Torridonian weathering, and its bearing on Torridonian palaeoclimate and source

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Abstract
Synopsis: The late-Precambrian Torridonian sediments of the Cape Wrath district, extreme north-west Scotland, unconformably overlie a planar, weathered Lewisian surface. The weathered profile present beneath the unconformity is regarded as Torridonian in age, and hence must rank with the oldest palaeosols in the world. This planar surface was partly stripped of its mantle of altered rock prior to burial beneath Torridonian alluvial fan deposits. Where developed on biotite-gneiss, the weathered profile has the chemical characteristics of a modern pedalfer. A pedocal-type soil developed on amphibolite. The chemical and mineralogical changes are suggestive of a warm, moderately humid climate, possibly with dry periods or a dry season. A similarly weathered Lewisian terrain could, in principle, have supplied the bulk of the overlying Torridonian sediments.

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