Panjshah Formation
Middle Permian (Wordian)
Karakoram-Hindukush Basin · Central Karakoram Batholith
Part of Chapursan Group
Permian in the time scale →Cited in 6 sources Last reviewed Aug 20, 2026
- Rank
- formation
- Status
- Published
- Age
- Paleozoic · Permian · GuadalupianMiddle Permian (Wordian)
- Named by
- Gaetani et al. (1995)
- Type locality
- Panjshah
- Thickness
- about 230–260 m
- Lithology
- Lower part of interbedded dark shale, siltstone and cross-laminated feldspathic quartzarenite; upper part of fossiliferous dark grey limestone and marl interbedded with marly limestone.
- Synonyms
- Not recorded
A Middle–Late Permian shale-and-limestone unit of the Chapursan Group, sitting between the Lupghar and Kundil formations.
Panjshah formation is named after Panjshah village in the lower part of Chapursan valley by Gaetani et al. (1995), presented lower member include shales, siltstone and feldspathic quartzites and upper member include limestone and marl of Late Permian age.
Fossils
Contacts
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
- Basin
- Karakoram-Hindukush Basin
- Region
- Central Karakoram Batholith
- Depositional environment
- marine, shallow marine
- Coordinates
- Not recorded
Correlation
Not recorded. Compare this unit against other basins on the correlation panel →
Economic significance
Not recorded
Remarks
Middle formation of the Chapursan Group; its fauna indicates a Kubergandian–Murgabian (Middle Permian) to Late Permian range, and it is conformably overlain by the Late Permian Kundil Formation.
Sources (7)
- Malkani, M.S. & Mahmood, Z. (2017). Stratigraphy of Pakistan. Geological Survey of Pakistan, Memoir Vol. 24.
- Kazmi, A.H. & Jan, M.Q. (1997). Geology and Tectonics of Pakistan. Graphic Publishers, Karachi.
- Angiolini, L. Permian Brachiopods from Karakorum (Pakistan). Part 3. Rivista Italiana di Paleontologia e Stratigrafia. https://doi.org/10.13130/2039-4942/5438
- Angiolini, L. (1996). Permian Brachiopods from Karakorum (Pakistan). Part 3. Rivista Italiana di Paleontologia e Stratigrafia, 102(1). https://doi.org/10.13130/2039-4942/5438
- Shah, S.M.I. (2009). Stratigraphy of Pakistan. Geological Survey of Pakistan, Memoir Vol. 22.
- Kazmi, A.H. & Abbasi, I.A. (2008). Stratigraphy and Historical Geology of Pakistan. Department & National Centre of Excellence in Geology, University of Peshawar, Peshawar. 524 pp. ISBN 978-969-9119.
- Gaetani, M., Angiolini, L., Garzanti, E., Jadoul, F., Leven, E.Ya., Nicora, A. & Sciunnach, D. (1995). Permian stratigraphy in the Northern Karakorum, Pakistan. Rivista Italiana di Paleontologia e Stratigrafia, 101(2), 107-152.
Reviewer confidence: high
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: Name attested in the Shah (1977/2009) Geological Survey of Pakistan compilation — the national stratigraphic lexicon. This records where the name is documented; it is not an endorsement of the unit’s definition, age or figures.
Cite this unit
Qudsi, L. (2026). Panjshah Formation. In Pakistan Stratigraphy Dataset [Data set]. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.21363991
@misc{stratigraphypk_panjshahformation,
author = {Qudsi, Lareb},
title = {{Panjshah Formation} --- 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/panjshah-formation (accessed September 5, 2026).
To cite the unit's original definition instead, see: Gaetani et al. (1995).
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