Diagenesis of Holocene beachrocks: a comparative study between the Arabian Gulf and the Gulf of Aqaba, Saudi Arabia

Beachrocks occur in present-day intertidal zones of the Arabian Gulf and the Gulf of Aqaba, on the eastern and northwestern coasts, respectively, of Saudi Arabia. The beachrocks occur as linear patches within beach deposits, which have variable grain size and detrital compositions. The Arabian Gulf beachrocks are composed of sand-sized bioclasts and siliciclastic grains, whereas the Gulf of Aqaba beachrocks are composed of sand- to pebble-size grains, which are dominated by igneous rock fragments and small amounts of skeletal carbonate grains. The cement includes micritic high-magnesian calcite and isopachous acicular/bladed aragonite. In addition to cements, intergranular pores are locally filled by a lime–mud matrix. Radiocarbon dating of beachrock samples from the Arabian Gulf yielded ages from ca. 655 to 2185 year bp, whereas the Gulf of Aqaba samples range in age between 2745 and 5075 year bp.