Rodenem quarry

The sandstone from this quarry belongs to the Tubize Formation, deposited 530 to 537 million years ago in the Cambrian geological era - part of the Brabant Massif (old mountain range).

From the 19th century onwards, extractions took place up to a depth of 30 m by the "Société pour l'exploitation de la carrière de Rhodenem" (from 1863) under the ownership of Lebens Emile (from 1873 to 1884).

The rocks were used for paving stones for road construction and building blocks for numerous buildings (including the church of Lembeek and the Malakoff Tower).

Geological research was conducted here in the 19th and 20th centuries by renowned geologists such as Malaise and Leriche. In 1882 , the trace fossil Oldhamia radiata (Forbes) was discovered. Oldhamia radiata is the oldest known fossil in Belgium.

One of the greatest scientific achievements of the last century was extending the fossil record much further back in time. When Charles Darwin published "On the Origin of Species" in 1859 , the oldest known fossils were from the Cambrian. Older rock layers seemed empty. This posed a problem for Darwin's theory of evolution, which he admitted: "To the question why we find no traces of these vast, primeval periods, I cannot give a satisfactory answer."

Radiometric dating has revealed that the Earth is just over 4.5 billion years old – the current best estimate is 4.54 billion years. This means that the entire fossil record, from the Cambrian period to the present, covers less than one-eighth of our planet's history.

Sven Nys Centre