Abstract For the west European regional chronostratigraphic framework, the Cantabrian substage was conceived as covering a widely apparent stratigraphic gap between the top of the Westphalian and the base of Stephanian A, the lowest unit of the Stephanian. A continuous depositional history covers this time gap in the Cantabrian region of Spain; the upper limit of this interval was defined by the succeeding Barruelian substage, equivalent to Stephanian A. Intense tectonic and magmatic activity characterizes this period; the Iberian orogenic belt was an essentially linear feature buckled through the Late Pennsylvanian into the tightly folded Cantabrian Orocline. This evidences an extensive southern foreland to the Variscides, in which the coal-swamp biome persisted through the Late Pennsylvanian, supporting biostratigraphical correlation with the Donbass. New high precision U–Pb CA-ID-TIMS radiometric dating of tonstein horizons supports a preliminary time-framework of regional substages: base of the Asturian (proposed, ex-Westphalian D) c. 310.7 Ma; base of the Cantabrian c. 307.5 Ma; base of the Barruelian (ex-Stephanian A) c. 304.9 Ma; base of the Saberian (proposed) c. 303.5 Ma. The Cantabrian and Barruelian embrace the entire Kasimovian of the global time-scale, and the top of the Barruelian is essentially coincident with the base of the Gzhelian.

Abstract In the Carboniferous, terrestrial vegetation became widespread, diverse and abundant. The resulting fossil record has proved to be an effective biostratigraphic tool for intra- and interbasinal correlations. Besides palaeogeographical configurations, Carboniferous plant biostratigraphy is affected by a transition from greenhouse conditions during most of the Mississippian to an icehouse climate in the Pennsylvanian. The greenhouse Mississippian climate resulted in weak provincialism, with a cosmopolitan flora ranging from the tropics to middle latitudes. The global cooling around the Mississippian–Pennsylvanian boundary enhanced development of a latitudinal climatic zonation and related floral provincialism. These changes are expressed in the recognition of distinct realms or kingdoms, where the tropical Amerosinian Realm (or Euramerican and Cathaysian realms) is surrounded by the Angaran and Gondwanan realms occupying middle to high latitudes of the northern and southern hemispheres, respectively. Floristic endemism in the Pennsylvanian precludes development of a global macrofloral biostratigraphy. Instead, each realm or area has its own biostratigraphic scheme. Poorer and less diverse floras of the Gondwanan and Angaran realms resulted in the establishment of relatively low-resolution macrofloral biostratigraphic schemes. Higher-resolution macrofloral zonations exist only in the tropical Amerosinian Realm due to diverse and abundant floras dominated by free-sporing and early seed plants occupying extensive wetlands.

Abstract: Separate biostratigraphical schemes have been developed for Permian macrofloras in the five main phytochoria (palaeokingdoms), reflecting the essential lack of overlap in taxonomic composition. In Europe two biozones are normally recognized, in North America three zones, in Cathaysia three or four zones, in Gondwana four zones and in Angara five zones. The stratigraphical resolution tends to be far less than that of palynology, and up to an order of magnitude coarser than the macrofloral biozones of the Pennsylvanian subsystem. This is probably due, at least in part, to the lack of rigor in the way that the Permian macrofloral zones have been defined. Nevertheless, the existing zones do provide evidence of the overarching trajectory of change in vegetation through the Permian Period, as it responded at all palaeolatitudes to a combination of climate change, large-scale volcanic eruptions and tectonically driven landscape changes.

Abstract Three works from the early 19th century stand out as having influenced the development of scientific palaeobotany: Schlotheim’s Beschreibungen merkwürdiger Kräuter-Abdrücke (1804, printed by Becker, Gotha), Sternberg’s Flora der Vorwelt , [Volume I: 1820–1821, (Parts 1 and 2), printed by F. Fleischer, Leipzig; 1823–1825 (parts 3 and 4), printed by E. Brenck’s Wittwe, Regensburg: Volume II: 1833 (Parts 5 and 6), printed by J. Spurny, Prague; 1838 (Parts 7 and 8), printed by G. Hässe und Söhre, Prague] and Brongniart’s Histoire des végétaux fossiles (1828–1837, 1837–1838, printed by G. Dufour & E. d’Ocagne, Paris). The text of all three works contains important insights into the nature of plant fossils and how they relate to modern-day vegetation. Significantly, however, they are also among the first published works to include accurate images of plant fossils, and thus raised the awareness of the scientific community as to the importance of such fossils. Schlotheim’s illustrations were based on his own drawings and were reproduced as etchings by the well-known botanical illustrator Johann Capieux of Leipzig. Sternberg’s illustrations were based on original artwork prepared by various artists, many of whom were essentially landscape and portrait artists. The final illustrations were again reproduced as etchings, prepared by another eminent botanical illustrator Jacob Sturm of Nuremberg. Brongniart’s illustrations are quite different, being lithographs, prepared by Mme Ve Noël, L. Houloup and ‘Thierry frères’. They were based on drawings by various artists, although most were, in effect, copies of originals prepared by Brongniart.

Abstract Emily Dix was a leading British palaeobotanist during the first half of the 20th century to deal with the stratigraphical distribution of macrofloras. She helped transform the use of fossil plants in defining biostratigraphic units in the Carboniferous strata in Britain; her plant-based zonation remains the foundation of Carboniferous macrofloral biostratigraphy today. She addressed several problems that came to dominate Carboniferous stratigraphical research during the second half of the century, including the mid-Carboniferous boundary and the Westphalian-Stephanian boundary. Her career was tragically cut short by mental illness when she was only in her early 40s.