Abstract The Tertiary section above the neritic Cretaceous limestones forming the base of the Benitachell range, Spain, comprises massive middle upper Eocene limestones, with a thin basal conglomerate, and a thick series of apparently conformable upper Oligocene limestones and marls. The predominance of limestones and the presence of stratigraphic gaps distinguishes the section from the Nummulitic section of the Alfaz region, some 307 kilometers to the southwest, which is essentially marly from Senonian (Cretaceous) to Oligocene. A major tectonic break may intervene between the two areas.