Evidence for mantle exhumation along

the Arabian margin in the Zagros

(Kermanshah area, Iran)

Arabian Journal of
Geosciences
ISSN 1866-7511
Volume 3
Number 4
Arab J Geosci (2010)
3:499-513
DOI 10.1007/s12517-010-0209z

1 23

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Arab J Geosci (2010) 3:499513
DOI 10.1007/s12517-010-0209-z

ORIGINAL PAPER

Evidence for mantle exhumation along the Arabian margin

in the Zagros (Kermanshah area, Iran)
Jean-Christophe Wrobel-Daveau & Jean-Claude Ringenbach & Saeid Tavakoli &
Geoffrey M. H. Ruiz & Pierre Masse & Dominique Frizon de Lamotte

Received: 26 May 2010 / Accepted: 30 September 2010 / Published online: 19 October 2010
# Saudi Society for Geosciences 2010

Abstract The Kermanshah Crush Zone (Zagros, Iran)

comprises elements from the Tethys Ocean and the former
oceancontinent transition. Serpentinites and gabbros exposed
in this area were formerly interpreted as originated from Tethys
ocean and other residual Tethys oceanic domains all situated
northeast of the Bisotoun platform. However, the structural
relationships between these ultramafic units remained unclear.
New field work in the KermanshahHarsin area led to the
description of detachment faults over serpentinised mantle.
Mid-Cretaceous carbonate extensional allochthons (prerift) and pelagic sediments (syn- to post-rift) dated from the
Liassic are exposed above these detachments. Such an age
mismatch can be explained by a polyphased mantle exhumation in a narrow basin along the Arabian margin with the
assumption that no radiolarite nappe has been thrusted over the
Bisotoun. Another detachment has been identified further to
the NE on Eocene gabbro. So far, this one is considered as an
intra-oceanic detachment from the residual Tethys. A first

J.-C. Wrobel-Daveau (*) : S. Tavakoli : D. Frizon de Lamotte

Universit de Cergy-Pontoise, Gosciences et Environnement,
F95 000 Cergy-Pontoise, France
e-mail: jean-christophe.wrobel-daveau@u-cergy.fr
J.-C. Wrobel-Daveau : J.-C. Ringenbach : P. Masse
TOTAL, Dpartement dinterprtation structurale et sdimentaire,
CSTJF,
F64 000 Pau, France
S. Tavakoli
NIOC, Geology Department,
Yaghma Alley-Jomhouri Ave,
Tehran P.O. Box 1863, Iran
G. M. H. Ruiz
Institut de Minralogie et de Gochimie, University of Lausanne,
Lausanne CH-1015, Switzerland

evolution model is proposed from early Jurassic to late

Cretaceous obduction along with how this interpretation may
be improved by future field work.
Keywords Zagros (Iran) . Tethys . Detachment . Mantle
exhumation . Late cretaceous

Introduction
In the Zagros Belt (Iran), the history of Tethys domain
remains poorly constrained. This is due to the limited
records of the tectono-sedimentary evolution of the former
passive margin (from Sepehr and Cosgrove 2004), exposures of Tethyan ophiolites being limited to the Neyriz and
Kermanshah crush zone (CZ) (Stcklin 1968) (Fig. 1). The
CZ is considered as the suture zone between the Central
Iran Block (SanandajSirjan Zone, SSZ) and the Arabian
Plate (Zagros Fold-and-Thrust Belt, ZFTB) (Fig. 1). The
main structural investigation in the Kermanshah area dates
back to the 1970s and 1980s, at the time of the mapping for
the Geological Survey of Iran (Braud 1978, 1987). Recent
structural and petrographic work permitted a better understanding of the convergence process (Agard et al. 2005;
Omrani 2008).
Tethyan rifting/drifting separated the Cimmerian Blocks
(Bernoulli and Lemoine 1980; Sengr 1990), including the
SSZ, from Gondwana. The Permian age of initial rifting and
the onset of Tethyan spreading during the Late Permian has
been established in Oman (Stampfli et al. 1991; Pillevuit et
al. 1997; Chauvet et al. 2009) and extended to the whole
margin up to the East Mediterranean (Stampfli et al. 1991,
2001; Stampfli and Borel 2002). So far, no rocks older
than Late Triassic (Braud 1987) have been found in the
Zagros CZ.

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Arab J Geosci (2010) 3:499513

Fig. 1 Structural sketch map of

the Central and Western Zagros
(Iran). The red square locates
the geological map of Fig. 2.
ZFTB Zagros foldthrust belt,
SSZ SanandajSirjan zone,
UDMA Urumieh Dokhtar magmatic arc, DF deformation front,
MFF main frontal fault, KSF
Kuh-e Sefid fault, KCZ
Kermanshah crush zone, MRF
main recent fault, MZRF main
Zagros reverse fault

