Loma Negra Research Articles

New geological and geochronological constraints on the evolution of the Cotacachi - Cuicocha volcanic complex (Ecuador)

Extensive fieldwork at the Cotacachi-Cuicocha Volcanic Complex (CCVC, North of Ecuador) resulted in a new collection of geological data including cartography, chronology, petrography, geochemistry, and morphology. This volcanic complex is formed by a central volcano (Cotacachi: 4939 m asl, current bulk volume of 56 ± 4 km3), several peripheral domes, and a 3 km wide volcanic caldera (Cuicocha: 4.2 ± 0.1 km3). CCVC comprises three stratigraphic members: The first, Cotacachi Basal, represents the initial phase of construction, which started at 173 ± 4 ka with a basal andesitic lava flow succession (∼500 m-thick) including isolated basaltic-andesitic lavas (Verde Tola unit; NE: 113 ± 6 ka, SE: 133 ± 9 ka), the construction of some peripheral amphibole-bearing andesitic domes, such as Muyurcu and Loma Negra (138 ± 4 ka and <108 ka, respectively), and a debris-avalanche deposit to the north-west (0.5–1.8 km3, older than 108 ka). The second member, Upper Cotacachi, consists of an andesitic lava flow succession (∼300 m-thick), younger than 108 ± 6 ka. A gap of activity occurred afterwards from 100 to 70 ka, during which a second debris-avalanche (0.2–1.1 km3, 108 to 65 ka) occurred to the NE, followed by the effusion of the dacitic Piribuela dome (65 ± 2 ka). Afterwards, several superimposed andesitic lava flows were emplaced at the summit, possibly around 15–10 ka since they lack glacial erosion. The third member includes the extrusion of the andesitic Cuicocha pre-caldera domes, which marks the beginning of a new eruptive stage of activity of CCVC during the Holocene, resulting in a violent eruption (3525 ± 35 to 2980 ± 30 a BP; VEI = 5) that partially destroyed the young dome and formed a funnel-shaped caldera (Cuicocha Caldera-Lake), ending with the emplacement of the Wolf and Yerovi post-caldera domes.

Paleoseismology of the Marquesado-La Rinconada thrust system, Eastern Precordillera of Argentina

Excavated trenches at two sites across the Marquesado–La Rinconada fault system along the eastern Precordilleran front south of San Juan, Argentina, reveal the earthquake history of this rapidly urbanizing region. Interpretation of earthquakes is based on both the generation of colluvial wedges and upward fault terminations, as well as folding events in fine-grained alluvium ponded behind upslope-facing fault scarps. The ages of the past five interpreted earthquakes at the Loma Negra site are E1 at 2.8 ± 2.8 ka, E2 at 7.1 ± 1.5 ka, E3 at 9.6 ± 1.3 ka, E4 at 14.4 ± 2.1 ka, and E5 at 17.2 ± 3.1 ka. At the Jejenes sites, we documented event ages of 2.7 ± 0.1 ka, 3.9 ± 0.6 ka, 5.9 ± 1.3 ka, and 11.4 ± 4 ka. These results indicate that the recurrence interval along the Marquesado–La Rinconada fault zone averages several thousand years. The inferred displacements at the Jejenes site are about 1.1 m for E1, E3, and E4 and 2.1 m for event E2, whereas the displacements at Loma Negra averaged about 1 m, but the most recent event displays less slip. Notably, the older events seem to have been larger and emergent, whereas the youngest event appears to have been smaller and blind in the ponded sediment; this may partially explain the poor expression of classic colluvial wedges associated with some events. Despite the fact that active surface faulting has an uncertain relationship with the primary seismic sources at depth in the crust, past and future events of Mw∼7.5 are consistent with the length scale of active deformation, the ∼1–2 m slip per event scale of these ruptures, and the size of historical earthquakes.

