B. crawleyi Tura Full specimenA percomorph of uncertain affinities, possibly a serranid. [18] Blabe crawleyi.jpg
Cylindracanthus C. gigasSpineA ray-finned fish of uncertain affinities. Identified from the rocks of the Great Sphinx. [19] Cylindracanthus rectus.jpg
Eobuglossus E. eocenicusTuraFull specimenA sole. [20] [21]
Mylomyrus M. frangensTuraFull specimenAn eel. [20]
" Perca " ( Smerdis ?)"P." lorentiIncomplete specimenA percomorph of uncertain affinities. [22]
Pomadasys P. sadeki (=Kemticthys sadeki)TuraFull specimenA grunt. [18]
Pycnodus P. mokattamensis [10] Tooth plateA pycnodont. Pycnodus platessus 4554.jpg
Trigonodon T. laevisPharyngeal teethA wrasse, taxonomic assignment uncertain. [23]
Turahbuglossus T. cuvillieriTuraFull specimenA sole. [21]

Reptiles

GenusSpeciesMemberLocalityMaterialNotesImage
'Tomistoma' T. cairense SkullA gavialoid crocodilian. [24]

Mammals

GenusSpeciesMemberLocalityMaterialNotesImage
Eotheroides E. aegyptiacusA sirenian. [9] [25] Eotheroides sp.JPG
Protocetus P. atavusGebel MokattamA protocetid whale. [7] Protocetus atavus.png
Protosiren P. fraasiGebel MokattamA sirenian. [7] [25] Protosiren remains.png