Inception of the subduction under the SSZ during the

Jurassic (Omrani et al. 2008) is an evidence for dating the
onset of the convergence between Africa and Eurasia. Meanwhile, other authors think that the true convergence starts
during M0 period (i.e., 12083 Ma) (Rosenbaum et al. 2002).
Ricou (1994) emphasized the fundamental asymmetry of
the JurassicCretaceous Tethys, which was bounded by an
active margin to the north and a passive margin to the
south. This particular configuration allowed the rifting and
migration of continental blocks from the Arabia and their
drift and accretion to the Eurasian margin (Ricous concept
of Transit Plate). Such a setting implies the periodic
southward shifts of spreading ridges. Ricou (1994) suggested the existence of at least two Mesozoic southward
shifts of the ridge limiting the so-called Transit Plate to the
south. For him, as for Whitechurch (1993), the last one
should be TithonianBerriasian in age.
Recent evolution of oceancontinent transition (OCT)
models suggest that exhumation of sub-continental mantle is
a common tectonic process in divergent margins, generally
taking place between the thinned continental lithosphere and
the oceanic crust (e.g., Peron-Pindivic and Manatschal 2008).
We have performed new field work in Kermanshah CZ
in the light of recent concepts on passive margins evolution
revealing the presence of detachment faults over mantle
rocks. Although the data are still limited and hence
preventing a robust model to be built, a preliminary
interpretation is proposed, to be challenged by further work.

Geological setting
The Zagros orogenic system is a NWSE trending fold belt
stretching from southwestern Iran to northern Iraq (Fig. 1).
It results from the convergence and collision between the
Arabian Plate to the southwest and the Central Iran
Cimmerian Block to the northeast. Tectonic inversion of
the margin began during the Late Cretaceous in response to
the obduction of Tethyan oceanic lithosphere on the
Arabian passive margin (e.g., Stcklin 1968; Ricou 1971;
Ricou et al. 1977). After obduction, a residual oceanic
domain remained between the Arabian Plate and the
Central Iran Block. The continentcontinent collision
started around 35 Ma (e.g., Agard et al. 2005; Allen and
Armstrong 2008). By that time, deformation propagated
within the Arabian platform and produced the ZFTB (e.g.,
Sherkati et al. 2006).
Kermanshah CZ (Fig. 2) is located between the ZFTB
and the SSZ. It exposes elements from both the Tethys
domain stricto sensu and the residual Tethys composing the
nappes as defined by Braud (1978, 1987). It includes:

The strongly deformed Radiolaritic Nappe: Its original

substratum is interpreted as a continental rim basin
(Ricou et al. 1977; Braud 1987). In the Gamasiab Valley
(Fig. 2), recent paleontological dating (Gharib 2009)
shows that chert sedimentation extended over a wide
time interval from early Pliensbachian to early Turonian.

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501
4800'

4730'

NO

SSZ
Kuh

-e-B

3430'

-e- t
ng
Ta nesh
e
K

isito

un

SSZ

Undifferenciated Metamorphic
and magmatic rocks from SSZ
Eocene intrusion (Gabbros,
diabases...)
Undifferenciated Eocene deposits
(sedimentary and volcanic rocks)
Eocene flyshs

E
SO

SE

SANEH
Fig.8

Cretaceous Metamorphic nappe

NE

Fig.9a

Northern Neo-Tethys margin

MRF

Fig.9b

Tertiary
slices

Crush Zone

Fig.9d

Undifferenciated Quaternary depos.

Kuh-

Fig.7a

e-Qa

Fig.9c
KERMANSHAH

Neogene conglomerates

liahe

Bisitoun Unit (Upper Triassic

to Cenomanian)
Carbonate extentionnal Allochtons

HARSIN

Radiolarites (Lower Jurassic to

Upper Cretaceous)
Ultra mafic rocks
(e.g. Peridotites, Serpentinites...)

Southern Neo-Tethys margin

Zagros fold and thrust belt

Fig.11
Kuh

Qom Fm. (Oligo-Miocene)

MZRF

Ga
ma
sia
bV

all
ey

Kuh-e-Shire

rez

-e-Se

fid

Shi
e
h

ZFTB
25 Km

Ku

KSF

3400'

Tectonic contacts

Fig.4-5

Limit of the Suture

Zone (MZRF and KSF)

HARSIN

Thrusts
Detachment

Fig.7b
Fig. 2 Geological map of the Kermanshah crush zone [modified from Braud (1978), Ghomashi (1997) and Ghomashi (1999)], indicating the
location of the following figures (see the location on Fig. 1)

The Colored mlange composed of serpentinites, radiolarites, a few lava beds as well as carbonate blocks:
This mlange, called here the Harsin Mlange, is
exposed in the Harsin area (Fig. 2). The stratigraphic
and structural relationships between its components are
of first-order interest in this paper and will be detailed
below.
The Bisotoun Unit, composed of thick (ca. 1,500 to
3,000 m) shallow water carbonates (mostly platform
and reef) that range in age from late Triassic to early
late Cretaceous (Cenomanian): Based on stratigraphic
evidence, Ricou et al. (1977) and Braud (1987) proposed
that the Bisotoun platform separated from Arabia since
the late Triassic, with a radiolaritic trough in between.
The unit principally crops out in two high massifs,
namely, Kuh-e Bisotoun and Kuh-e Shirez, north of
Kermanshah and Harsin, respectively. In Kuh-e Bisotoun,
the oldest outcropping strata are made up of late Triassic
limestone whereas underlying rocks are not exposed
(Fig. 3). In Kuh-e Shirez, Braud (1987) described the
cherts deposited over serpentinites and passing upward

to the Bisotoun Limestone unit. Cherts are observed at

the top of the sequence in both massifs (Braud 1987).
The Bisotoun Unit is folded and locally thrusted.
The SanehShahabad ophiolite made up of serpentinised
peridotites and gabbros without volcanic rocks: It
has an intraplate oceanic island arc to island arc
chemical signature (Desmons and Beccaluva 1983;
Ghazi and Hassanipak 1999) and has been dated at
81.4 3.8 and 86.3 7.8 Ma (K/Ar; Delaloye and
Desmons 1980).