Redox-sensitive trace element distribution in the Loma Negra Formation in Argentina: The record of an Ediacaran oxygenation event

The limestones of the Loma Negra Formation provide an excellent opportunity to examine the behaviour of rare earth elements plus yttrium (REY) due to the near-zero diagenetic alteration of the carbonate system. The terrigenous supply to this unit was minimal or scarce in relation to the depth of seawater in which the limestones accumulated. The interpreted palaeoenvironment suggests that limestones could have originated by suspension fall-out in a shallow, open marine ramp. The diagenetic features, composition, and original microtextures are considered good criteria for investigating their REY composition. Burial diagenesis products were limited and limestones largely preserved their original texture and organic matter, as well as their isotope and trace element composition. The study of REY distribution in the Loma Negra Formation in different settings of the Tandilia System revealed systematic chemostratigraphic patterns related to uniform palaeo-redox conditions. The general light rare-earth element depletion, marked positive La, Y, and Gd anomalies, as well as the clear negative Ce anomalies, are further features typically ascribed to oxidizing seawater conditions. From these results, it can be concluded that the Loma Negra Formation documents an oxygenation event that stands out in the overall anoxic Ediacaran ocean. This record may be correlated with the mid-Ediacaran oxygenation event (ca. 580 Ma). This may support the hypothesis that the Clymene Ocean was well oxygenated and connected during the Ediacaran, at least in the southwestern border of Gondwana.

Preglacial palaeoenvironmental evolution of the Ediacaran Loma Negra Formation, far southwestern Gondwana, Argentina

The Ediacaran Loma Negra Formation may be deposited in a platform environment related to the Clymene Ocean. This unit is exposed in the Olavarría and Barker areas within the Tandilia Basin, and composed entirely of lime mudstones (∼40 m thick). The age of the Loma Negra Formation (LNF), the uppermost unit of the Sierras Bayas Group, has been debated, but it should be older than 560 Ma (age of the overlying succession) and younger than 600 Ma (age of the underlying iron-rich mudstone of the Colombo Formation). This extended carbonate platform (>100 km) is divided into two sedimentary facies: one related to the basal section, in which lime mud originated by suspension fall-out in an open-marine ramp (reddish or greenish limestones), and the other facies represented by black to dark grey limestones from the middle and upper sections. The LNF limestones studied, obtained from five sections near the Olavarría and Barker areas, reveal constant curves of positive δ13C values (∼+2 to +4%), similar to those recorded in other middle-Ediacaran marine proxies worldwide. Our sedimentological and geochemical study of the LNF sections shows extraordinarily consistent carbon and oxygen isotope trends that may be useful for detailed intrabasinal correlations. Samples of the LNF fabric-retentive micrite preserve an unusually narrow range of oxygen isotope compositions, which is consistent with potential climatic variation, considering the multi-proxies retained. A subsequent decrease in carbonate primary productivity and an increase in siliciclastic supply are associated with the negative δ13C trend in the overlying unit, at the base of the La Providencia Group. This negative excursion in δ13C from +2.8 to −3.6% is also regarded as a response to the cooling and sea-level fall probably linked to the Gaskiers glaciation. Furthermore, such data are consistent with late-Ediacaran carbonates from other Neoproterozoic successions.Strontium isotope ratios in limestones (0.7060–0.7070) should reflect the near-primary strontium isotope composition of the original seawater, particularly regarding the strontium content (∼300 ppm) and the Rb/Sr ratios (≤0.001) of primary micrite, consistent with a seawater origin. Strontium isotope data reaches 0.7082 with an Rb/Sr ratio of 0.001–0.006.

Hydrothermal karst and associated breccias in Neoproterozoic limestone from the Barker-Villa Cacique area (Tandilia belt), Argentina

In the Barker-Villa Cacique area (Tandilia belt), remarkable megabreccias, limestone breccias and phosphate-bearing breccias hosted in black limestone and along the contact with the upper section of the sedimentary succession are exposed. These rocks are the result of extensive hydrothermal alteration of the original micritic limestone and other fine-grained clastic sediments. Typical alteration minerals are sericite, chlorite, interstratified chlorite/K-white mica, kaolinite, dickite, pyrite, chalcopyrite, goethite, quartz, calcite, Fe-calcite, dolomite, ankerite, fluor-apatite, barite and aluminium-phosphate-sulfate (APS) minerals. Quartz and calcite cements from hydraulic breccias in the limestone contain low-salinity aqueous fluid inclusions. Corresponding homogenization temperatures display 200-220 °C and 110–140 °C in hydrothermal quartz, and 130-150 °C in late calcite cement.Carbon and oxygen stable isotope analyses of carbonates from the Loma Negra quarry (LNQ) support the major role of hydrothermal activity. A significant difference was found between δ18Ocar values from unaltered micritic limestone (ca. 23.8‰ SMOW) and secondary calcite (ca. 18.5‰ SMOW). The lower δ18Ocar values are interpreted as a result of calcite precipitation from hot hydrothermal fluids. At a late stage, the hydrothermal fluid containing H2S mixed with descending and oxidizing meteoric waters. Circulation of the ensuing acid fluids resulted in the partly dissolution and collapse brecciation of the Loma Negra Formation. The hydrothermal stage can be tentatively dated ca. 590–620 Ma corresponding to the Brasiliano orogeny.

