The origin of bornhardts

Some bornhardts are of lithological origin, others are tectonic (horsts), but most are not susceptible of explanation in either of these terms. They are developed in granite or gneiss that apparently is mineralogically similar to that underlying the adjacent plains, and they are not obviously defined by fault dislocations. For these bornhardts two major hypotheses have been advanced. According to many workers bornhardts are the last residuals surviving after long distance scarp retreat. For others they are structural forms developed on massive compartments that stand in marked contrast with the well‐jointed rocks that have been weathered and worn down to form the plains.

Both of these hypotheses are theoretically feasible, but the field evidence (in particular the observed contrasts in fracture density between the granite of hill and plain; the evidence of subsurface initiation of both major and minor forms; the occurrence of bornhardts in narrow valleys within upland complexes and at all levels within the landscape, not just on divides; the fracture‐delineated outlines of the residuals; the association of bornhardts and multicyclic landscapes; the evidence of phased exposure; and the antiquity of the forms) are all consistent with the two‐stage concept. On the other hand, there is no evidence of long‐distance scarp retreat, and much of the field evidence is difficult to explain in such terms.