This nappe stack (Cretaceous Nappes; Braud 1987) was

emplaced during the CampanianSantonian obduction.
This major geodynamic event is recorded in the ZFTB
by the Campanian olistostrome cropping out beneath the
Radiolaritic Nappe (Braud 1987) and by mafic clasts in the
early Paleocene Amiran Formation (Homke et al. 2009).
The Cretaceous Nappes are unconformably overlain by the
Oligo-Miocene Qom Formation. Both were folded and
thrusted again, together with Cenozoic turbidites and
Paleogene pelagic limestones [the Tertiary Slices of Braud

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Arab J Geosci (2010) 3:499513

Fig. 3 Synthetic stratigraphic

logs of the Bisotoun unit, in
Kuh-e Bisotoun and Kuh-e
Shirez (simplified after Braud
1987)

Kuh-e Bisotoun
Late CRETACEOUS
(Cenomanian and younger)
Carbonates/Radiolarites

Kuh-e Shirez

"MIDDLE" CRETACEOUS
Micritic Limestone

Late CRETACEOUS
(Cenomanian and younger)

"MIDDLE" CRETACEOUS

NEOCOMIAN
Micritic Limestone

MALM
Micritic Limestone

Shallow marine facies.

Shallow marine facies.

Carbonates/Radiolarites

LIAS and DOGGER

NEOCOMIAN
Bedded Limestone

MALM
Micritic Limestone

Biocalcarenite

200m
200m

Bedded Limestone

LIAS and DOGGER

Bioclastic Limestone

UPPER TRIAS

LIAS

Reefal Limestone

Radiolarites

Spilites and Bioclastic

Serpentinites

Early JURASSIC to
Late CRETACEOUS
Radiolaritic Nappe

(1987)], during the collision with Central Iran Block and

the Eocene arc [calc-alkaline gabbros, Leterrier (1985),
Omrani (2008)].
The pre-obduction paleogeographic setting proposed by
Braud (1987) and Agard et al. (2005) comprises from
southwest to northeast: the Arabian Platform, the radiolaritic
trough (on continental crust), the Bisotoun Platform, and
Tethys Ocean. For these authors, the Harsin Mlange
belongs to the oceanic domain and was initially located
northeast of Bisotoun.

Evidence for detachments

The Harsin Mlange is made up of blocks of carbonate, chert,
and serpentinised peridotite. Braud (1987) described the
stratigraphic contacts between the three kinds of blocks and
suggested a possible fragmentation of the continental
margin. Re-interpretation of those contacts is a keystone
for arguing the existence of detachments within the
Kermanshah ophiolite.

Contact between blocks of carbonates and serpentines

On a hill south of Harsin, a contact between blocks of
carbonates and sheared serpentinite is exposed (Fig. 4). In the
serpentinites (Fig. 4, a) below the contact, shearing increases
upward. Towards the top, the hydrothermal veins (Fig. 4, b)
are well developed. The contact is a sharp horizontal plane,
over which rests monogenic carbonate breccias (Fig. 4, c).
The latter is composed of angular carbonate clasts (millimetric to 10 cm) in a carbonate matrix. The breccia thickness
is less than 1 m. The overlying carbonates are massive and
contain rudists (Fig. 4, d).
This geometry recalls what has been observed in the
south PennineAustroalpine units (Switzerland) and interpreted by Manatschal and Nievergelt (1997) as extensional
allochthons resting over a major detachment fault responsible for the exhumation of sub-continental mantle. In both
cases, the contact between blocks of carbonate and
serpentinites is of tectonic origin.
No sample from the massive carbonate was collected;
only the breccia was sampled. Microscopic observation did

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Fig. 4 Cretaceous carbonate
extensional allochthons resting
above exhumed mantle (coord.:
N34,24412/E47,60349); see
location on Figs. 2 and 10

503

SW

NE

Cretaceous Limestone

Tectonic breccia
Detachment fault
Hydrothermal veins
Serpentinite

b
a

not reveal the presence of marble, which suggests a cold

contact. The thin sections (Fig. 5) contain bioclastic
fragments of different ages. The presence of Sabaudia sp.
attests an age older than Albian, whereas Nezzazata sp.
suggests an age younger than Cenomanian.
There is no clue to discriminate whether the carbonate is
a fragment of the Arabian platform (Sarvak Formation) or
from the Bisotoun Unit. However, considering its structural
location, less than 10 km south of Kuh-e Shirez, we assume
it was derived from Bisotoun Unit. At a larger scale, the
detachment is folded (Fig. 6) below the Oligo-Miocene
Qom Limestone unconformity.
Sedimentary contacts between chert and peridotite
Cherts deposited on top of serpentinites have been observed
in two localities. The first outcrop documented in Fig. 7a is
located on the northwestern side of Kuh-e Shirez (Fig. 2).
The base of the outcrop is composed of sheared serpentinites.
Breccias made up of peridotite clasts cemented by red cherts
(Fig. 7b) are locally observed along the contact, which is
overlain by a few tens of meters of red cherts. Cherts grade
upwards into the Bisotoun carbonates in a stratigraphic
transition (Braud 1987).
A second contact between cherts and serpentinites has
been observed south of Harsin, 1 km to the southeast of the
extensional allochthon in Fig. 4. The cherts (N65/75NW)
are overturned. Here, no breccia has been observed, and
radiolarites are directly deposited over highly sheared
serpentinites.

