Clay mineral associations of Palaeocene and Eocene age, with special
attention to the late Palaeocene thermal maximum, have been examined in
ten sections from the Tethys (Egypt, Israel, Tunisia, Spain and
Kazakhstan) and Atlantic (England). A widespread abundance of kaolinite
in marine sediments at all locations suggests a warm and humid climate
with high rainfall in the Tethys region during the early Palaeocene. In
the coastal basins along the southern margin (Israel and southern
Tunisia), kaolinite disappears gradually giving way to palygorskite and
sepiolite, suggesting the progressive development of arid climatic
conditions in this part of the Tethys from the late Palaeocene to the
early Eocene. Remarkably, kaolinite increases strongly throughout most
of the Tethys during the late Palaeocene thermal maximum (LPTM)
reflecting an episode of humidity and warmth and coincident with a
global maximum warmth of seawaters inferred from oxygen isotopic data.