Geoscience Frontiers 8 (2017) 1431e1445HOSTED BY Contents lists available at ScienceDirect
China University of Geosciences (Beijing)
Geoscience Frontiers
journal homepage: www.elsevier .com/locate/gsfResearch PaperContemporaneous assembly of Western Gondwana and final Rodinia
break-up: Implications for the supercontinent cycle
Sebastián Oriolo a,*, Pedro Oyhantçabal b, Klaus Wemmer a, Siegfried Siegesmund a
aGeoscience Center, Georg-August-Universität Göttingen, Goldschmidtstraße 3, 37077 Göttingen, Germany
bDepartamento de Geología, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de la República, Montevideo, Uruguaya r t i c l e i n f o
Article history:
Received 13 May 2016
Received in revised form
6 January 2017
Accepted 11 January 2017
Available online 20 February 2017
Handling Editor: R.D. Nance
Keywords:
BrasilianoePan-African Orogeny
Neoproterozoic
Collisional tectonics
Pannotia
Metacratonization
Introversion-extroversion* Corresponding author.
E-mail addresses: seba.oriolo@gmail.com, soriolo@gw
Peer-review under responsibility of China University
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.gsf.2017.01.009
1674-9871/
 2017, China University of Geosciences (B
ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-na b s t r a c t
Geological, geochronological and isotopic data are integrated in order to present a revised model for the
Neoproterozoic evolution of Western Gondwana. Although the classical geodynamic scenario assumed
for the period 800e700 Ma is related to Rodinia break-up and the consequent opening of major oceanic
basins, a significantly different tectonic evolution can be inferred for most Western Gondwana cratons.
These cratons occupied a marginal position in the southern hemisphere with respect to Rodinia and
recorded subduction with back-arc extension, island arc development and limited formation of oceanic
crust in internal oceans. This period was thus characterized by increased crustal growth in Western
Gondwana, resulting from addition of juvenile continental crust along convergent margins. In contrast,
crustal reworking and metacratonization were dominant during the subsequent assembly of Gondwana.
The Río de la Plata, Congo-São Francisco, West African and Amazonian cratons collided at ca. 630
e600 Ma along the West Gondwana Orogen. These events overlap in time with the onset of the opening
of the Iapetus Ocean at ca. 610e600 Ma, which gave rise to the separation of Baltica, Laurentia and
Amazonia and resulted from the final Rodinia break-up. The East African/Antarctic Orogen recorded the
subsequent amalgamation of Western and Eastern Gondwana after ca. 580 Ma, contemporaneously with
the beginning of subduction in the Terra Australis Orogen along the southern Gondwana margin.
However, the Kalahari Craton was lately incorporated during the Late EdiacaraneEarly Cambrian. The
proposed Gondwana evolution rules out the existence of Pannotia, as the final Gondwana amalgamation
postdates latest connections between Laurentia and Amazonia. Additionally, a combination of intro-
version and extroversion is proposed for the assembly of Gondwana. The contemporaneous record of
final Rodinia break-up and Gondwana assembly has major implications for the supercontinent cycle, as
supercontinent amalgamation and break-up do not necessarily represent alternating episodic processes
but overlap in time.

 2017, China University of Geosciences (Beijing) and Peking University. Production and hosting by
Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/
licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).1. Introduction
The term Gondwanawas first used in the geological literature to
refer to a plant-bearing series in India and was afterwards
extended to the Gondwana system (Feistmantel, 1876; Medlicott
and Blanford, 1879, and references therein). Based on similarities
in the PaleozoiceMesozoic geological and fossiliferous record of
India and other continental masses, Suess (1885) proposed the
existence of a supercontinent and coined the name Gondwanaland,dg.de (S. Oriolo).
of Geosciences (Beijing).
eijing) and Peking University. Produ
c-nd/4.0/).which was extended to South America, Australia and Antarctica by
Wegener (1915).
The amalgamation of Gondwana started at ca. 630 Ma and
extended to ca. 550e530 Ma, when subduction along its proto-
Pacific margin was already established (Dalziel, 1997; Cordani
et al., 2003; Meert and Torsvik, 2003; Cawood, 2005; Collins and
Pisarevsky, 2005; Cawood and Buchan, 2007). Likewise, Pannotia
was considered as a Late Neoproterozoic “short-lived” supercon-
tinent that included Laurentia and Gondwanan domains, prior to
Gondwana final configuration (Powell and Young, 1995; Dalziel,
1997). On the other hand, the break-up of Rodinia took place in
two phases at ca. 800e700 Ma and after ca. 600 Ma, being the later
coeval with the timing of Gondwana assembly (Cordani et al., 2003;
Cawood, 2005; Li et al., 2008). Late Neoproterozoic paleogeographyction and hosting by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-
S. Oriolo et al. / Geoscience Frontiers 8 (2017) 1431e14451432thus resulted from major geodynamic processes that might be a
priori linked to the evolution of Rodinia, Pannotia and/or Gond-
wana (Fig. 1).