In both locations, cherts have not been dated in this

study and the samples dated, as reported in the literature,
are not precisely located close to the contact with the
serpentinites. Braud (1987) already described the occurrence of radiolarites at the base of the Bisotoun sequence
under Kuh-e Shirez and thus proposed a Liassic age. In the
Radiolaritic Nappe, the oldest ages proposed by Gharib
(2009) are also Liassic, for the radiolarites exposed along a
composite section located in the Gamasiab valley, southwest of Harsin (Fig. 2). Moreover, in Neyriz, Robin et al.
(2010) found ages older than Aalenian up to Turonian for
the equivalent formations belonging to the Pitchakun
Nappe.
In Kermanshah CZ, the pelagic sediments overlie a
serpentinised and sheared peridotite, with reworked fragments of serpentinites and cherts clasts at the base. These
characteristics allow one to suggest an interpretation of the
contact as a detachment.
Relationships between gabbros and pelagic carbonates
north of Kuh-e Qaliaheh
The tectonic slices made up of Cenozoic rocks lie in the
north of the CZ, beneath the metamorphic nappes coming
from the SSZ (Braud 1987). A massif of gabbros (Fig. 8a)
is located north of the Kuh-e Qaliaheh Massif (Fig. 2). It is
affected by multiple small thrusts repeating the top gabbro
carbonate sequence. The top of each thrust sheet consists of
an about 10-m-thick pelagic carbonate bed overlying the
gabbro. Near the contact, numerous white veins (likely

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504
Fig. 5 Thin-section pictures of
the tectonic breccia located at
the contact between Cenomanian
carbonates and serpentinites.
a General overview of the
tectonic breccia. b Nezzazata
spp. (rarely older than
Cenomanian). c Nezzazata/
Valvulineria sp. (rarely older
than Cenomanian). d Sabaudia
sp. (not younger than Albian).
e Caprinidae offneria sp. (Lower
Aptian) or Ichtyosarcolites sp.
(Cenomanian). f Reworked algae
(?). g Paraspirolina sp. (?)

Arab J Geosci (2010) 3:499513

500m

100m

100m

100m

500m

500m

100m

ophicalcite) are observed in the gabbro. This sharp contact

is overlain by a coarse monogenic clast-supported breccia
made up of 510 cm gabbro clasts wrapped in a carbonate
matrix (Fig. 8b). It grades upwards into the pelagic
carbonate. The top of the limestone has a schistose foliation
in the footwall of the next thrust-sheet. A dolerite intrusion
crosses the contact and intrudes the breccia (Fig. 8c).

In the Kermanshah CZ to the NW, in a comparable

structural context, Leterrier (1985) dated a gabbro and
diorite massif at 4038 Ma (K-Ar). The overlying pelagic
limestones are dated from pelagic foraminiferas as late
PaleoceneEocene in age [Braud 1987; age which has been
confirmed on our samples by Totals Biostratigraphy
department (oral communication)]. This contact also has

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Fig. 6 General view of a
detachment fault (between
Cretaceous carbonate and
serpentinite) preserved south of
Harsin [note that the detachment
has been deformed by recumbent folding (fold axis are
indicated) before the deposition
of the Qom formation], same
location as Fig. 4

505

ESE

WNW
b
c
a

Oligo-Miocene Qom Fm.

Cretaceous Limestone

Serpentinite

Detachment

the characteristics of a detachment. Here it occured over a

gabbro in a deep marine environment and was subsequently
intruded by a dolerite before deposition of the limestone.
Relationships of Bisotoun unit with surrounding structural
domains
The northern flank of the Kuh-e Bisotoun Massif is underthrusted beneath the Saneh-Shahabad ophiolite (Fig. 9b).
This contact is sealed by the Qom Limestone. To the south,
the Kuh-e Bisotoun Massif is thrusted over the Radiolaritic

Fig. 7 Stratigraphic contact between early Jurassic cherts and

serpentinites (exhumed mantle). a Geometry of the contact in the
field (coord.: N34,33426/E47,53241); b synthetic log crossing the
former sea bottom at the time of cherts deposition. Notice the presence,

Nappe in the Tang-e Kenesht half-window (Figs. 2 and 9a),

(Braud 1987). Along this transect, the Bisotoun Unit is
sandwiched between the Saneh-Shahabad ophiolite and the
Radiolaritic Nappe.
In the HarsinSaneh transect, the Bisotoun platform was
deposited over the serpentinite with cherts in between. The
thrust relationship between the Saneh-Shahabad ophiolite
and the Bisotoun Limestone has not been observed. It may
be cut and hidden by the back-thrust which is observed
between the Bisotoun of Kuh-e Qaliaheh and the gabbros
and pelagic limestones of the Tertiary Slices (Fig. 9d).

