Geographia Polonica (1966) vol. 10

Ивана Франко, Head of the Chair of Geomorphology in The Lwow, Ivan. Franko State University

Abstract

Studies of Quaternary land forms, deposits and processes met with in the Po-lish Western Carpathians started from observations made by St. Staszic [73] in the Polish Western Carpathians in the Tatra massif in 1802, 1804 and 1805. Describing block fields so commonly encountered in the Tatra, he pondered their origin be-lieving them to be "frost" products developing mainly in the spring. These block fields suffer dislocation by heavy downpours and by snow avalanches. Hence Sta-szic reached the further conclusion, more general in character, that rainstorms cause "denudation and destruction" of elevations, with the rate of destruction more rapid in high mountains and more gradual in lower mountains.

After Staszic's time the boldness, ruggedness and peculiarity of Tatra forms, more so than forms in any other Carpathian region, also appealed to many scien-tists.

Mieczysław Klimaszewski, Institute of Geography, Jagiellonian University, Cracow, Poland

Leszek Starkel [starkel@zg.pan.krakow.pl], Institute of Geography and Spatial Organization Polish Academy of Sciences, Św. Jana 22, 31-018 Kraków, Poland

Martin Pécsi, Institut de Géographie de l'Academie Hongroise des Sciences Budapest

Jaromir Demek, Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences, Institute of Geography, Brno