Two end-member processes were proposed for the formation of
supercontinents, namely introversion and extroversion, depending
on whether internal or external oceans of a supercontinent are
closed to form the next one, respectively (Fig. 2; Nance et al., 1988;
Hartnady, 1991; Hoffman, 1991; Murphy and Nance, 2003, 2005,
2013; Mitchell et al., 2012; Evans et al., 2016). Internal oceans
comprise juvenile crust that forms after break-up of the previous
supercontinent and external ocean crust predates the previous
supercontinent (Murphy and Nance, 2003, 2005). In terms of
paleogeography, introversion implies that the location of a super-
continent is the same of its predecessor, whereas the successor is
located in the opposite hemisphere in the case of extroversion
(Mitchell et al., 2012). In the particular case of Gondwana, an
extroversion model has been typically considered (Hoffman, 1991;
Murphy and Nance, 2003, 2005, 2013; Evans et al., 2016).
Based on a review of geological, geochronological and isotopic
evidences, a revised model for the Neoproterozoic evolution of
Western Gondwana is presented in this work. Relationships with
Rodinia break-up and the evolution of the Terra Australis Orogen
are discussed, and implications for the supercontinent cycle are
analyzed as well.
2. Pre-Gondwana configuration
Many contributions attempted to elucidate Late Mesoproter-
ozoiceEarly Neoproterozoic paleogeography (e.g., Powell et al.,
1993; Dalziel et al., 2000; Kröner and Cordani, 2003; Pisarevsky
et al., 2003; Tohver et al., 2006; Li et al., 2008; Evans, 2009),
which represents a key point to understand the history of Gond-
wana amalgamation. The assembly of Rodinia took place at ca.
1.1e1.0 Ga and, although most authors agree on the fact that the
Amazonian Craton was part of Rodinia (Dalziel et al., 2000; Tohver
et al., 2006; Li et al., 2008; Evans, 2009), the participation of other
western Gondwanan blocks is still under discussion. Kröner and
Cordani (2003) and Cordani et al. (2003) indicated that the Río de
la Plata, Kalahari and Congo-São Francisco cratons were not part of
Rodinia, which was further supported by Tohver et al. (2006) and
Rapalini et al. (2013). In contrast, Evans (2009) included all blocks
within Rodinia.
In the case of the Río de la Plata Craton, the pre-Brasiliano
geological record (i.e., older than ca. 650 Ma) is restricted to the
Paleoproterozoic. Basement rocks comprise mainly Rhya-
cianeOrosirian gneisses and granitoids, which show Late Paleo-
proterozoic KeAr muscovite cooling ages and are intruded by
Statherian mafic dykes (Cingolani, 2011; Oyhantçabal et al., 2011).
Paleoproterozoic rocks are covered by Neoproterozoic metasedi-
mentary rocks and only show local overprinting related to the
Brasiliano Orogeny (Martínez et al., 2013; Oriolo et al., 2016a),
pointing to lack of Mesoproterozoic events and isolation of the Río
de la Plata Craton during Rodinia evolution. In a similar way, the
West African Craton is made up of Archean and Paleoproterozoic
nuclei and lacks in rocks yielding ages between ca. 1.7 and 1.0 Ga
(Ennih and Liégeois, 2008, and references therein). Although most
paleogeographic reconstructions placed this block attached to the
Amazonian Craton (e.g., Cordani et al., 2003; Tohver et al., 2006; Li
et al., 2008), isolation of the West African Craton during the Mes-
oproterozoic seems to be a more plausible scenario (Fig. 1a).
The Congo-São Francisco Craton, in turn, shows a protracted
Mesoproterozoic evolution. In Brazil, the São Francisco Craton records
intraplate magmatism and sedimentation related to several exten-
sional events throughout the Late PaleoproterozoiceMesoproterozoic
(Chemale et al., 2012; Ribeiro et al., 2013, and references therein),whereas the Congo Craton in Africa exhibits several distinct Meso-
proterozoic magmatic events at ca. 1.50, 1.38 and 1.10 Ga (Ernst et al.,
2013). Despite being almost coeval with the timing of Rodinia as-
sembly, the youngest event comprises gabbroenorite dykes that
resulted from intraplate magmatism (Ernst et al., 2013).
A different situation can be observed in the Kalahari Craton,
which presents an ArcheanePaleoproterozoic nucleus surrounded
by Late Mesoproterozoic mobile belts. The northern (present co-
ordinates) SinclaireGhanzieChobe Belt recorded arc-related mag-
matism resulting in collision and subsequent post-collisional
magmatism at ca.1.1 Ga (Kampunzu et al., 1998; Becker et al., 2006).
To the southwest, collision-related deformation and meta-
morphism in the Namaqua Belt has been placed at ca. 1.20e1.18 Ga
(e.g., Miller, 2008; Colliston et al., 2015; Cornell et al., 2015),
although extension in a back-arc setting was alternatively consid-
ered for this major tectonothermal event (Bial et al., 2015a, b). The
southeastern margin of the Kalahari Craton, in turn, is bounded by
the Natal Belt, which recorded accretion of island arc complexes
(e.g., Thomas, 1989; Jacobs and Thomas, 1994; Spencer et al., 2015).
On the other hand, the Umkondo LIP intruded the Kalahari Craton
at ca. 1.1 Ga (Hanson et al., 2004) and was correlated with coeval
intraplate extensional magmatism in the Congo Craton (Ernst et al.,
2013). In contrast, Becker et al. (2006) interpreted this intrusion as
the result of post-collisional processes.
