1. Sorby, H. C., 1851, On the microscopical structure of the calcareous grit of the Yorkshire coast: Geol. Soc. London Quart. Jour., v. 7, p.1–6.First use of a petrographic microscope to examine limestone in thin section and first use of insoluble residue technique.
2. — 1853, On the microscopical structure of some British Tertiary and post-Tertiary freshwater marls and limestones (abstract): Geol. Soc. London Quart. Jour., v. 9, p. 344–346. Probably the first published modal analysis made from thin section study of carbonate rocks.
3. Sorby, H. C. 1879, The structure and origin of limestones: Geol. Soc. London Proc., v. 35, p. 56–95, 11 figs, 2 tables.Decades in advance of his contemporaries, SORBY considered the general structure of various groups of shells, their mineralogy and relation to shell microstructure, their disintegration and replacement. Also described different types of carbonates of all ages in the British Isles. Reading this paper keeps one humble for here—in a single paper—are the foundations of carbonate petrology!
4. Bornemann, J. G., 1885, Beiträge zur Kenntniβ des Muschelkalks, insbesondere der Schichtenfolge und der Gesteine des unteren Muschelkalks in Thüringen: Jahrb. Kgl. preuss. geol. Landesanstalt Bergakademie (1885), v. 6, p. 267–321, pls. 7-14, fig. A.One of the first petrographic studies of a carbonate. Excellent plates with identifications. Six major rock types recognized. Petrography integrated with several vertical profiles. Faunal lists. Discusses classification of Muschelkalk in Thüringen. Classical paper.
5. Cayeux, Lucien, 1897, Contribution à l’étude micrographique des terrains sédimentaires I. Étude de quelques dépôts siliceux secondaires et tertiaires d u Bassin de Paris et de la Belgique II. Craie du Bassin de Paris: Lille, Le Bigot Frères, Imprimeurs-Editeurs, 589 p., 10 pls., 20 figs.This volume summarizes the author’s early work (starting in the 1880’s) on the petrographic study of sedimentary rocks. In Part II the Cretaceous chalk is studied in detail coneluding with an analysis of depositional environment (chapter 15). Interesting bibliography of 312 items arranged in sequential order. The first systematic petrography. Classical paper.