On a Fossil Forest in the Parkfield Colliery near Wolverhampton

Abstract

The fossils alluded to in the following notice, occur in an open work, that is, the superincumbent strata have been pared off, and we find the coal (which belongs to what is called the “bottom coal,”) well exposed to view. The bed has been bared for upwards of two years, but the fossils do not appear to have attracted attention, till Mr. William Sparrow and myself, whilst tracing the great faults of the South Staffordshire coal-field, accidentally stumbled upon them, and were struck with their number and their evident resemblance to trunks of trees. Since that time, by the kind permission of the Parkfield Company, and with the assistance of Professor Orlebar, of the Royal Bengal College in Bombay, I have carefully removed the coal attached to the roots of one of the trees. We found the stump to be perfectly bituminized, but broken off about two inches above the level of the coal measure, the inner part being somewhat hollowed to about the level of the coal itself: the surface and edges of the broken part were smoothed or probably water-worn. The tree bared was not flattened, but preserved precisely the same appearance which I have noticed with peat timber in Ireland, and was 4 feet in circumference. The principal root extended southwards 22 inches, terminating abruptly.