Although it seems to be clear that the Río de la Plata,West African
and Congo-São Francisco cratons were not part of Rodinia (Fig. 1a),
the position of the Kalahari Craton is still uncertain. However, even if
being part of Rodinia, the Kalahari Craton might already rift away at
ca. 700 Ma (Jacobs et al., 2008). Rifting at ca. 800e700 Ma gave rise
to the opening of a major oceanic basin between Laurentia and
eastern Gondwanan cratons and was succeeded by a second rifting
event starting after ca. 610e600 Ma (Fig. 1a) that triggered the
opening of the Iapetus Ocean between Laurentia, Baltica and Ama-
zonia (e.g., Cawood et al., 2001; Meert and Torsvik, 2003; Li et al.,
2008). In any case, most reconstructions do not consider Meso-
proterozoic connections of the Congo-São Francisco and Kalahari
cratons (e.g., Cordani et al., 2003; Meert and Torsvik, 2003; Tohver
et al., 2006), which is further supported by detrital zircon data
from the Damara Belt indicating different provenance for passive
margins of both blocks till the Early Ediacaran (Foster et al., 2015).
Hence, the Río de la Plata, West African, Congo-São Francisco and
Kalahari cratons did not interact with each other during the Meso-
proterozoic and probably occupied a marginal position with respect
to Rodinia during the Early Neoproterozoic (Fig. 1a).
3. The assembly of Gondwana
Comparison of available data allows characterizing the amal-
gamation of the Río de la Plata and Congo cratons as one of the
earliest collisional events, which is constrained at ca. 630 Ma by
40Ar/39Ar and KeAr amphibole and mica data from the Dom
Feliciano Belt in Uruguay (Figs. 3 and 4a; Oriolo et al., 2016b). This
collisional event implied the docking of the Nico Pérez Terrane to
the Río de la Plata Craton margin along the Sarandí del Yí Shear
Zone (Oriolo et al., 2015, 2016a). Consequent regional meta-
morphism, crustal shortening and exhumation is recorded along
the belt between ca. 630 and 600 Ma (da Silva et al., 1999; Chemale
et al., 2011; Oriolo et al., 2016b; Philipp et al., 2016). Peraluminous
syncollisional leucogranites resulting from crustal anatexis at
740e820 
C and 8e9 kbar were succeeded by voluminous post-
collisional magmatism between ca. 630e580 Ma (Oyhantçabal
et al., 2007; Florisbal et al., 2009, 2012; Basei et al., 2011; Philipp
et al., 2013, 2016).
Further north, the Ribeira Belt records a protracted history of
minor terrane amalgamation (Figs. 3 and 4b; Heilbron et al., 2008).
Figure 1. (a) Rodinia reconstruction (modified after Meert and Torsvik, 2003). “Non-Rodinian” blocks are shown in yellow. Question marks indicate uncertain position of the
Kalahari Craton. Note that location of the Río de la Plata and West African cratons are tentative due to the lack of StenianeTonian rocks. (b) Pannotia reconstruction for the Late
EdiacaraneCambrian (modified after Dalziel, 1997). Western and Eastern Gondwana domains are shown.
S. Oriolo et al. / Geoscience Frontiers 8 (2017) 1431e1445 1433A UePb SHRIMP zircon age of 612  13 Ma constrains a meta-
morphic event related to an Early Ediacaran collisional event
(Bento dos Santos et al., 2010), although peak metamorphic con-
ditions of ca. 700e800 
C and 9.5e12 kbar were attained after ca.
590 Ma (Bento dos Santos et al., 2010; Faleiros et al., 2011). Sub-
sequent terrane accretion took place at ca. 580e550 and525e520 Ma as well (Schmitt et al., 2004; Heilbron et al., 2008;
Fernandes et al., 2015), with peak metamorphic conditions of
>780 
C and >9 kbar for the latter (Schmitt et al., 2004). Never-
theless, Meira et al. (2015) argued for a model of intracontinental
deformation throughout the Ribeira Belt instead of multiple
collisional events.
Figure 2. Cartoons illustrating two end-member processes for the formation of supercontinents (modified after Murphy and Nance, 2003).
S. Oriolo et al. / Geoscience Frontiers 8 (2017) 1431e14451434The Brasilia Belt, in turn, represents the western and southern
margin of the São Francisco Craton. Peak metamorphic conditions
of ca. 825 
C and 12 kbar were achieved at 617.7  1.3 Ma (ID-TIMS
monazite) along the southern branch of this belt, thus constraining
the collision of the São Francisco Craton and the Paranapanema
Plate (Figs. 3 and 4b; Campos Neto et al., 2010).
Contemporaneous collisional processes are recorded along the
Transbrasiliano Lineament (Figs. 3 and 4b), which separates the
Amazonian Craton from the Borborema Province and the São
Francisco Craton. Eclogite remnants reveal UHP metamorphism
and associated crustal anatexis at ca. 625e615 Ma with peak
metamorphic conditions of ca. 770 
C and 17 kbar resulting from
continental collision (dos Santos et al., 2009; Ganade de Araujo
et al., 2014a). Dextral shearing along the Transbrasiliano Linea-
ment and post-collisional magmatism were afterwards recorded
(Ganade de Araujo et al., 2014b).
Likewise, the Kandi Lineament separates the Saharan Meta-
craton and the West African Craton and represents the African
counterpart of the Transbrasiliano Lineament. Eclogites located to
the west of the Kandi Lineament indicate peak metamorphic con-
ditions of ca. 700e800 
C and 30e33 kbar at ca. 617e605 Ma in the
Gourma region (Ganade de Araujo et al., 2014c), whereas peak
metamorphic conditions of ca. 650e750 
C and 28e30 kbar at ca.
