Tectonic Evolution and Mineralization of the Moroccan Anti-Atlas

The Anti-Atlas mountain belt in southwestern Morocco records a protracted tectonic history spanning Neoproterozoic crustal assembly, Variscan deformation and post-Variscan rifting. Cadomian accretion and the Pan-African orogeny welded oceanic and continental fragments along high-grade shear zones, succeeded by extensional doming and basin formation during late Neoproterozoic times. Ediacaran to Cambrian magmatic flare-ups produced silicic large-igneous provinces and syn-tectonic plutons that hosted early gold and base-metal mineralisation. The Palaeozoic Variscan collision imparted intense deformation, regional metamorphism and syn-tectonic granitoid intrusions, while Permo-Triassic extension related to opening of the Central Atlantic introduced mafic dykes and reactivated older structures. Hydrothermal fluids exploited these inherited weaknesses to precipitate Cu, Au–Ag and Zn–Pb mineral systems in both magmatic and sedimentary settings. Cenozoic uplift drove supergene enrichment, generating economically significant oxide and secondary sulphide zones. The Anti-Atlas thus provides a globally relevant case study of how successive orogenic and extensional events control the distribution and evolution of mineral deposits.

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Tectonic Evolution and Mineralization of the Moroccan Anti-Atlas publication trend

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Technical terms

Pan-African orogeny: A late Neoproterozoic mountain-building event (c.650–550 Ma) during which Gondwana’s crustal fragments were welded together.

Variscan orogeny: A Late Palaeozoic collision (c.360–280 Ma) between Laurussia and Gondwana that produced widespread deformation and metamorphism in northwestern Africa and Europe.

Central Atlantic Magmatic Province (CAMP): A voluminous Early Mesozoic mafic igneous province associated with Pangaea rifting and the opening of the Central Atlantic Ocean.

Epigenetic mineralisation: Deposition of ore minerals from external hydrothermal fluids that migrate into pre-existing host rocks after their formation.

Syn-tectonic pluton: An intrusive body emplaced contemporaneously with deformation, often recording tectonic stress during crystallisation.

Shear zone: A planar or curviplanar zone of intense ductile or brittle deformation accommodating relative movement between crustal blocks.

Supergene enrichment: Secondary concentration of metals near the Earth’s surface through weathering, oxidation of primary sulphides and downward percolation of metal-bearing fluids.

References

1. The Jbel Saghro Au(–Ag, Cu) and Ag–Hg Metallogenetic Province: Product of a Long-Lived Ediacaran Tectono-Magmatic Evolution in the Moroccan Anti-Atlas. Minerals (2018).
2. La tectonique panafricaine du secteur d’Igherm : implication des dômes extensifs tardi a post-orogeniques (Anti-Atlas Occidental, Maroc). Estudios Geológicos (2005).
3. The Moroccan Massive Sulphide Deposits: Evidence for a Polyphase Mineralization. Minerals (2019).
4. The Missing Link in the Genesis of the Lower Paleozoic Copper Deposits of the Anti-Atlas (Morocco): The Late Triassic Central Atlantic Magmatic Province Event. Minerals (2023).
5. The Oumjrane-Boukerzia Mining District (Eastern Anti-Atlas, Morocco): Constraints of its geological and tectono-magmatic setting. Mining of Mineral Deposits (2023).