Origen de las simas de Partagat (Sierra de Aitana, Alicante)

Abstract

The Partagat chasms, located at the highest part of the Sierra de Aitana (Province of Alicante), are large joints which have opened up in Eocene limestone. They measure up to 15-20 metres in width and dozens of metres in depth. These joints have originated from lateral-spreading, which have evolved with time into slides. They have formed here along the lines of pre-existing NW-SE and NE-SW fractures, due to the movement of large blocks of limestone over an underlying layer of marls, both Eocene in age. Throughout the Quartenary, these landslides caused the mountain front retreat of the Aitana fault, a normal E-W fault with a throw of several hundred metres.