Geochemistry and ion microprobe (SHRIMP) age of a quartz porphyry sill in the Mozaan Group of the Pongola Supergroup: Implications for the Pongola and Witwatersrand Supergroups

J. Gutzmer, N. Nhleko, N. J. Beukes, A. Pickard, M. E. Barley

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

37 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

The Mozaan Group of the Pongola Supergroup is one of the oldest known cratonic supracrustal successions in the world. In the Mooihoek area, south central Swaziland, the Mozan Group is preserved in an open syncline with axial traces trending north-northwest. A pretectonic quartz porphyry sill, folded with the sedimentary strata, gives a SHRIMP U-Pb zircon age of 2837 ± 5 Ma, providing a minimum age limit for the deposition of the Mozaan Group. In contrast, the Mooihoek granitic pluton, which cross-cuts the folding, has a known single-zircon evaporation 207Pb/206Pb age of 2824 ± 6 Ma, suggesting that the deformation of the Mozaan strata took place sometime between ~2824 Ma and ~2837 Ma. Correlation between the Mozaan and Witwatersrand Supergroups suggests that most of the latter succession was also deposited prior to 2837 ± 5 Ma.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)139-146
Number of pages8
JournalSouth African Journal of Geology
Volume102
Issue number2
Publication statusPublished - Jun 1999

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Geology

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