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Horst identification and geology

An upstanding block of crust bounded on both sides by parallel normal faults, forming an elevated ridge or plateau between adjacent grabens. Like grabens, horsts are produced by extensional tectonics and are characteristic features of rift zones and extensional provinces. Differential erosion of the elevated horst blocks often exposes older, deeper rock units. Field: structural geology. Example: The Black Forest and Vosges Mountains are horst blocks flanking the Rhine Graben, exposing Variscan crystalline basement rocks elevated relative to the graben floor.. Related terms: Graben, Normal fault, Rift, Block faulting.

Sources, scope & corrections

These authoritative resources support category-level nomenclature, terminology, identification methods, and safety. When a specimen-specific safety warning appears, the public-health source listed here directly supports that precaution. They are not line-by-line citations for every other property on this entry, and natural specimens vary.

Editorial owner
GeoMiner
Last updated
2026-03-30T15:19:42.027557+00:00
Review status
Published; not independently peer-reviewed
  • USGS Thesaurus — U.S. Geological Survey. Controlled earth-science terminology used to describe USGS information resources.
  • Glossary of Geologic Terms — U.S. National Park Service. Geologic definitions prepared by the NPS Geologic Resources Inventory.

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Common questions

What does Horst mean in geology?
An upstanding block of crust bounded on both sides by parallel normal faults, forming an elevated ridge or plateau between adjacent grabens. Like grabens, horsts are produced by extensional tectonics and are characteristic features of rift zones and extensional provinces. Differential erosion of the elevated horst blocks often exposes older, deeper rock units.
What is an example of Horst?
The Black Forest and Vosges Mountains are horst blocks flanking the Rhine Graben, exposing Variscan crystalline basement rocks elevated relative to the graben floor.
Which earth-science field uses the term Horst?
Horst is used in structural geology.
Which terms are related to Horst?
Related terms in this reference are Graben, Normal fault, Rift, Block faulting.

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