615e603 Ma were reported for eclogites of the Dahomey Belt
(Figs. 3 and 4b; Ganade et al., 2016). On the other hand, eclogitic
relics exposed in the Tuareg Shield to the east of the Kandi Linea-
ment record UHP metamorphism as well and yield peak meta-
morphic conditions of ca. 650 
C and 20e22 kbar achieved at ca.
625e620 Ma (Figs. 3 and 4b; Berger et al., 2014).
Despite being slightly diachronous, all collisional orogens be-
tween 630 and 600 Ma present some similarities (Fig. 3). Crustal-
scale dextral shear zones, i.e. the Transbrasiliano-Kandi Linea-
ment and the Sarandí del Yí Shear Zone, separate cratonic areas to
the west from metacratonic areas to the east (Fig. 5; Section 4).
Likewise, Cryogenian magmatism and subsequent arc/back-arc
magmatism with subduction to the east after ca. 660 Ma are
recorded up to the collisional phase (Section 4; Goscombe and Gray,2007, 2008; Rapela et al., 2011; Berger et al., 2014; Ganade de
Araujo et al., 2014a; Konopásek et al., 2014; Ganade et al., 2016;
Oriolo et al., 2016a). The subsequent collision gave rise to the
birth of Western Gondwana already at ca. 600 Ma and the conse-
quent amalgamation of African-derived crustal blocks to the South
American ArcheaneProterozoic nuclei (Fig. 4b; Rapela et al., 2011;
Oriolo et al., 2016a, c). The West Gondwana Orogen, which was
previously defined for northwestern Africa and central Brazil
(Ganade de Araujo et al., 2014b), can be thus extended to the
Uruguayan sector (Fig. 5). On the other hand, the amalgamation of
Western Gondwana was contemporaneous with the last events of
Rodinia break-up, which were related to the opening of the Iapetus
Ocean at ca. 610e600Ma (Figs. 3 and 4c; Cawood et al., 2001; Hartz
and Torsvik, 2002; Li et al., 2008; O’Brien and van der Pluijm, 2012).
Although most Western Gondwana cratons were already
amalgamated at ca. 600 Ma, the Kalahari Craton was lately incor-
porated (Fig. 4d and e). An early metamorphic event related to
convergence along the Damara Belt was recorded at ca.
600e590 Ma by 40Ar/39Ar phengite data (Lehmann et al., 2016).
Convergence also triggered sinistral shearing in the Dom Feliciano
Belt (Oriolo et al., 2016a, b) and culminated with collision of the
Congo and Kalahari cratons at ca. 530e520 Ma (Fig. 3; Gray et al.,
2006; Schmitt et al., 2012). Peak metamorphic conditions of ca.
750e700 
C and 5 kbar were attained at ca. 525e505Ma, which are
constrained by UePb monazite and SmeNd garnet isochrone data
(Jung and Mezger, 2003). Syncollisional intrusions are recorded at
ca. 530 Ma (Schmitt et al., 2012), whereas regional exhumation and
cooling below muscovite closure temperature are recorded up to
ca. 460 Ma (Gray et al., 2006). Nevertheless, 40Ar/39Ar hornblende
data from the Gariep Belt constrain an early collisional event along
the western Kalahari Craton margin (Frimmel and Frank, 1998),
giving rise to the closure of the Gariep-Rocha basin and deforma-
tion of post-collisional basins of the Dom Feliciano Belt at ca.
550e530 Ma (Frimmel and Frank, 1998; Basei et al., 2000, 2005;
Frimmel et al., 2011; Oriolo et al., 2016b).
On the other hand, collisional processes at 580e550 Ma were
reported in the East AfricaneAntartic Orogen (Figs. 3 and 4d; Jacobs
Figure 3. Timing of Gondwana-related collisional events (red) summarized from available data. Sarandí del Yí Shear Zone/Dom Feliciano Belt (Oriolo et al., 2016a,b), Transbrasiliano
Lineament (Ganade de Araujo et al., 2014a,b), Kandi Lineament/Dahomey Belt (Berger et al., 2014; Ganade de Araujo et al., 2014c; Ganade et al., 2016), Brasilia Belt (Campos Neto
et al., 2010), Ribeira Belt (Schmitt et al., 2004; Heilbron et al., 2008; Bento dos Santos et al., 2010), Kaoko Belt (Goscombe et al., 2005; Goscombe and Gray, 2007, 2008; Foster et al.,
2009), Damara Belt (Gray et al., 2006; Schmitt et al., 2012), Gariep Belt (Frimmel and Frank, 1998; Frimmel et al., 2011), East AfricaneAntartic Orogen (Jacobs and Thomas, 2004;
Viola et al., 2008). Rodinia break-up after Meer and Torsvik (2003) and Li et al. (2008). Subduction along the Terra Australis Orogen after Cawood (2005) and Cawood and Buchan
(2007). Note overlapping of the second stage of Rodinia break-up (i.e., opening of the Iapetus Ocean) and the assembly of Western Gondwana. See text for further explanation.