locally, of a tectonic breccia between chert and serpentine (see more

details in the text) (coord.: N34,24440/E47,61193); see locations on
Figs. 2 and 10

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Arab J Geosci (2010) 3:499513

NNE

SSW
Gabbro Breccia

Pelagic
Lst

one

cL

agi

Pel

st
ime

Dolerite Sill

~25m

Gabbro

Gabbro
Breccia

Gabbro Breccia

a
Gabbro
Detachment

Fig. 8 Detachment over a Gabbro dome. a General view showing the

detachment over gabbro overlied by pelagic limestone; b zoom on
gabbro breccias (see more details in the text) over gabbro; c gabbro

breccia intruded by magmatic sill (dolerite) (coord.: N34,40132/

E47,77150); see location on Figs. 2 and 10

Towards the south, the Kuh-e Shirez Unit, which constitutes the south-eastern extent of the same carbonate
block, is thrusted over the Harsin Mlange (Fig. 9c).
Thus, the Bisotoun Unit is not necessarily a tectonic
window under the Saneh-Shahabad ophiolite. An alternative model is possible. The only time constraint comes from
the unconformable Oligo-Miocene Qom Formation which
was deposited over the eroded Cretaceous Nappes and
was subsequently folded and thrusted during the collision.
Around Bisotoun, Oligo-Miocene series seal the southwardverging thrusts of the Saneh-Shahabad mafics over the
Bisotoun Unit and of the Bisotoun Unit over the Harsin
Mlange. The folding/thrusting of the Qom Formation (in
the Tertiary Nappes and in the rest of the CZ) as well as the
back-thrusting of the Bisotoun over the gabbros belongs to
the Zagros FTB collisional history.

1987). Besides the Eocene gabbro and associated dolerite

intrusion, these ophiolites are only composed of serpentinised
peridotite. Three packages can be distinguished:
In the Harsin area, the serpentinites are topped by a
detachment above which have been observed: (1) small
extensional allochthons of Middle Cretaceous carbonates
and (2) cherts deposited on the sheared and hydrothermalised
serpentinite, reworking clasts of serpentinites and cherts.
North of Bisotoun, a sheet of serpentinite is squeezed
between the Tertiary thrust sheets and the Bisotoun block.
The gabbros of the Tertiary Nappes are dated Eocene in age.
They are overlain by a detachment, which is in turn sealed by
PaleoceneEocene pelagic carbonates.
In a slow-spreading ridge context, gabbros can be
brought up to the seafloor through detachment faulting
(Ildefonse et al. 2007). Here, the dolerite intruding the
gabbro is seen as originating from the same magma suite.
The puzzling question in this area is the existence of calcalkaline diorite intruding the gabbros. Such calc-alkaline
rocks have been interpreted by previous authors as an
evidence for a supra-subduction environment close to the
northern margin of Tethys (Leterrier 1985; Braud 1987).
Nevertheless, a recent work shows that fluid circulation
along detachment faults can result in hydrous partial

Interpretation
Ophiolite(s)
The main characteristic of the ophiolites in the Kermanshah
CZ is the quasi-absence of an oceanic crustal layer (Braud

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507

Fig. 9 Field pictures and interpretations of the relationships of the

Bisotoun unit with surrounding structural domains (see locations on
Figs. 2 and 10); a south of Kuh-e Bisotoun, panorama (mirror image)
of Tang-e Kenesht tectonic window showing Radiolaritic Nappe under
Bisotoun unit; b north of Kuh-e Bisotoun, Saneh-Shahabad ophiolite
thrusting over Bisotoun unit (mirror image); c South of Kuh-e Shirez,

Bisotoun Limestone thrusting over Harsin Mlange (serpentinite and

chert); d north of Kuh-e Shirez (Kuh-e Qaliaheh): (1) panorama
picture (mirror image) and (2) schematic section of Bisotoun unit
back-thrusting over gabbros and associated pelagic limestone of the
tertiary slices; see locations on Figs. 2 and 10

melting of previous magmatic rocks (Koepke et al. 2007)

and France et al. (2010) show that such hydrous partial melt
can have a calc-alkaline affinity. As evidenced by their age,
exhumation of the gabbros occurred after late Cretaceous
obduction, in the residual Tethys setting. Gabbros, dolerites,
and diorites could form in response to a common oceanic
stretching process rather than in a subduction zone. Based on
the existing maps, the gabbro could intrude the peridotites
cropping out to the west. This ophiolite was connected to the
one behind the Bisotoun, the Tethys Saneh-Shahabad
ophiolite. The Harsin ophiolite in front of the Bisotoun is
seen as the mantle floor of a small basin between the Arabia
and the Bisotoun block.

After Liassic and until the Cenomanian, sedimentation

remained dominantly carbonated in the Bisotoun block,
whereas it remained cherty in the Harsin Basin. Thus, the
radiolaritic trough was probably also developed above
exhumed mantle.

Pelagics/radiolarites
Both from the Radiolaritic Nappe (Gharib 2009) and at the
base of the Bisotoun in Kuh-e Shirez (Braud 1987), the
oldest radiolarites are dated Liassic. No other possible substratum than the mantle rocks has been found, and where the
contact is observed it is a detachment. This suggests a Liassic
mantle exhumation.

