Kluckensteine
The Kluckensteine are a natural monument on the south-eastern edge of the village of Vicht, which belongs to Stolberg .
General
The name Kluckensteine refers to rock ribs up to eight meters high in a forest in the immediate vicinity of Vicht. They are part of a rock band that extends from Vicht via Roggenläger, the towns of Friesenrath and Schmithof to Eupen in Belgium .
geology
The Kluckensteine consist of Vicht conglomerate. This type of rock consists of an alternation of unconsolidated clastic sediments , so-called silt , and sandstone with inclusions of conglomerates with a rubble diameter of up to 5 cm. There are also small amounts of sound. In the area of the Kluckensteine, this forms cliff-like rock formations that are a few meters wide and up to 100 m long. Individual pillars reach heights of up to 5 m. Due to the folds of the Variscan Mountains , the stratification is vertical. To the south of Vicht, the complete sequence of layers reaches a thickness of 80 m. Since fine and coarse-grained areas erode to different degrees, the change of layer is clearly visible.
Scientific studies show that the Vicht conglomerate is a bed of fluvial sediments from the Eifelium , the first half of the Middle Devon , and that this took place around 390 million years ago. An extensive alluvial fan was deposited in the coastal area on the edge of an extensive shelf area in the south of the Old Red continent on the northwestern edge of the Rhenohercynian Basin. These conclusions result from the observation that both the marine influences and the thickness of the sediments increase from northwest to southeast. The rock consists of poorly rounded components identified as quartzites, greywacke and sandstones of the Cambrian and Ordovician , as well as white milk quartz pebbles and red sandstones of the Lower Devonian. Lithologically, it is a fanglomerate .
The fluvial sediments come either from an area south-east of the Brabant Highlands or from the Caledonian Mountains. The palaeography prefers the Brabant massif as delivery area. This is supported by the fact that the pouring direction in the area of the Kluckensteine runs to the southeast and changes several times from northeast to south in the direction of Eupen. The grain diameter of the conglomerates in the Eupen area increases to up to 13 cm, while the average thickness of the individual layers drops to around 20 m.
Naming
The origin of the name Kluckensteine is controversial. It is discussed whether the resemblance of some stones with clucking can be decisive for the name. Alternatively, it would be possible that Glockenstein, which reminds of the time of the Vicht iron industry, is responsible for the choice of name.
It is certain that the Kluckensteine were previously used as a quarry, as the refractory material was suitable as an insulation material in iron processing.
Wooden cross
At the highest point of the Kluckensteine, the Vichter St. Sebastianus Rifle Brotherhood erected a wooden cross in the 1950s. It should be understood as a symbol of peace. In 2018 the weathered wooden cross was replaced by a stainless steel cross.
Web links
swell
- ↑ a b c d Unconquerable massif in Vicht
- ^ Eduard Holzapfel (1910): The geology of the northern fall of the Eifel with special consideration of the Aachen area. - depending on kg. prussia. geol. L.-Anst., NF, 66: 218 pp., 15 figs., 2 plates, 1 ct .; Berlin.
- ^ Eduard Holzapfel (1910): The geology of the northern fall of the Eifel with special consideration of the Aachen area. - depending on kg. prussia. geol. L.-Anst., NF, 66: 218 pp., 15 figs., 2 plates, 1 ct .; Berlin.
- ^ Roland Walter : Aachen and southern surroundings . Geological Guides Collection, Volume 100, Borntraeger, Berlin, Stuttgart 2010, pp. 170–172
- ^ Roland Walter: Aachen and southern surroundings . Geological Guide Collection, Volume 100, Borntraeger, Berlin, Stuttgart 2010, pp. 31–32