Asociaciones de Ostrácodos del Mioceno Temprano—Medio de Loma Negra (Bardenas Reales de Navarra, Cuenca del Ebro): Evolución Paleoambiental de un Medio Lacustre

LOWER—MIDDLE MIOCENE OSTRACOD ASSEMBLAGES OF LOMA NEGRA (BARDENAS REALES DE NAVARRA, EBRO BASIN): PALAEOENVIRONMENTAL EVOLUTION OF A LACUSTRINE SYSTEM. The palaeoenvironmental evolution of the Loma Negra section (Bardenas Reales de Navarra, Ebro Basin) during the lower—middle Miocene, is studied for the first time. The paleoenvironmental interpretation is based on the recovered ostracod assemblages and the sedimentology. The lower part of this section is composed by red, yellow and grey mudstones, and with Paralimnocythere sp. as the most abundant ostracod taxon. The lithological features and the faunistic assemblage allows the interpretation of a paleoenvironment with the development of shallow water bodies with stagnant, warm and fresh to oligohaline waters in distal alluvial flood plains for this section. The presence of some sandstone levels where the most abundant ostracod species is Cyclocypris laevis (Müller) marks punctual higher energy events inside this alluvial system and the presence of more saline waters. The upper part of the section is formed by grey limestones with interbedded fine grey mudstones. In this interval, Pseudocandona parallela Müller is the most abundant ostracod species, indicating the development of a stable lacustrine system with water currents, and temperate to cold and oligohaline to mesohaline waters. The transition between the alluvial and the lacustrine systems shows a gradual evolution.

Timing and nature of alluvial fan and strath terrace formation in the Eastern Precordillera of Argentina

Sixty-eight 10Be terrestrial cosmogenic nuclide (TCN) surface exposure ages are presented to define the timing of alluvial fan and strath terrace formation in the hyper-arid San Juan region of the Argentine Precordillera. This region is tectonically active, and numerous fault scarps traverse Quaternary landforms. The three study sites, Marquesado strath complex, Loma Negra alluvial fan and Carpintería strath complex reveal a history of alluvial fan and strath terrace development over the past ∼225 ka. The Marquesado complex Q3m surface dates to ∼17 ± 3 ka, whereas the Loma Negra Q1ln, Q2ln, Q3ln, Q4ln, and Q5ln surfaces date to ∼24 ± 3 ka, ∼48 ± 2 ka, ∼65 ± 13 ka, ∼105 ± 21 ka, and ∼181 ± 29 ka, respectively. The Carpintería complex comprises eight surfaces that have been dated and include the Q1c (∼23 ± 3 ka), Q2c (∼5 ± 5 ka), Q3ac (∼25 ± 12 ka), Q3bc (∼29 ± 15 ka), Q4c (∼61 ± 12 ka), Q5c (∼98 ± 18 ka), Q6c (∼93 ± 18 ka), and Q7c (∼212 ± 37 ka). 10Be TCN depth profile data for the Loma Negra alluvial fan complex and Carpintería strath terrace complex, as well as OSL ages on some Carpintería deposits, aid in refining surface ages for comparison with local and global climate proxies, and additionally offer insights into inheritance and erosion rate values for TCNs (∼10 × 10410Be atoms/g of SiO2 and ∼5 m Ma−1, respectively). Comparison with other alluvial fan studies in the region show that less dynamic and older preserved surfaces occur in the Carpintería and Loma Negra areas with only younger alluvial fan surfaces preserved both to the north and south. These data in combination with that of other studies illustrate broad regional agreement between alluvial fan and strath terrace ages, which suggests that climate is the dominant forcing agent in the timing of terrace formation in this region.