Extensional allochthons
The presence of the breccia made up of carbonate clasts, at
the interface with sheared and hydrothermalised serpentinites,
implies that the emplacement of the carbonate block was
neither linked to collapse nor to sedimentation. It is best
interpreted as an extensional allochthon emplaced over
serpentinites during an episode of mantle exhumation.
The detachment reworked limestones of different Cretaceous ages, its youngest Cenomanian age being the oldest
possible age for the detachment activity.
The syn- or pre-Liassic age of mantle exhumation
constrained by the overlying cherts in Kuh-e Shirez and
the post-Cenomanian age of mantle exhumation implied by
the extensional allochthons south of Harsin remain difficult
to reconcile. A possible interpretation is to imagine a

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Arab J Geosci (2010) 3:499513

Kuh-e Shirez
SSE

Fig. 4-5
and 7b

Fig. 9c

Kuh-e Qaliaheh

NNW S

Fig. 9d
Fig. 8

2000m

2000m

1000m

1000m

0m

0m

Tertiar
slice
Gabbros
Bisitoun Unit
Cretaceous
nappes

Radiolarites
Serpentinite
Incipient Thrust
Post-Cenomanian Detachment
Lower Jurassic Detachment

Fig. 10 Tentative cross-section of the Kermanshah CZ, along a HarsinSaneh transect location of previous figures is indicated; see location of the
cross-section on Fig. 2

reactivation of the lower Jurassic detachment during the

early late Cretaceous just before the episode of inversion
marked by peri-arabic obduction.
The Bisotoun block
The Bisotoun Block initially located between the radiolaritic trough (including Harsin sub-oceanic basin) and
Tethys may have the same overall geodynamic meaning as
the exotic blocks described in Oman (Pillevuit et al.
1997). The nature of the original substratum of the
Bisotoun Unit beneath the large Kuh-e Bisotoun block
remains unknown but is assumed to be continental crust
(Braud 1987). Such a limestone, deposited in a shallowwater environment throughout more than 100 Ma, is
consistent with a continental substratum.

Paleogeographic reconstruction
Agard et al. (2005) proposed a general section and coeval
geodynamical evolution for the Kermanshah CZ. These
authors consider that the Bisotoun Unit is a tectonic
window located in the footwall of the Saneh-Shahabad
south-verging thrust and that the thrusting of the limestone
unit was a late out-of-sequence event. In our interpretation,

Indicative Location of Figure 12

Platform Carbonates

ad

io

la

ic

tro

-e

ug

ou

sit

ia

Pl

Tethys Oceanic
domain

Late Cretaceous detachment

r
fo

at

Normal fault in the Continental crust

Bi

ab

Ridge and tranform

h
Ku

rit

Radiolarites
Ar

Fig. 11 Sketch map of the

possible location of the detachments at early Jurassic and late
Cretaceous with respect to the
position of Bisotoun carbonates
(Kuh-e Bisotoun and Kuh-e
Shirez). The map was modified
after Barrier and Vrielynck
(2008), paleo-reconstruction of
the Tethys (Mid. Toarcian).
Orientation of spreading ridges
and transform faults are based
on the interpretations of
Navabpour et al. (2010).
Approximate location of the
geodynamic sketch (Fig. 12) is
indicated

To the SE, in the Kuh-e Shirez area, the limestone patches

are much smaller and seem to overlay the mantle, with cherts
at the base. Whether all the sequence was deposited on the
exhumed mantle or whether it belongs to a tectonic block
detached and drifted from the main Bisotoun body is unclear.
The interpretations proposed above are synthesized in a
tentative general section of the CZ (Fig. 10).

Early Jurassic detachment

Kuh-e-Shirez

Harsin suboceanic basin

Direction of extensional allochthon

movement (Late Cretaceous)

NO

NE

SO

SE

O
~50Km

E
S

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Arab J Geosci (2010) 3:499513

509

the Bisotoun is the cover of a micro-continental block and

not a tectonic window. It is thrusted between the Tethyan
units (Saneh-Shahabad ophiolite and associated pelagics)
and the Harsin Basin floor (exhumed mantle) and its
radiolarite filling. Based on the available ages for the
radiolarites, the Harsin Basin starts at least in the Liassic
and at least part of the radiolaritic trough was mantlefloored. This situation is observed in the Harsin area, in the

SW

~Km
0

southeastern part of the trough. Further northwest, as

previously proposed by Braud (1987), the pelagic may
have deposited on thinned continental crust.
Late Cretaceous limestone extensional allochthons are
found on the detachment. The small one which has been
dated is rather clear, but the large limestone patches near
Harsin (Kuh-e Shirez) might be larger ones, detached from
the Bisotoun on their radiolaritic sole. As the detachment is

ARABIAN
HARSIN
CONTINENTAL SUB-OCEANIC
BISITOUN
PLATFORM
BASIN
PLATFORM
?

Proximal Margin

NEO-TETHYS
BASIN

SANANDAJ-SIRJAN
ACTIVE MARGIN

NE

Distal margin

40
Mantle Exhumation

Ridge (MOR?)

Early Jurassic: Harsin Basin creation

SW
ARABIAN
Local Rifting CONTINENTAL
intra-Arabia PLATFORM

HARSIN
SUB-OCEANIC
BASIN

BISITOUN
PLATFORM

NEO-TETHYS
BASIN

~Km
0
?

