Easternmost Avalonian and Armorican–Cadomian terranes of central Europe and Caledonian–Variscan evolution of the polydeformed Kraków mobile belt: geological constraints

Abstract

The Teisseyre–Tornquist transcurrent fault zone forms the southwestern margin of Baltica in central Europe. Across this fault zone Baltica is fringed by several tectonostratigraphic terranes, some with Cadomian basement. Five tectonostratigraphic terranes defined by dissimilar Cadomian basement and Paleozoic cover units are present in the Czech Republic and southern Poland between the Bohemian Massif and the Teisseyre–Tornquist fault zone. Two of these terranes, the Małopolska terrane and the Lubliniec–Zawiercie–Wieluń terrane, lodged in a restraining bend of the Teisseyre–Tornquist transcurrent fault zone during the sinistral transpression of Eastern Avalonia and Baltica, and were deformed during the Caledonian orogeny. The Łysogóry terrane, situated in a releasing bend of the Teisseyre–Tornquist transcurrent fault zone, has a thicker Paleozoic sedimentary succession than the neighboring terranes, and was deformed during the Variscan orogeny. The Moravian terrane is part of the Rhenohercynian zone of Armorica–Cadomia. The Upper Silesia terrane acted as an indentor and impinged on the assemblage of East Avalonian and Armorican–Cadomian terranes during the Early Carboniferous and deformed the polyorogenic Kraków mobile belt and the Moravian mobile belt. The Kraków mobile belt, deformed in both the Caledonian and Variscan orogenies, includes the western margin of the Małopolska terrane and the Lubliniec–Zawiercie–Wieluń terrane. It is also the locus of Early Carboniferous age magmatism with porphyry copper mineralization.