Stable isotope (S, C) chemostratigraphy and hydrocarbon biomarkers in the Ediacaran upper section of Sierras Bayas Group, Argentina

The Neoproterozoic sedimentary successions of the Sierras Bayas Group (SBG) are situated within the Tandilia Belt, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. The Loma Negra Formation (LNF) from the upper part of the SBG has been investigated using a combination of inorganic, organic and isotopic geochemical methods in order to determine the stable isotope composition of carbonates (δ13Ccar, δ18Ocar), kerogen (δ13Cker), pyrite and carbonate associated sulfur (δ34Spy, δ34SCAS). Concentrations of major, trace and rare earth elements and hydrocarbon distributions were also investigated. This data set was used to further the understanding of the interactions between paleo-biodiversity and paleoenvironmental conditions for terminal Ediacaran (post-Gaskiers) shelf deposits. The high δ34Spy values exceeding the coeval δ34SCAS values in green micritic limestones of the lower LNF may be explained by a combination of different events such as globally low seawater sulfate concentrations, an increased rate of bacterial sulfate reduction, and a decrease in sulfate levels in the near-bottom deepest water layer inherited from glaciations. Negative Ce anomalies in the dark grey micritic limestones of the upper LNF suggest they were deposited under oxidizing conditions. However, higher concentrations of Fe, Mo, Zn and REE, and the occurrence of authigenic 34S-enriched pyrite suggest that the sediments were maintained under reducing conditions. The distributions of hydrocarbon biomarkers (e.g. hopanes maximizing at C29) are in line with this hypothesis and indicate a diverse microbial community including primary producers such as cyanobacteria (e.g. terminally-branched monomethyl alkanes, hopanoid distribution), phototrophic bacteria (e.g. acyclic isoprenoids C<21) and green bacteria (e.g. n-C18≫Phytane). The unsteady Δ13Ccar-ker values reflect changes in primary biomass due to relative contributions of bacterial microorganisms using different photosynthetic carbon-fixation pathways. The lowest Δ13Ccar-ker values coincided with the latest biomarker signal interpreted as the signature of green non-sulfur bacteria using a less 13C fractionation pathway. The combined biogeochemical features of the Loma Negra Formation, indicated a well-stratified water column with oxygenated surface waters, oxygen-poor bottom waters and anoxic sediments which helped to refine a correlation with the Polanco Formation from the Arroyo del Soldado Group in Uruguay.

The La Tinta pole revisited: Paleomagnetism of the Neoproterozoic Sierras Bayas Group (Argentina) and its implications for Gondwana and Rodinia