40

All
oc
hth
on
s

New Mantle Exhumation

SW

ARABIAN
CONTINENTAL
PLATFORM

HARSIN
SUB-OCEANIC
BASIN

BISITOUN
PLATFORM

NE
SANANDAJ-SIRJAN
ACTIVE MARGIN
Possible back-arc
extension

Ridge shift
New Ridge

Late-Cretaceous (Post-Cenomanian): extension in Harsin Basin

Possible
onset of
~Km inversion
0

NEO-TETHYS
BASIN

Intensive Slab-pull

SANANDAJ-SIRJAN
ACTIVE MARGIN

NE

40
?

Late Cretaceous (Campanian): Nappes obduction

c

Arabian Carbonate Platform

Upper Crust

Oceanic Crust

Extensional fault

Bisitoun Carbonate Platform

Middle Crust

Upper Lithospheric Mantle (Brittle)

Lower Jurassic Detachment

Radiolarites and pelagic sediments

Lower Crust

Lower Lithospheric Mantle (Ductile)

Post-Cenomanian Detachment

Paleozoic sediments (Pre-rift)

Undif SSZ
continental crust

Asthenosphere

Incipient Thrust

Fig. 12 Tentative geodynamic evolution of the Tethys, near Kermanshah

area (composite reconstruction including elements observed in Kuh-e
Bisotoun and in Kuh-e Shirez), from the Arabian border to the
SanandajSirjan zone (after Mohn et al., submitted for publication).
a Early Jurassic: splitting of Bisotoun platform away from the
Gondwana; b late Cretaceous (post Cenomanian): extension in the

Harsin sub-oceanic basin, emplacement of extensional allochthons

over exhumed mantle c late Cretaceous (Campanian) inversion
(obduction), geometry of thrusts is indicated (red). The approximate
location of the southern part of the reconstruction is indicated in
Fig. 11 (for early Jurassic)

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Arab J Geosci (2010) 3:499513

locally covered by Liassic pelagics, one must imagine a late

Cretaceous reactivation to explain such situation. This late
Cretaceous event induced extra stretching along the thinned
Arabian margin and in the Harsin part of the trough

(Figs. 11 and 12). The detachment on top of Eocene

gabbros is seen in the context of continued spreading in the
residual Tethys northeast of the obduction (similar to the
current geodynamic setting of Oman).

40 N

1
7

3
2

35

1
4

9
6

8
30

25

5
20

Geologic domains

Cenozoic fold-and-thrust belts

Mesozoic and Cenozoic
platform

15

Arc related magmatisms

Terrane

Paleozoic
Precambrian basement

Eurasia

Quaternary

Continental windows

Mio-Holocene

Ophiolite

Cretaceous

Ophiolite complex

Mesozoic

Tectonics

Arabia

Mid-Late Cretaceous extension

35

Ophiolitic systems

40

Eocene volc.
& plutonism
Paleocene/Eocene
undiff. volc. & plut.

45

Fig. 13 Simplified tectonic map of the Arabian plate showing the

location of the main ophiolitic belts and of the main basins affected by
upper cretaceous extension. Numbers on the map: Light green squares
(ophiolites): 1 Mersin ophiolite (9296 Ma) (Parlak and Delaloye
1999), 2 Troodos ophiolite (9092 Ma) (Musaka and Ludden 1987), 3
Khoy ophiolite (10072 Ma) (Khalatbari-Jafari et al. 2004), 4 Berit
ophiolite (85 Ma) (Robertson et al. 2006) 5 Semail ophiolite (92
95 Ma) (Tilton et al. 1981; Hacker and Mosenfelder 1996), 6 Naien-baft
ophiolite (93 Ma) (Davoudzadeh 1972; Dimitrijevic 1973; ShafaiiMoghadam et al. 2009), 7 Neyriz ophiolite (9395 Ma) (Haynes and

Strike-slip
Thrust
Normal

faults

Main folds

50

55

60 E

Reynolds 1980; Lanphere and Pamic 1983), 8 Saneh/Kermanshah

ophiolite (86 Ma) (Delaloye and Desmons 1980; Ghazi and Hassanipak
1999), 9 Baer-Basit/(Hatay) ophiolite (7399 Ma) (Delaloye and
Wagner 1984; Al-Riyami et al. 2002). Dark green circles (Cretaceous
Basins): 1 Euphrates Graben (Kazmin 2002), 2 Sinjar trough (Brew et
al. 2001), 3 Jebel Abd el Aziz (Brew et al. 2001), 4 Anah Graben (Brew
et al. 2001), 5 Haushi-Huqf (Montenat and Barrier 2002; comment by
Fournier et al. 2005), 6 Palmyrides extension (Lovelock 1984; Chaimov
et al. 1992; Kazmin 2002), 7 Kurd Dagh Mountains (Brew et al. 2001),
8 Azraq-Sirhan trough (Guiraud and Bosworth 1999), 9 Khleissia basin

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Arab J Geosci (2010) 3:499513