S. Oriolo et al. / Geoscience Frontiers 8 (2017) 1431e1445 1435and Thomas, 2004; Viola et al., 2008; Fritz et al., 2013), indicating
that the assembly of Western and Eastern Gondwana predates the
final incorporation of the Kalahari Craton into the former. On the
southern Gondwana margin, subduction is also recorded along the
Terra Australis Orogen after ca. 580 Ma (Figs. 3 and 4d; Cawood,
2005; Cawood and Buchan, 2007). Along this margin, several
peri-Laurentian blocks were rifted away during the opening of the
Iapetus Ocean and subsequently juxtaposed to the Gondwana
margin during the Paleozoic, as in the case of the Pampean Belt
(Fig. 4e; Dalla Salda et al., 1992; Dalziel et al., 1994; Rapela et al.,
1998, 2007, 2016; Siegesmund et al., 2010).
Hence, Late NeoproterozoiceCambrian collisions leading to the
final Gondwana assembly and coeval subduction along the Terra
Australis Orogen suggest a coupling between internal collisional and
marginal subduction processes, as indicated by Cawood and Buchan
(2007). Likewise, these processes seemed to be strongly linked to
thefinal stagesofRodiniabreak-upaswell, particularly to theopening
of the Iapetus Ocean. The evolution of Gondwana emphasizes the
need to reevaluate the classical concept of the supercontinent cycle
(Nance et al., 2014, and references therein), as supercontinentassembly and break-up do not necessarily represent alternating
episodic processes but may overlap in time (Condie and Aster, 2013).
On the other hand, the proposed Gondwana evolution (Fig. 4) rules
out the existence of the supercontinent Pannotia (Fig. 1b; Powell and
Young, 1995; Dalziel, 1997), as Laurentia, western and eastern
Gondwana were not part of a single supercontinent during the Late
Neoproterozoic. Indeed, Laurentia and Amazonia connections just
represent remnants of the Rodinia assembly (Fig. 1a).
4. Gondwana crustal growth: from TonianeCryogenian island
arc accretion to Ediacaran collision and metacratonization
Hf isotopic data from different BrasilianoePan-African belts
were compiled in order to analyze the crustal growth history of
Gondwana during the Neoproterozoic (Fig. 6a). In the last decade,
most contributions that evaluate the crustal growth of Gondwana
using isotopic data consider global databases. Though extremely
useful, global databases may led to misinterpretations if the
geological and tectonic framework is not clearly understood. For
instance, basement inliers of the Andean chain present a Laurentian
Figure 4. Schematic tectonic and paleogeographic evolution of main crustal blocks (WA: West Africa, RP: Río de la Plata, K: Kalahari, NP: Nico Pérez, SF: São Francisco, LA: LATEA,
AS: ArabianeNubian Shield). Gondwana reconstructions modified after Meert and Lieberman (2004), Collins and Pisarevsky (2005), Tohver et al. (2006), Li et al. (2008), Pisarevsky
et al. (2008), Pradhan et al. (2009) and Johansson (2014). Evolution of Laurentia, Baltica and Iapetus Ocean after Cawood et al. (2001), Hartz and Torsvik (2002) and O’Brien and van
der Pluijm (2012). Terra Australis Orogen after Cawood (2005) and Cawood and Buchan (2007). ① northern East African Orogen, ② Dom Feliciano Belt, ③ Ribeira Belt, ④ Brasilia
Belt, ⑤ Transbrasiliano Lineament, ⑥ Kandi Lineament/Dahomey Belt, ⑦ Kaoko Belt, ⑧ East AfricaneAntartic Orogen, ⑨ Damara Belt, ⑩ Gariep and Saldania belts, ⑪ Pampean
Belt. As the onset of the final break-up of Rodinia (ca. 600 Ma) postdates the final assembly of Gondwana at ca. 550e530 Ma, the existence of Pannotia is ruled out. Late collisions in
the Ribeira Belt (e.g., Schmitt et al., 2004; Heilbron et al., 2008) are not shown. See text for further explanation.
S. Oriolo et al. / Geoscience Frontiers 8 (2017) 1431e14451436affinity and were juxtaposed to the Gondwana margin during the
Paleozoic (e.g., Brito Neves and Fuck, 2014; Rapela et al., 2016).
Hence, Ediacaran zircons from these areas do not record the as-
sembly of Gondwana sensu strictu but a coeval process in Laurentia
(e.g., opening of the Iapetus Ocean; Rapela et al., 2016). For this
reason, the database of Fig. 6a comprises only isotopic data from
Neoproterozoic zircons of BrasilianoePan-African belts.
Data reveal a fanning isotopic array (Fig. 6a) that points to
increased continental loss towards the timing of Gondwana assem-
bly, thus indicating dominance of crustal recycling processes asexpected for collisional orogenies (Collins et al., 2011; Roberts, 2012).
The isotopic array of Phanerozoic collisional orogens results from a
negative correlation of εHf vs. age, which represents increased con-
tinental loss, and a positive excursion arising from arc magmatism
(Collins et al., 2011). While two main trends are also recognizable in
the Gondwana array, both show a negative correlation of εHf vs. age
(Fig. 6a). Hence, addition of juvenile material was clearly subordi-
nated to crustal reworking during the assembly of Gondwana, as
further supported by dominant Archean to Mesoproterozoic Hf TDM
model ages of zircons yielding BrasilianoePan-African UePb ages
Figure 5. Main crustal blocks and Neoproterozoic orogenic belts in South America and Africa, including location of the West Gondwana Orogen (modified after Gray et al., 2008;
Liégeois et al., 2013; Brito Neves and Fuck, 2014; Ganade et al., 2016). BrasilianoePan-African belts are shown with white dots (① Dom Feliciano Belt,② Brasilia Belt,③ Dahomey
Belt,④ Ribeira Belt,⑤ Kaoko Belt,⑥ Damara Belt,⑦ Gariep Belt,⑧ East AfricaneAntarctic Orogen), whereas yellow stars indicate location of ophiolites and/or island arc complexes
(1: Zambezi Belt, 2: São Gabriel Block, 3: Araguaia Belt, 4: Borborema Province, 5: Anti-Atlas Belt, 6: ArabianeNubian Shield). Note that most crustal fragments within the West
Gondwana Orogen were affected by metacratonization. See text for further explanation.