The Late Ediacaran to Cambrian Sierras Bayas Group (Villa Mónica, Cerro Largo, Olavarría and Loma Negra Formations) and the Cerro Negro Formation, exposed along the Tandilia system in the province of Buenos Aires (Argentina) were revisited and studied paleomagnetically. Our results supersede those of Valencio et al. (1980) for the La Tinta Formation (old stratigraphic name of these units). Three hundred and twenty-eight samples were collected from forty-four sites in gently folded to subhorizontal strata distributed along the whole stratigraphic succession. Detailed paleomagnetic study comprised systematic stepwise demagnetization by both AF and thermal methods, the latter being generally the most effective in isolating the characteristic remanence. Different magnetic components were defined from different units of the succession. Besides a recent, probably viscous, secondary component (component A), the most widespread magnetic remanence (component B) is a dual-polarity post-tectonic secondary remanence. This component, carried by both hematite and magnetite, corresponds to that originally determined by Valencio et al. (1980) and previously interpreted as primary. This component found in all carbonatic rocks of Villa Mónica and Loma Negra Formations as well as in several claystones and siltstones of the Olavarría Formation do not pass conglomerate and regional tilt tests. The mean in situ direction of component B is Dec: 359.8°, Inc: −63.3°, n: 85 samples, k: 24, α95: 3.2° and yields a paleomagnetic pole virtually identical to the previous one of Valencio and colleagues. It also matches those recently determined from secondary magnetizations in carbonatic and clastic Ediacaran units exposed in Uruguay. The pole positions suggest a Late Permian–Triassic age as the more likely for the acquisition of component B and reveal the presence of a widespread remagnetization event that affected very large areas of the Rio de la Plata craton. Despite this widespread event, some clastic units (claystones, marls) apparently escaped remagnetization. A pre-tectonic, dual polarity, mean remanence (Dec: 28.7°, Inc: 56.1°, n: 17 samples, k: 15, α95: 9.5°) was isolated from the latest Ediacaran–Early Cambrian Cerro Negro Formation (component C). In addition, the Ediacaran Olavarria Formation recorded another apparently ancient remanence, although no field test is available. Its direction (component D) is at Dec: 350.9°, Inc: 47.3°, n: 13 samples, k: 37, α95: 7.0°. Siltstones and claystones of the Ediacaran Cerro Largo Formation were carriers of a characteristic remanence (component E) that shows a better directional grouping after bedding correction, although the field test is not statistically significant, and yield a mean corrected direction at: Dec: 73.7°, Inc: −36.6°, n: 11 samples, k: 15, α95: 12.1°. Finally, a purple horizon of marls on top of the Villa Mónica Formation associated with weathering processes before deposition of the Colombo diamictite, was carrier of a characteristic remanence that attained a better grouping after bedding correction, but again with no statistical significance. This direction (component F) was at Dec: 43.4°, Inc: −36.3°, n: 7 samples, k: 45, α95: 9.1°. Components C–F are interpreted as ancient magnetizations associated either to post-depositional or early to late diagenesis. Mean geomagnetic poles computed from these components fall on the apparent polar wander path for the Rio de la Plata craton from around 600 to 520Ma, in a correct stratigraphic order and with ages consistent with the most likely ages (or slightly younger) of the different sampled units. These results confirm the already proposed Ediacaran to Cambrian APWP for the Rio de la Plata craton, indicating that it remained at intermediate to low latitudes during most of the Ediacaran. Comparison with coeval paleomagnetic poles from other cratons indicate that by 575Ma the Rio de la Plata and Congo-Sao Francisco cratons were likely a single plate. It also strongly argues against the generally accepted model that the Rio de la Plata craton was part of the conjugate margin of Eastern Laurentia during the final stages of Rodinia break-up at around 580Ma.

Sr, C and O isotope composition of marbles from the Sierra de de Ancasti, Eastern Sierras Pampeanas, Argentina: age and constraints for the Neoproterozoic–Lower Paleozoic evolution of the proto-Gondwana margin

The Sierra Brava Complex on the eastern flank of the Sierra de Ancasti consists of marbles, metabasites, calc-silicate rocks, psammo-pelitic schists and gneisses. In the central part of this sierra a thick succession of banded schists (Ancasti Formation) crops out. Regional metamorphism of these rocks is attributed to the Famatinian orogeny (Ordovician), metamorphic grade increasing westwards and southwards and culminating in a migmatite complex on the western side of the Sierra. The meta-carbonate rocks are subdivided into a northeastern group (low-grade calcite marbles), and a southeastern group (high-grade calcite and calcite-dolomite marbles). Twenty-three marble samples were analysed for Sr isotope composition and Rb, Mn, Mg and Ca contents, and six for C and O isotope composition. An Ediacaran depositional age of 570 –590Ma is inferred by reference to the trend of 87Sr/86Sr in Neoproterozoic seawater. Thus the metacarbonates are probably slightly older than the Ancasti Formation (equivalent to the Puncoviscana Formation of northern Argentina), which has a maximum sedimentation age of ca. 570Ma. Ediacaran depositional ages have also been reported for metacarbonates elsewhere in Argentina, Uruguay and Brazil. We propose that the Sierra de Ancasti carbonates on one hand, and those in the Western Sierras Pampeanas (Difunta Correa Sequence) and –tentativelythe Corumba Group of Brazil on the other, represent platforms on opposite margins of the extinct Clymene Ocean, whereas Neoproterozoic carbonate successions such as the Loma Negra Formation (Tandilia, southern Argentina) and the Arroyo del Soldado Group (Uruguay) were deposited on the eastern side (present coordinates) of the Rio de la Plata craton, which at the time occupied a position farther to the north.