Discussion
In the existing geodynamic reconstruction of the area (e.g.,
Agard et al. 2005), the Bisotoun platform developed over a
continental crust paleo-high, separated from the Arabian
plate by a continental rim basin hosting the radiolaritic
trough. The substratum of the Bisotoun Unit is not exposed.
However, assuming its deposition on a continental block
seems the most realistic conjecture to explain the deposition
of such a thick sequence of platform carbonates during a
large period of time (late Triassic to middle/late Cretaceous). Under Kuh-e Shirez, field evidence show cherts and
then carbonate sediments deposited over exhumed mantle.
We interpret these blocks as large rafts along the detachment,
emplaced during the late Cretaceous stretching episode.
The extensional tectonic regime observed in the
Kermanshah CZ during the late Cretaceous is not an
isolated event at the scale of the Arabian plate.
The mantle exhumation in Kermanshah can be correlated
with the important tectonic event, recorded by deposition
of olistoliths close to the AptianAlbian boundary in Neyriz
(Robin et al. 2010). It can, more generally, be correlated
with the age of the ophiolites given by paleontological and
radiometric data all around the Arabian Peninsula (i.e.,
approximately 95 Ma (Ricou 1971; Coleman 1971) or more
recently and generally (Agard et al. 2007; Monie and Agard
2009)) (Fig. 13). This renewed rifting/spreading activity in
late Cretaceous time, from Oman to Syria, seems to have
affected domains weakened during the initial rifting (as the
radiolaritic trough of Kermanshah) as well as the initial
oceancontinent transition itself, the later accounting for the
Semail Nappe and equivalent from Oman to Syria (Fig. 13).
Mantle exhumation was coeval with the last southward shift
of the Tethys ridge, suggesting that the last reorganization
of the Tethys was younger than what has been proposed by
Ricou (1994). Because the mantle was exhumed soon
before the change to direct convergence between Arabia
and Eurasia, it constituted weak zones. This complete
reorganization of the boundary conditions in the Tethys
system, associated with the plate acceleration shown by
Agard et al. (2007), could trigger the obduction.
During the late Cretaceous time also, limited short-lived
back-arc oceanic basins developed in the Central Iran block
forming the Nain-Baft ophiolites described by Moghadam
et al. (2009). On the other side of the Tethys, an Albian
rifting episode led to the formation of the so-called periArabian trench system and was accompanied by basalts
flooding in Syria, Israel, and Liban (Kazmin 2002). More
precisely, rifting has been observed at c.a. 100 Ma in Syria.
Late Cretaceous is also the period of development of the E
W Sinjar Basin and NWSE Euphrates graben as well as a
renewed rifting in the Palmyrides (Brew et al. 2001;
Kazmin 2002; Sawaf et al. 2001). In Iraq, rifting in the

511

NWSE Khleissia graben is an evidence of the same age.

Elsewhere in the Arabian plate a regional unconformity exists
everywhere at the bottom of Turonian beds. Finally, in the
easternmost part of Oman, Montenat and Barrier (2002)
propose a late Aptian NESW extensional deformation,
whereas Fournier et al. (2005) date this event as post-Albian.

Conclusion
In the Kermanshah suture zone, field evidence suggests that
the late Cretaceous obduction resulted in the emplacement
of the Bisotoun Unit. This unit is sandwiched between two
oceanic domains, the Harsin sub-oceanic basin to the south
and the Tethys stricto sensu to the north, respectively. This
scenario seems more reliable than what was previously
proposed (i.e., a single ophiolitic nappe carried from the
northeast over Bisotoun, interpreted as a tectonic window).
A younger stack of nappes, composed of gabbros, intrusive
rocks, and pelagic sediments, was emplaced during the late
Eocene on top of the former Cretaceous edifice. Further
work will aim at precising the geodynamic context of
exhumation at the sea floor of those gabbros.
For the first time, we present evidence for detachments
and mantle exhumation in the Zagros suture zone. This
work bears a strong implication on the geodynamics of the
Tethyan margin. The area deserves further studies because
the geodynamic concepts evolved a lot since the work of
Braud.
In this new model, the Harsin Basin results from mantle
exhumation and detachment faulting operating at two
different periods: early Jurassic and Cenomanian. The early
Jurassic mantle exhumation is correlative with the individualization of the Bisotoun platform from the Arabian plate
(late Triassicearly Jurassic) and with the Neo-Tethys
opening. The late Cretaceous mantle exhumation is consistent also with events occurring in the Tethys realm and in
both adjacent continents. At a global scale, the Cretaceous
quiet magnetic period (between 120 and 83 Ma) was a time
for major plate reorganizations and development of superplumes (e.g. Ricou 1994; Vaughan and Scarrow 2003). It
seems that this reorganization did not spare the Arabian
margin as shown in Kermanshah.

Acknowledgements This work results from a research agreement

between NIOC, TOTAL, and the University of Cergy-Pontoise. The
logistic for field work was supported by NIOC. We wish to thank Dr.
S. Sherkati (NIOC) for his help in the field and, more generally, Dr. D.
Baghdani and Dr. S. Sherkati for their constant support. J-C. WrobelDaveau and S. Tavakoli acknowledge TOTAL for Ph.D. scholarships.
We particularly thank P. Agard, J. Braud, G. Manatschal, G. Mohn,
C. Wibberley, S. Khomsi, G. Nely, J.F. Ballard, F. Humbert, L. France,
and H. Whitechurch for fruitful discussions and corrections. The
editorial work done by F. Roure is particularly acknowledged.

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512

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