Inverted relief

Relief inversion (also: inversion) is the morphological transformation of tectonic forms by different ablation resistant rocks. Saddles and clumps are morphological depressions, hollows and ditches to elevations.

Many witnesses mountains from the Jurassic period owe their origin to the relief inversion. The following diagrams illustrate the principle.

  • 2.1 erosion of the rock layers outside of the trough
  • 2.2 Faster erosion by soft rock strata

Conditions for the relief reversal

Deposition and development of rock layers of different hardness

Until the Mesozoic large areas of today's mainland were covered with sea. The rivers of the mainland transported in the coastal areas in different time periods, different materials into the sea. In the lower layers are mostly outsourced from soft sandstones, clays and marls. This was followed by harder layers of clay and iron- bearing rock. The time tropical climate fostered in the shallow marine regions calcification and it emerged as the top layer very hard Riffgesteine ​​.

The presence of a tectonic depression

By earth movements and stretching forces were able to form tectonic troughs at weak points in the crust. Without such a relief trough reversal is not possible.

Course of the relief reversal

Erosion of the rock layers outside of the trough

When the sea retreated slowly, the tectonic troughs initially formed a natural protection against erosion by wind and running water. Thus, the rock layers outside the well were removed slowly over millions of years, while the hard rock could hardly be attacked within the trough. After the removal of the hard rock outside of the trough erosion in the softer rock there ran even faster, so that slowly took place from the former dump a reversal of the hill.

Faster erosion by soft rock strata

With the complete silting wind and weather, the rock strata within the former dump now attacked strongly. However, this very hard rock was the erosion of a much greater resistance than the soft rock strata the surroundings. This region was always lower and from the former dump washed the water a distinctive witness mountain out.

  • Geomorphology
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