S. Oriolo et al. / Geoscience Frontiers 8 (2017) 1431e1445 1437(<650 Ma; Fig. 7). Differences in the slope can be explained consid-
ering the tectonic evolution of the different orogenic belts and the
age of the reworked crust. Although LueHf TDM model ages do not
necessarily reflect crustal growth events (e.g., Roberts and Spencer,
2015; Payne et al., 2016), they show marked differences in the crus-
tal evolution of different Western Gondwana domains (Fig. 7).
In the first place, the isotopic excursion towards negative εHf
values (i.e., evolved Hf signature) is essentially defined by data from
belts related to theWest Gondwana Orogen (Fig. 6a), which implies
dominant reworking of ArcheanePaleoproterozoic continental
crust. Though present, basement remnants are significantly over-
printed by deformation, magmatism and metamorphism during
the BrasilianoePan-African Orogeny, thus indicating the impor-
tance of metacratonization processes during Gondwana assembly
(Figs. 4b and 5; Liégois et al., 2013). A similar trend is also evident
for the Damara Belt, resulting from recycling of Paleoproterozoic
crust (Fig. 6a; Milani et al., 2015).
In the Dom Feliciano Belt, post-collisional Ediacaranmagmatism
records recycling of Archean-Paleoproterozoic basement rocks of
the Nico Pérez Terrane and other minor crustal blocks, as indicated
by inherited zircons yielding Archean and Paleoproterozoic crys-
tallization ages and coeval whole-rock SmeNd and zircon LueHf
model ages (Oyhantçabal et al., 2007, 2009, 2012; Florisbal et al.,
2012; Basei et al., 2013; Lara et al., 2016; Oriolo et al., 2016c).
TheUePb monazite, 40Ar/39Ar and KeAr hornblende and mica ages
also record shearing and metamorphism of the Nico Pérez Terrane
basement at ca. 630e580 Ma (Oyhantçabal et al., 2009, 2011, 2012;
Oriolo et al., 2016b). In a similar way, ArcheanePaleoproterozoicgneisses of the São Francisco Craton show metamorphic over-
printing at ca. 630e500 Ma (da Silva et al., 2005, and references
therein). Coeval deformation and metamorphism of Mesoproter-
ozoic sedimentary sequences (Süssenberger et al., 2014) as well as
shear zone activity and associated hydrothermal alteration are also
reported (Teixeira et al., 2010). Further north (present coordinates),
Paleoproterozoic gneisses of the Borborema Province show intense
overprinting due to Brasiliano magmatism and metamorphism
(Neves, 2003, 2015; Ganade de Araujo et al., 2014b), which is
further supported by whole-rock SmeNd and zircon LueHf model
ages of Neoproterozoic intrusions and migmatites (van Schmuss
et al., 2011; Ganade de Araujo et al., 2014a). If compared with the
paradigmatic Saharan and LATEA metacratons (Abdesalam et al.,
2002; Liégeois et al., 2003, 2013), it is thus clear that South
American counterparts show a very similar scenario of meta-
cratonization during the BrasilianoePan-African Orogeny (Fig. 5).
On the other hand, the second isotopic excursion towards less
positive εHf values is defined by zircons from the ArabianeNubian
Shield (Fig. 6a). The ArabianeNubian Shield comprises dominantly
juvenile Late TonianeCryogenian continental crust (ca.
880e700 Ma), which is well-recorded by juvenile Hf signatures
(εHf > þ6; Fig. 6a) and resulted from accretion of island arcs (e.g.,
Liégeois and Stern, 2010; Stern et al., 2010; Morag et al., 2011; Fritz
et al., 2013). Zircon xenocrysts and LueHf data fromNeoproterozoic
zircons indicate limited contribution of pre-Neoproterozoic conti-
nental crust as well, which might result from the incorporation of
subducted sediments derived from a proximal continental source
(Stern et al., 2010; Morag et al., 2011; Ali et al., 2013). Alternatively,
Figure 6. Synthesis of isotopic data from Neoproterozoic zircons of BrasilianoePan-African belts (analytical data in Appendix 1). Arrows indicate trends of increasing continental
crust reworking. (a) εHf vs. UePb zircon data (n ¼ 1495) recalculated after Be’eri-Shlevin et al. (2010), Matteini et al. (2010), Morag et al. (2011), Rapela et al. (2011), Abati et al.
