Calcretes are an important component of many ancient fluvial, lacustrine and shallow-marine carbonate sequences, and they are widely developed in many parts of the world at the present time. Calcretes are useful to the earth scientist involved in reconstructing ancient environments, palaeoclimates and palaeographics, and they may also reveal details of soil biota and chemistry. Over the last two decades the journal Sedimentology has published a number of articles on this subject and a compilation of them is presented here. In addition to the five main sections, this volume also includes an introduction to the subject that offers a review of recent work on calcretes. The collection of papers illustrates the range of calcrete occurrences and the great variety of textures and fabrics. This volume is authored and edited by experts and will serve as more than an introduction to the subject for geologists, soil scientists and geographers. If you are a member of the International Association of Sedimentologists, for purchasing details, please see: http://www.iasnet.org/publications/details.asp?code=RP2