The Chaîne du Thaljah is a range of mountains in the Gafsa Governorate of Tunisia. Huge deposits of phosphates were found at the base of the chain on 1885.
| Chaîne du Thaljah | |
|---|---|
| Chaîne des Phosphates, Chaîne du Tseldja, Seldja Chain | |
  Chaîne du Thaljah Gafsa Governorate, Tunisia | |
| Highest point | |
| Coordinates | 34°20′00″N 8°10′00″E / 34.333333°N 8.166667°E[1] |
| Geography | |
| Location | Gafsa Governorate, Tunisia |
Exploration
editThe line of mountains runs in a roughly east–west direction from Gafsa in Tunisia to Negrine in Algeria, crossing the border not far from the small oasis of Tamerza. The highest point is the Jebel-Bliji. On the north side, at a place called Es Safia 5.5 kilometres (3.4 mi) south-southeast of Tamerza, a rock painting was found on an overhanging rock wall at the entrance of a deep ravine.[2] It depicts animals and men in silhouette, in blood on a yellow-ochre background, all slightly glazed. It was probably made by Berbers between the Stone and Bronze Ages.[3]
In 1885–86 the geologist Philippe Thomas explored the southern area of Tunisia between the meridian of Kairouan and the Saharan chotts, covering a vast area. He also explored the western area, which his colleagues had neglected, particularly the Chaîne du Thaljah or Chaîne du Tseldja mountains that stretch westward from Gafsa into Algeria.[4] He identified the geology of the Gafsa chain with that of the M'fatah massif in Algeria and on 18 April 1885 found phosphates at Jebel Tselja.[5] Thomas observed that at the junction of the Cretaceous limestone axis of the chain with its Eocene foundations there was a dark marl and a brown or greenish-gray limestone with a tricalcium phosphate content that averaged 60%. This was found where the Jebel Tseldja opens into the plain at Fous-Tseldja, near Métlaoui.[4]
Notes
edit- ^ Chaîne du Thaljah – Geographic.org.
- ^ Roux 1911, p. 31.
- ^ Roux 1911, p. 32.
- ^ a b Cilleuls 1969, p. 137.
- ^ Burollet 1995, pp. 111–122.
Sources
edit- "Chaîne du Thaljah", Geographic.org, ITA, retrieved 2017-10-22
- Burollet, Pierre F. (21 June 1995), "L'exploration de la Tunisie avant la première guerre mondiale", Travaux du Comitée français d'Histoire de la Géologie (in French), 9 (3), Comité Français d'Histoire de la Géologie (COFRHIGEO) (séance du 21 juin 1995), retrieved 2017-07-29
- Cilleuls, Jean des (1969), A propos des phosphates de Tunisie et de leur découverte par Philippe THOMAS, vétérinaire militaire I1843-1910) (PDF) (in French), archived from the original (PDF) on 2019-02-15, retrieved 2017-09-01
- Roux, Henri (1911), "Peinture Rupestre du Djebel-Bliji (Sud -Tunisien)", Bulletins et Mémoires de la Société d'anthropologie de Paris (in French), VI: 31–32, doi:10.3406/bmsap.1911.8311