The progress of knowledge of the geological structure of the northwest of the Iberian peninsular until the early 1970s

Abstract

The aim of this article is to analize the evolution of the tectonic knowledge of the northwestern part of Spain, from the first geological maps and the first isolated tectonic data to the model established at the beginning of the seventies. The area to be analized has the interest of representing a complete cross-section of an orogenic belt, with three clearly delimited areas, from east to west: an external, non-metamorphic part, with décollement nappes, a fold-nappe area with increasing metamorphism from east to west, and an internal western part with high-grade metamorphim, granites, and basic/ultrabasic overriding complexes. In this article no other branches of the geology, such as stratigraphy, paleontology, petrology, sedimentology, etc, are considered. Only when dealing with the first geological papers published on the area, some references to the stratigraphy are made, as without the stratigraphical succession being established no tectonic interpretation is possible.