Old Red Sandstone

British  

noun

1. a thick sequence of sedimentary rock (generally, but not always, red) deposited in Britain and NW Europe during the Devonian period

2. (in Britain) another term for Devonian

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Example Sentences

At the time, this terrain lay far from the arctic, at lower latitudes, locked in the arid interior of a landmass called the Old Red Sandstone Continent.

From Science Magazine • May 27, 2020

The formation of this Carboniferous range was followed in northern Europe by a second continental period somewhat similar to that of the Old Red Sandstone, but the continent extended still farther to the south.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 9, Slice 8 "Ethiopia" to "Evangelical Association" by Various

Upon it the Old Red Sandstone was laid down in inland seas or lakes, while farther south contemporaneous deposits were formed in the open sea.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 9, Slice 8 "Ethiopia" to "Evangelical Association" by Various

Devonian, de-vō′ni-an, adj. belonging to Devonshire: belonging to a system of geological strata which abound in Devonshire, closely corresponding to Old Red Sandstone.

From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 1 of 4: A-D) by Various

The Old Red Sandstone of Wales, the North of England, and Scotland, consisting of red and grey sandstone and marly beds, with remains of fish.

From Sea-Weeds, Shells and Fossils by Gray, Peter