Neotethyan closure history of western Anatolia: a geodynamic discussion

Multiple Exhumation Phases in the Central Pontides (N Turkey): New Temporal Constraints on Major Geodynamic Changes Associated With the Closure of the Neo‐Tethys Ocean

“…Although S and SW Turkey are less represented, our compilation shows the occurrence of (1) a rapid cooling event at ~40 Ma across different terrains and (2) an additional acceleration of cooling at ~20 Ma mostly in eastern and western Turkey (but in W Turkey this cooling is related to extensional tectonics associated with the evolution of the Hellenic subduction zone; e.g., Faccenna et al, ). Given the widespread distribution of this latest Eocene cooling event, and considering that most terrains forming the Eurasian margin were already amalgamated by that time (e.g., Oberhänsli et al, ; Pourteau et al, ; Rolland, ; Van Hinsbergen et al, ), we favor the hypothesis that fault‐related exhumation must have been triggered by major geodynamic changes along the southern Tethys subduction zone (which at that time extended from Makran to the Aegean Sea; e.g., Barrier & Vrielynck, ; Moix et al, ), rather than along the northern Tethys subduction zone which at that time was probably inactive (i.e., the İzmir‐Ankara‐Erzincan Suture Zone). This interpretation is consistent with the occurrence of Eocene volcanic rocks along the İzmir‐Ankara‐Erzincan Suture Zone, which have been interpreted to represent postcollisional magmatism triggered either by lithospheric delamination or slab break off (Figure ; e.g., Göçmengil et al, ; Keskin et al, ; Topuz et al, ).…”

“…Collectively, our data agree with previous studies suggesting that the final closure of the İzmir‐Ankara‐Erzincan branch of the northern Neo‐Tethyan Ocean and the consequent collision between the southern Eurasian margin (Pontides) and the Kırşehir and Tauride‐Anatolide microcontinental domains choked the subduction zone, leading to increased plate coupling, oroclinal bending, and widespread fault‐related rock uplift and exhumation. (e.g., Boztuğ et al, ; Boztuğ & Jonckheere, ; Espurt et al, ; Hippolyte et al, , ; Kaymakçı et al, ; Okay & Nikishin, ; Okay et al, ; Pourteau et al, ; Van Hinsbergen et al, ). It should be noted, however, that such a collision seems to postdate the Late Cretaceous (83 to 65 Ma) oroclinal bending in the Central Pontides (Meijers et al, ).…”

“…Located between the Arabia‐Eurasia continental collision and the Hellenic subduction zones, the Turkish peninsula constitutes a mosaic of lithospheric blocks that have been progressively amalgamated since the Paleozoic, through the subduction of oceanic and continental lithosphere in association with multiple orogenic phases (Figure ; e.g., Okay & Nikishin, ; Şengör & Yılmaz, ). Alternatively, Turkey can be considered a large Meso‐Cenozoic accretionary orogen consisting of continental upper (and possibly lower) crust decoupled from subducted lower crustal and mantle lithospheric underpinnings (Pourteau et al, ; Van Hinsbergen et al, ). The Pontide mountains are one of the most prominent orogenic belts of Turkey, which were built over the former southern continental margin of the Eurasian Plate (Figure ; for a recent review see Okay & Nikishin, ; Okay et al, ).…”

“…The Pontide mountains are one of the most prominent orogenic belts of Turkey, which were built over the former southern continental margin of the Eurasian Plate (Figure ; for a recent review see Okay & Nikishin, ; Okay et al, ). This ~E‐W oriented mountain range stretches along the northern coast of Turkey between the oceanic Black Sea Basin and the Tauride‐Anatolide and the Kırşehir microcontinental domains (Figure ; e.g., Okay et al, ; Pourteau et al, ; Van Hinsbergen et al, ) and exhibits a gradual westward decrease in mean elevation from over 3 km to few hundreds of meters (Figures and ). The central sectors of the belt are composed of a suite of metamorphic, magmatic, and sedimentary rocks, documenting a complex geological history with episodes of subduction‐related metamorphism, arc volcanism, and sedimentary basin development via normal faulting and lithospheric flexure throughout the Phanerozoic (Figure , e.g., Okay & Nikishin, ; Okay et al, , and references therein).…”

A lost Tethyan evaporitic basin: Evidence from a Cretaceous hemipelagic meta‐selenite – red chert association in the Eastern Mediterranean realm

“…During the latest Cretaceous, the Ören–Afyon Zone was overlain by olistostromal formations and serpentinite mélanges (De Graciansky, ; Robertson & Ustaömer, ) and subducted (Pourteau et al ., ). In this process, the Ören–Afyon Zone reached maximum metamorphism at around 70 Ma, coevally with ophiolite obduction onto the Tauride Platform (Collins & Robertson, ; Pourteau et al ., ). From the Eocene to the Miocene, the westernmost extension of the Ören–Afyon Zone (Ören Unit) was transported southward over the uplifting Menderes Massif (Güngör & Erdoğan, ; Rimmelé et al ., , ; van Hinsbergen et al ., ; Pourteau et al ., ).…”