(2012), Ali et al. (2012, 2013, 2016), Frimmel et al. (2013), Ganade de Araujo et al. (2014a), Fernandes et al. (2015), Foster et al. (2015), Milani et al. (2015), Pertille et al. (2015),
Ganade et al. (2016), Janasi et al. (2016) and Oriolo et al. (2016c). The timing of Gondwana amalgamation is indicated in yellow. Data were recalculated considering a constant
decay l 176Lu ¼ 1.867 1011 year1 (Söderlund et al., 2004) and CHUR values of 176Hf/177Hf ¼ 0.282772 and 176Lu/177Hf¼ 0.0332 (Blichert-Toft and Albarède, 1997). (b) U-Pb vs. d18O
zircon data (n ¼ 241) after Ganade de Araujo et al. (2014a), Fortes de Lena et al. (2014) and Ali et al. (2016). The timing of Gondwana amalgamation is indicated in yellow and mantle
values are shown between dashed lines.
S. Oriolo et al. / Geoscience Frontiers 8 (2017) 1431e14451438
Figure 7. Kernel density estimation curve and histogram of two-stage Hf model ages
plotted using Density Plotter (Vermeesch, 2012). Only zircons from BrasilianoePan-
African belts yielding UePb crystallization ages younger than 650 Ma are included.
Data source as for Fig. 6 (analytical data in Appendix 1). Bin width: 50 Ma. Data were
recalculated considering a constant decay l 176Lu ¼ 1.867  1011 year1 (Söderlund
et al., 2004), CHUR values of 176Hf/177Hf ¼ 0.282772 and 176Lu/177Hf ¼ 0.0332
(Blichert-Toft and Albarède, 1997), depleted mantle (DM) values of
176Hf/177Hf ¼ 0.283225 and 176Lu/177Hf ¼ 0.038512 (Vervoort and Blichert-Toft, 1999)
and 176Lu/177Hf ¼ 0.015 for bulk Earth (Goodge and Vervoort, 2006).
S. Oriolo et al. / Geoscience Frontiers 8 (2017) 1431e1445 1439Be’eri-Shlevin et al. (2010) argued for a major crustal growth event
at ca. 1.2e1.1 Ga. On the other hand, whole-rock SmeNd and zircon
LueHf data from post-collisional magmatism recorded after ca.
650 Ma indicate reworking of older Neoproterozoic crust with
addition of juvenile material to some extent (Be’eri-Shlevin et al.,
2010; Liégeois and Stern, 2010; Morag et al., 2011; Ali et al., 2012,
2013, 2016). d18O combined with LueHf data also point to mixing
of juvenile Ediacaran crust and slightly older Neoproterozoic
supracrustal material (Fig. 6b; Ali et al., 2016).In the case of the Anti-Atlas Belt, zircon LueHf and UePb data
reveals a bimodal distribution that fits both trends recognized for
the West Gondwana Orogen and the ArabianeNubian Shield
(Figs. 6a and 7). The excursion towards negative εHf values is
further supported by detrital zircons from Late Neoproterozoic
sequences that indicate contributions from Archean and Paleo-
proterozoic crustal blocks and Paleoproterozoic LueHf model ages
(Fig. 7; Abati et al., 2012). The second trend, in turn, might result
from the evolution of an intraoceanic arc between ca. 760 and
700 Ma (e.g., Bousquet et al., 2008; Triantafyllou et al., 2016),
being thus comparable with the ArabianeNubian Shield. Juvenile
crust contribution was also reported for Pan-African detrital zir-
cons and was interpreted as the result of arc magmatism along the
northern Gondwana margin during the Late Neo-
proterozoiceEarly Paleozoic (Abati et al., 2012, and references
therein). Hence, this subduction-related magmatism might be a
possible explanation for the juvenile Pan-African crust of the
ArabianeNubian Shield.
Despite being evident for the northern African margin, addi-
tion of TonianeCryogenian juvenile continental crust along the
West Gondwana Orogen is not clearly reflected by data (Fig. 6a).
Nevertheless, subduction with associated back-arc extension and
development of island arc complexes at ca. 850e750 Ma accounts
for addition of juvenile material in the Dahomey Belt (Ganade
et al., 2016). For the same period, a similar setting was indicated
for the Borborema Province (Ganade de Araujo et al., 2014a) and
intraoceanic subduction was reported in the São Gabriel Block
(Fig. 5, Fortes de Lena et al., 2014, and references therein). d18O
isotopic data from these regions show mantle-like values for zir-
cons yielding UePb ages of ca. 900e700 Ma and d18O > 6 for
younger zircons (Fig. 6b; Fortes de Lena et al., 2014; Ganade de
Araujo et al., 2014a), also indicating juvenile crust addition and
subsequent reworking of supracrustal material during the as-
sembly of Gondwana, respectively. TonianeCryogenian island arc
development and subduction with back-arc extension recorded in
several Western Gondwana regions (Fig. 8) thus represented a
period of relative significant crustal growth for Western Gond-
wana and show a major contrast with coeval rifting and subse-
quent development of major oceanic basins between Rodinian
blocks.
