Bohemian Paradise: Sandstone Landscape in the Foreland of a Major Fault

Abstract

The region of Bohemian Paradise in NE Bohemia is the most varied sandstone landscape in the Bohemian Cretaceous Basin . This is caused by the complex stratigraphy of Cretaceous (Upper Turonian to Coniacian) sediments, abrupt lateral changes in the development of sandstone bodies, intrusions of volcanic rocks and, most of all, by the different response to stresses mediated by the Lusatian Fault in the NE. The effects of thrusting along the Lusatian Fault include rotation of blocks in its foreland, faulting and brecciation of Cretaceous sandstones, grain cataclasis and silica cementation, and deformation banding. Farther from the Lusatian Fault, stress resulted in the formation of an orthogonal system of vertical joints—a necessary prerequisite for the development of ruiniform relief within the so-called sandstone rock cities . A dozen of sandstone districts can be distinguished, representing patches of rugged wilderness in an agriculturally utilized land. They became attractive for vacationers and tourists as early as in the mid nineteenth century, and for climbers from the early twentieth century. The Bohemian Paradise was proclaimed a Protected Landscape Area in 1955 and entered the network of European Geoparks of UNESCO in 2005.