The Building Stones of England: Hampshire

This guide describes Hampshire's local building stones in their geological context. It includes examples of buildings and structures where the stones have been used. The solid geology of Hampshire essentially comprises a gently folded succession of sedimentary rocks dating from the Cretaceous and Palaeogene periods. These rocks are best understood in terms of a large basin-like structure (the Hampshire Basin), which extends for more than 160km from Dorchester (Dorset) in the west to Beachy Head (East Sussex) in the east. The southern boundary of the basin is delineated by the near-vertical chalk ridge that forms the Purbeck Hills in Dorset, the area from Old Harry Rocks to The Needles and the 'central spine' across the Isle of Wight, and then continues under the English Channel. The northern limit of the basin is reached at the chalk of the South Downs, Salisbury Plain and Cranborne Chase. At its widest point, the basin extends for around 48km between Salisbury (Wiltshire) and Newport (Isle of Wight).