Paleozoic • Silurian–Devonian formation Literature

Spinghar Quartzite

Silurian to Devonian (correlation)

NW Indian plate margin · Spinghar (Safed Koh) Range

Cited in 2 sources Last reviewed Aug 2, 2026

Unit summary

Rank: formation
Status: Published
Age: Paleozoic · Silurian–DevonianSilurian to Devonian (correlation)
Named by: Badshah et al. (2000)
Type locality: Eastern Spinghar (Safed Koh) Range, NW Pakistan.
Thickness: Not recorded
Lithology: White to grey-white, bedded quartzite with basal grit and conglomerate; locally imbricated.
Synonyms: Not recorded

A Siluro-Devonian bedded quartzite of the Spinghar (Safed Koh) Range, introduced by Badshah et al. (2000) and correlated with the Siluro-Devonian Spinrag Quartzite at Jamrud in the Khyber Agency. White to grey-white with grit and conglomerate at the base, it is imbricated and locally split into two horizons by graphitic phyllites of the Sikaram Series.

Fossils

Not recorded

Contacts

In the Khyber–Nowshera Belt column

MetamorphicLimestoneMixedConformable

Band colour = period; texture = dominant rock type. Lines between bands mark the contact type. True scale makes height ∝ recorded thickness; hatched = thickness not recorded. Ages approximate, for ordering.

This unit (highlighted) within its province column; faded ends continue above and below. Line style marks the contact type.

Distribution & setting

Khyber–Nowshera Belt

Basin: NW Indian plate margin
Region: Spinghar (Safed Koh) Range
Depositional environment: shallow marine
Coordinates: Not recorded

Correlation

Not recorded. Compare this unit against other basins on the correlation panel →

Economic significance

Not recorded

Remarks

Tectonic contacts with the underlying Daradar Dolomite and overlying Sikaram Series; unconformable contact with the Makai Limestone (Badshah et al. 2000). Equivalent to the Spinrag Quartzite of the Khyber Agency.

Sources (1)

Badshah, M.S., Gnos, E., Jan, M.Q. & Afridi, M.I. (2000). Stratigraphic and tectonic evolution of the northwestern Indian plate and Kabul Block. In: Khan, M.A., Treloar, P.J., Searle, M.P. & Jan, M.Q. (eds) Tectonics of the Nanga Parbat Syntaxis and the Western Himalaya. Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 170, 467-476.

Reviewer confidence: medium

Every fact on this page is source-cited. This entry is part of the peer-archived Pakistan Stratigraphy Dataset (doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.21363991, CC‑BY‑4.0).

Lexicon status: Defined in journal or other literature; not found in a GSP memoir. There is no body currently ratifying unit status, so provenance is shown in place of a formal ruling.

Cite this unit

APA

Qudsi, L. (2026). Spinghar Quartzite. In Pakistan Stratigraphy Dataset [Data set]. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.21363991

BibTeX

@misc{stratigraphypk_spingharquartzite,
  author    = {Qudsi, Lareb},
  title     = {{Spinghar Quartzite} --- Pakistan Stratigraphy Dataset},
  year      = {2026},
  publisher = {Zenodo},
  doi       = {10.5281/zenodo.21363991},
  url       = {https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.21363991}
}

Archived dataset: doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.21363991 (CC‑BY‑4.0) · Direct link to this entry: https://stratigraphy.pk/formation/spinghar-quartzite (accessed August 30, 2026).

To cite the unit's original definition instead, see: Badshah et al. (2000).