References

  1. ↑ "PBDB". paleobiodb.org. Retrieved 2025-05-09.
  2. 1 2 "Mokattam Formation". mideastlex.geolex.org. Retrieved 2025-03-03.
  3. ↑ Aly, Nevin; Gomez-Heras, Miguel; Alveraz de Burgo, Monica; Hamed, Ayman; Soliman, Farouk Ahmed (2014). "Describing differential decay in Mokattam formation limestone used in World Heritage Sites: the cases of the Great Sphinx – Giza and Historic Cairo, Egypt". YOCOCU 2014 Youth in the Conservation of Cultural Heritage.
  4. ↑ Jhonny E. Casas; Mayra Cañizares; Ivan Baritto (2023-02-28). "The Great Step Pyramid of Djoser: History, Geology and Nanoplankton Content from its Rock Casing". Journal of Geological Resource and Engineering. 10 (1). doi: 10.17265/2328-2193/2023.01.001 . ISSN   2328-2193.
  5. 1 2 Priem, Fernand (1899). "Sur des poissons fossiles de l'Éocène d'Égypte". Bulletin de l'institut d'Égypte. 3 (10): 101–103. doi:10.3406/bie.1899.4248.
  6. ↑ Safia, Menoufy Al; Radwan, Abul-Nasr; Marwa, Askar (2019). "A New Hiatus within the Lutetian of the El Basatin Section, Gebel Mokattam, Egypt: Field and Sedimentological Observations, with Special Emphasis on Nummulites" . Acta Geologica Sinica - English Edition. 93 (1): 12–29. Bibcode:2019AcGlS..93...12S. doi:10.1111/1755-6724.13759. ISSN   1755-6724.
  7. 1 2 3 4 Gingerich, Philip D. (1992). "Marine Mammals (Cetacea and Sirenia) from the Eocene of Gebel Mokattam and Fayum, Egypt: Stratigraphy, Age and Paleoenvironments". Papers on Paleontology (30): 1–84. hdl:2027.42/48630 – via Museum of Paleontology, The University of Michigan.
  8. ↑ Egerton, Philip de M. Grey (1854). "Palichthyologic Notes. No. 8. On some Ichthyolites from the Nummulitic Limestone of the Mokattam Hills, near Cairo" . Quarterly Journal of the Geological Society of London. 10 (1–2): 374–378. Bibcode:1854QJGS...10..374E. doi:10.1144/GSL.JGS.1854.010.01-02.42.
  9. 1 2 Owen (1875). "On Fossil Evidences of a Sirenian Mammal (Eotherium ægyptiacum, Owen) from the Nummulitic Eocene of the Mokattam Cliffs, near Cairo". Quarterly Journal of the Geological Society of London. 31 (1–4): 100–105. Bibcode:1875QJGS...31..100O. doi:10.1144/GSL.JGS.1875.031.01-04.05.
  10. 1 2 Leriche, Maurice (1921). "Note sur des Poissons de l'Eocène du Mokattam, près du Caire (Egypte)". Bulletin de la Société belge de géologie, de paléontologie et d'hydrologie (in French). 31: 202–210. ISSN   0037-8909.
  11. ↑ Asan, Anhar; Salame, Iman; Strougo, Amin (2022-12-01). "Sharks and Rays from the Mokattamian Stage (Middle and Late Eocene) of Egypt, Including Some Species from the Middle Eocene Midra Shale of Qatar" . Egyptian Journal of Geology. 66 (1): 113–161. doi:10.21608/egjg.2022.173845.1028. ISSN   0022-1384.
  12. ↑ "Extinct - complete list | Species | Shark-References". shark-references.com. Retrieved 2025-04-20.
  13. ↑ "Extinct - valid species | Species | Shark-References". shark-references.com. Retrieved 2025-04-20.
  14. ↑ "Extinct - complete list | Species | Shark-References". shark-references.com. Retrieved 2025-04-20.
  15. ↑ "Extinct - complete list | Species | Shark-References". shark-references.com. Retrieved 2025-04-20.
  16. ↑ Türtscher, Julia; López-Romero, Faviel A.; Jambura, Patrick L.; Kindlimann, René; Ward, David J.; Kriwet, Jürgen (2021). "Evolution, diversity, and disparity of the tiger shark lineage Galeocerdo in deep time". Paleobiology. 47 (4): 574–590. Bibcode:2021Pbio...47..574T. doi:10.1017/pab.2021.6. ISSN   0094-8373. PMC   7612061 . PMID   34866693.
  17. ↑ Murray, Alison M.; Holmes, Robert (2021). "Osteology of the cranium and Weberian apparatus of African catfish families (Teleostei: Ostariophysi: Siluriformes) with an assessment of Palaeogene genera". Vertebrate Anatomy Morphology Palaeontology. 9 (1): 156–191. doi: 10.18435/vamp29382 . ISSN   2292-1389.
  18. 1 2 White, Errol Ivor (1936-07-01). "V.—On certain Eocene percoid fishes" . Annals and Magazine of Natural History. 18 (103): 43–54. doi:10.1080/00222933608655173. ISSN   0374-5481.
  19. ↑ Woodward (1891). Catalogue of the Fossil Fishes in the British Museum (Natural History).
  20. 1 2 Woodward, Henry (1910). Geological Magazine. Cambridge University Press.
  21. 1 2 Chabanaud, Paul (1876- ) (1937). MIE 32 Chabanaud, P - Les Téléostéens dyssymétriques du Mokattam inférieur de Tourah (1937).{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  22. ↑ Geology, British Museum (Natural History) Department of; Woodward, Arthur Smith (1901). Catalogue of the Fossil Fishes in the British Museum (Natural History): Actinopterygian Teleostomi of the suborders Isospondyli (in part), Ostariophysi, Apodes, Percesoces, Hemibranchii, Acanthopterygii, and Anacanthini. order of the Trustees.
  23. ↑ Schultz, Ortwin; Bellwood, David R. (2003). "Trigonodon oweni and Asima jugleri are different parts of the same species Trigonodon jugleri, a Chiseltooth Wrasse from the Lower and Middle Miocene in Central Europe (Osteichthyes, Labridae, Trigonodontinae)". Annalen des Naturhistorischen Museums in Wien. Serie A für Mineralogie und Petrographie, Geologie und Paläontologie, Anthropologie und Prähistorie. 105: 287–305. ISSN   0255-0091. JSTOR   41702061.
  24. ↑ Brochu, Christopher A. (1997-09-01). "Morphology, Fossils, Divergence Timing, and the Phylogenetic Relationships of Gavialis" . Systematic Biology. 46 (3): 479–522. doi:10.1093/sysbio/46.3.479. ISSN   1063-5157. PMID   11975331.
  25. 1 2 Mamdouh, Ahmed; El-Kahawy, Ramadan M.; AbdelGawad, Mohamed; Abu El-Kheir, Gebely (2024-06-01). "The first Protosiren remains preserved in ornamental limestones, Middle Eocene, North Eastern Desert, Egypt" . Proceedings of the Geologists' Association. 135 (3): 310–320. Bibcode:2024PrGA..135..310M. doi:10.1016/j.pgeola.2024.04.005. ISSN   0016-7878.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.