
In Deutsch


In Deutsch

Thüringer Becken

Travertine in Thüringen Plains

At the multiple karst springs in the Thüringen plains, between Harz and Thüringer Wald, large deposits of travetine formed.

The water of karst springs is very rich in soluted limestone. At the moment the water reaches the surface, the carbon dioxide (CO₂) in the water starts to vanish into the atmosphere. Still more carbon dioxide is consumed by plants, moss and lichen, in the brook. Using photo synthesis, they split the CO₂ into carbon, which they use to grow and oxyde, which is released into the atmosphere. But without carbon dioxide the water looses the ability to hold the limestone and it gets deposited. The limestone often forms huge terraces around the spring and along the brook.

Druring the deposition of tufa, the ramains of plants and animals which fall into the brook, are covered with limestone and thus preserved. Sometimes the formation of the travertine also includes the formation of primary caves (see Tuffhöhlen), but from Thüringen travertines no such cave is known.

The common speech uses the word tufa for this limestone. In Thüringen it si called Travertin (travertine), which is also used by hewers, if they sell this rock for wall or floor cover. In geology or mineralogy the names freshwater limestone and sinter are also common.