In an area of complex folding, few fossils and no
marker- horizons, classical methods of analysing structures
have limited use. The area studied was divided into 64
sub -areas, and the attitude of bedding plotted on 0-diagrams to give a statistical trend and plunge for the fold - axes in each sub -area. The trend and plunge of the axes
of 117 small folds were measured, and the orientations of
lineations formed by the intersection of bedding and
cleavage were noted at over 200 localities. All these
structures suggest that there is a weakly developed axis
of large scale folding trending N240 °E and plunging 15 °.
This axis is statistically accurate only for the area as
a whole; and it is thought to be locally affected by the
emplacement of the Ennerdale Granophyre. There is a low
degree of mutual parallelism of the axes of folding which
may indicate repeated deformation; but it is thought more
likely to be caused by limited deformation of incompetent
rocks at shallow depth. A tectonic profile constructed
for the south- western part of the area gives an indication
of the large scale structure of the slates
