Sand sheets and ventifacts: the legacy of aeolian action in west Norfolk, UK

The Quaternary succession in west Norfolk contains two previously unrecognizedaeolian sand units whose ages have been determined by the infra-red stimulated luminescence procedure. The ‘Leziate coversand’ dates from the Loch Lomond Stadial (Late Devensian); large numbers of well-formed, lithologically varied, gravel ventifacts are found within this material. The pre-Holocene age of a ventifact-rich, windborne sand at Blackborough End is evident (in spite of an unsuccessful attempt to obtain a luminescence date) from its association with a former ice wedge and with involutions; and an aeolian sand with ventifacts accumulated against the flank of a cryogenic mound which developed at Walton Common during the Loch Lomond Stadial. Renewed aeolian activity in the Holocene led to the deposition of the IRSL-dated ‘Ling Common drift sand’.