Neoproterozoic to Lower Palaeozoic successions of the Tandilia System in Argentina: implication for the palaeotectonic framework of southwest Gondwana

The Cryogenian to Uppermost Ediacaran successions of the Tandilia System (Sierras Bayas Group and Cerro Negro Formation) in central-eastern Argentina is exceptional because of its unmetamorphosed and nearly undeformed character, its sediment provenance trend and the absence of any identified glacial deposit and the deposition of warm water carbonates. We decipher a dramatic change in the basin evolution from small-scale depositional areas during the Neoproterozoic to a larger basin related to an active continental margin throughout the Uppermost Ediacaran. The base of the succession is represented by immature detritus of alkaline composition (Villa Monica Formation), but towards the top of this formation, the material is sorted and reworked, nonetheless still reflecting in its detritus the local rocks. The clastic deposition is interrupted by diagenetic overprinted dolomites. The unconformable overlying quartz-arenitic Ediacaran Cerro Largo Formation reworked the Cryogenian Villa Monica Formation and contains mainly felsic granitic and metamorphic basement material of slightly wider variety, while the dominant alkaline geochemical signature in rocks of the Villa Monica Formation disappears. Based on diagenetic, petrographic and sedimentological data, we can interpret the unconformity representing a longer time of erosion. The Cerro Largo Formation shows a transition to mudstones and the heterolithic facies of the Olavarria Formation. The top of the Sierras Bayas Group is represented by limestones (Loma Negra Formation), which are discordantly overlain by the Uppermost Ediacaran Cerro Negro Formation. The latter displays detrital material derived from a continental arc, mafic and felsic sources. Several arc-related geochemical proxies (Th/Sc 20) are recorded in the sediment detritus, as are syn-depositional pyroclastites. The absence of volcanic material in the underlying rocks allows proposing that the Cerro Negro Formation is related to an active continental margin fringing Gondwana (“Terra Australis Orogen”) as a retro-arc or retro-arc foreland basin.

Variability in 137Cs inventories and potential climatic and lithological controls in the central Ebro valley, Spain

The extent of soil erosion in some Spanish semiarid regions has caused great concern regarding the sustainability of soil resources. Accelerated soil erosion, particularly in some Mediterranean areas, is likely to be one of the main environmental problems associated with climate change. Fallout 137Cs has been shown to provide a reliable basis for assessing soil erosion rates in different environments around the world. However, existing information concerning the spatial variation of 137Cs inventories at reference sites has identified a need for further investigation of the factors affecting their spatial variability in semiarid environments, where stony and skeletal soils are predominant. Reference sites at three locations in the central Ebro valley were selected to investigate the 137Cs content of several grain size fractions. Each site included both natural vegetated conditions and cultivated land and the three sites were characterized by different values of mean annual rainfall. The results obtained demonstrate the influence of lithology, land use and climate on the spatial variability of 137Cs inventories that increase from 1190, to 1500 and 1710 Bq·m−2 with increasing annual rainfall values from 300 to 500 mm at the study sites. The soils on marls at the Valarena site had the highest proportion of 137Cs in the coarse fractions of cultivated soils (12%) in comparison with soils developed on limestones at Loma Negra (5%), whereas no 137Cs content was found in the coarse fractions of soils on glacis-terrace materials at Penaflor. The 137Cs reference inventories are higher in soils on marls and sands at cultivated locations at Valarena and Penaflor, but have similar values in soils at cultivated and uncultivated locations on limestones at Loma Negra. Therefore, in absence of level undisturbed soils with natural vegetation cover, cultivated flat soils on hard rocks could provide reliable reference inventories.

Middle Permian Telodiagenetic Processes in Neoproterozoic Sequences, Tandilia System, Argentina

Abstract In the Tandilia Basin, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina, we study the genesis of mud beds and pipes in the Loma Negra Formation (limestones), Sierras Bayas area, together with the emplacement of alunite and aluminum phosphate sulfate (APS) minerals in the Las Aguilas Formation, Barker area. All these features are related to basin inversion, uplift, erosion, and injection or expulsion, or infiltration of fluids and oxidation reactions in the exhumed rocks during a telodiagenetic stage. On the basis of K–Ar dating of alunite in the Las Aguilas Formation (claystones) giving an age of 254 ± 7 Ma (middle Permian), these processes are considered to be linked to a major geological event which affected these Neoproterozoic lithostratigraphic units: the folding of the Ventania System, located 150 km to the SW of the study area.

