Widan el Faras Basalt
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| Widan el Faras Basalt | |
|---|---|
| Stratigraphic range: Oligocene | |
 Widan el-Faras in the northern Fayum area, the uppermost layer is formed by the Widan el-Faras basalt | |
| Type | Formation |
| Overlies | Jebel Qatrani Formation |
| Area | Fayum Depression |
| Thickness | 20 m |
| Lithology | |
| Primary | Basalt |
| Location | |
| Region | Faiyum Governorate |
| Country | Egypt |
Widan el Faras Basalt, literarily "Ears of the Mare" - named for its twin peaks, is a geological formation containing quarries located in northern Egypt north of Birket Qarun lake near the Faiyum Oasis. It straddles both the Giza Governorate and Faiyum Governorate. It is a dark, iron-rich extrusive basalt.[1]
Widan el Faras Basalt is located at the top of the eastern extremity of Jebel el Qatrani at about 340 metres above the sea, forming two conical black basalt-capped cliff-outliers, standing side by side. It overlies the Jebel Qatrani Formation and in some places it is overlain by the Miocene alluvial Kashab Formation. Its basaltic sheets vary in thickness from 2 to 25 m. The formation is due to basaltic lavas extruded by volcanic activity in northern Egypt in early Oligocene.[2]