Chemostratigraphy and diagenetic constraints on Neoproterozoic carbonate successions from the Sierras Bayas Group, Tandilia System, Argentina

Carbon and oxygen isotopic data, combined with a detailed diagenetic study, obtained from undeformed and unmetamorphosed dolomite and limestone from the Neoproterozoic Sierras Bayas Group, Argentina, provide a new record of isotopic stratigraphic variations useful for regional and global correlations. The Sierras Bayas Group is subdivided into the Villa Mónica (sandstones and dolomites), Cerro Largo (siliciclastic rocks) and Loma Negra (limestones) formations, unconformably overlain by the Cerro Negro Formation (siliciclastic rocks with basal marls), and grouped into four depositional sequences bounded by unconformities. The dolomite samples from the Villa Mónica Formation show ranges of δ 13C (PDB) values from − 1.3 to + 2.2‰ and of δ 13C (PDB) values from − 2.1 to − 6.7‰. Elemental data (Mn/Sr, Fe/Sr and Ca/Sr) and stable isotope compositions point to a moderate to significant degree of diagenetic alteration in samples from this formation. The Loma Negra Formation is composed of homogeneous, non-luminescent micritic limestone with δ 13C (PDB) values of samples between + 2.7 and + 4.5‰; δ 13C (PDB) values vary from − 7.1 to − 13.5‰. Selected element ratios using Mn/Sr (< 1.4) and Fe/Sr (< 30) combined with C/O isotope data suggest near to primary carbon isotope signatures in these samples. The Villa Mónica Formation can be broadly constrained between 800 and 900 Ma, based on Rb/Sr radimetric data and stromatolite morphologies. The Loma Negra Formation fits in global δ 13C and 87Sr/ 86Sr trends that suggest an age range of ~ 580 – 590 Ma, which is regionally important as it places constraints on the continuity of Vendian basins in south-western Gondwana. In the same sense, the isotopic signatures of Loma Negra Formation samples along with the preservation of a unique shelly fauna make a direct connection of the Argentinian succession to Vendian intervals in Uruguay (Polanco Formation) and Brazil (Corumbá Group).

IBA analysis of some precolumbian gilded-copper samples

The elemental composition and depth profiles obtained by IBA techniques on some gilded-copper fragments from the Moche site of Loma Negra, in the Piura Valley, on the Northern Coast of Perú are presented in this article. A previous radiocarbon dating of a wooden fragment indicated that Loma Negra was occupied around 295 AD. A PIXE analysis using a 2.6MeV external proton beam, was used to obtain the concentration of trace elements in the samples. RBS analyses using 2.72MeV 4He+ and 12.0MeV 12C3+ were used to obtain the Au, Ag, Cu atomic profiles. NRA with a 1.02MeV deuteron beam was used to measure the oxygen and carbon concentrations through the 16O(d,p) 17O, 16O(d,α) 14N and 12C(d,p0) 13C reactions.

Silver-and-Gold Moche Artifacts from Loma Negra, Peru

Silver-and-Gold Moche Artifacts from Loma Negra, Peru

Pre-Columbian Surface Metallurgy

The article describes metallurgical technologies developed by the Moche culture in South America, in which copper was plated with gold or silver (by electrochemical replacement) and alloys of copper, gold, and silver were treated to produce a gold or silver surface (by depletion gilding or silvering, especially from tumbaga alloys). These techniques, used also by the Inca and other Andean cultures, were analyzed by studying a large number of Moche-style metal objects found at Loma Negra (Peru) and then duplicating the presumed methods experimentally in the laboratory. Possible relationships between favored metallurgical techniques and cultural ideology are suggested. See also AATA 16-1722, 17-1574, and 19-690. -- AATA

New Perspectives on Moche Metallurgy: Techniques of Gilding Copper at Loma Negra, Northern Peru

The metal objects found in 1969 at the north Peruvian site of Loma Negra, in the region of Cerro Vicús, form one of the largest and most important single groups of Moche metal artifacts known. Since the objects were looted from burials at the site, they are without context, seriously compounding the problems of their relative chronology within the Moche sequence and of their relations with Moche material from the coast farther to the south. Metallurgical studies of a group of gilt copper objects from Loma Negra have shown that the gilding was achieved by an electrochemical replacement plating process in which gold and silver are dissolved in an aqueous solution of corrosive minerals. The precious metals are then plated from solution onto the copper objects. Moche metal craftsmen can now be credited with having developed the two most sophisticated of Andean gilding procedures: depletion gilding and electrochemical replacement plating.