When compared with other supercontinents, the Gondwana
assembly shows the most evolved Hf fingerprint, thus implying
reworking of a great amount of old crustal material (Spencer
et al., 2013; Gardiner et al., 2016). This has been attributed to
the presence of single-sided subduction zones (Spencer et al.,
2013) or, alternatively, to enhanced subduction-erosion due to
steeper subduction angles (Gardiner et al., 2016). However, most
of the BrasilianoePan-African magmatism was related to meta-
cratonization processes, i.e., collisional to post-collisional mag-
matism. Metacratonization results from the lack of a thick
lithospheric mantle, which leads to craton remobilization during
an orogenic event, and is more likely to occur along the former
active margin due to subduction (Abdesalam et al., 2002; Liégeois
et al., 2013). As previously described, most Gondwanan meta-
cratonized areas comprised the pre-collisional active margin and
recorded back-arc extension as well (Fig. 8; Fritz et al., 2013;
Ganade de Araujo et al., 2014c; Oriolo et al., 2016a). Likewise,
back-arc development further promotes the removal of litho-
spheric mantle as a result of asthenospheric upwelling and,
consequently, back arc zones are favorable zones for strain
localization during subsequent continental collision (Hyndman
et al., 2005). Though single-sided subduction (Spencer et al.,
2013) and enhanced subduction-erosion (Gardiner et al., 2016)
Figure 8. Sketch showing the geodynamic scenario for Western Gondwana blocks at
ca. 750 Ma (modified after Fritz et al., 2013; Fortes de Lena et al., 2014; Ganade et al.,
2016; Triantafyllou et al., 2016). Subduction (blue) with associated back-arc extension
(red line), development of island arcs (green) and subordinated oceanic crust gener-
ation in internal oceans dominated in most Western Gondwana domains, thus con-
trasting with coeval rifting and major oceanic basin development recorded by Rodinian
blocks (not shown). RP: Río de la Plata Craton, NP: Nico Pérez Terrane.
S. Oriolo et al. / Geoscience Frontiers 8 (2017) 1431e14451440might however contribute, the Gondwana assembly Hf finger-
print is thus most likely associated with metacratonization pro-
cesses, which in turn were influenced by the pre-collisional
configuration of active margins and back-arc zones.
5. Implications for the supercontinent cycle
Together with the development of intraoceanic arcs (Section 4),
ophiolite remnants between Western Gondwanan blocks record
post-Rodinia oceanic crust formation during the TonianeCryoge-
nian (Fig. 5). Nevertheless, relicts of older oceanic crust are present
as well, such as the ca. 1.4 Ga Chewore ophiolite of the Zambezi Belt
(Oliver et al., 1998).
In the São Gabriel Block of southeastern Brazil, TonianeCryo-
genian oceanic crust is recorded by ophiolitic sequences that
comprise metabasalts, amphibolites, magnesian schists, serpen-
tinites, harzburgites and albitites (Hartmann and Chemale, 2003;
Arena et al., 2016). Zircons yield UePb SHRIMP concordant ages
of 923  3 and 829.4  2.8 Ma for albitites of the Cerro Man-
tiqueiras and Ibaré ophiolites, respectively, thus constraining the
timing of the magmatism (Arena et al., 2016). Likewise, zircon trace
element data and εHf values between þ8 and þ13 point to juvenile
mantle-derived magmas (Arena et al., 2016).
Further north (present coordinates), slices of ophiolitic rocks are
also present in the Araguaia Belt. The Quatipuru ophiolite is
constituted by serpentinized peridotites intruded by mafic to ul-
tramafic dykes (Paixão et al., 2008). SmeNd data of the dykes
provide a whole-rock isochrone age of 757  49 Ma, whereas εNdvalues between þ6.4 and þ6.9 indicate a juvenile mantle source
(Paixão et al., 2008).
Cryogenian oceanic crust is recorded in the southern Borborema
Province of Brazil as well. The Monte Orebe ophiolite comprises
basic metavolcanites, metacherts, garnetemica schists and minor
lenses of amphibolites and metaultramafic rocks (Caxito et al.,
2014). Based on geochemical and SmeNd data, a juvenile
depleted mantle source can be inferred for the metabasalts, which
also present a whole-rock SmeNd isochrone age of 819  120 Ma
(Caxito et al., 2014).
In a similar way, Cryogenian ophiolites are present in the Anti-
Atlas Belt, Morocco. The Bou-Azzer ophiolite comprises serpen-
tinites, metagabbros, metabasalts and minor metasedimentary
rocks, which are intruded by arc-related granodiorites, diorites and
tonalites (El Hadi et al., 2010, and references therein). Geochemical
data reveal a MORB signature for the metabasalts, although a sec-
ond group with island arc affinity was recognized as well (Naidoo
et al., 1991). A UePb SHRIMP zircon age of 697  8 Ma obtained
for a gabbro constrains the age of the ophiolite (El Hadi et al., 2010),
which is further supported by ages of ca. 655e640 Ma of subse-
quent subduction-related intrusions (Inglis et al., 2005). On the
other hand, the Tasriwine ophiolitic complex is mostly made up of
metaultramafic rocks, metagabbros, leucogranites and mafic dykes
(Samson et al., 2004, and references therein). Major elements and
REE geochemical data reveal that leucogranites represent plagiog-
ranites, which also present whole-rock εNd and zircon εHf values of
ca. þ6.0 and þ14, respectively, thus indicating a mantle derivation
(Samson et al., 2004). The age of the plagiogranites, in turn, is
constrained at 762 2Ma by UePb TIMS zircon data (Samson et al.,
2004).
In the ArabianeNubian Shield, the YOSHGAH ophiolite belt
records two Cryogenian events of oceanic crust formation at ca.
810e780 and 750e730 Ma (Ali et al., 2010, and references
therein). The YOSHGAH belt comprises serpentinites, isotropic and
layered metagabbros, pillow metabasalts and diabase dykes
(Zimmer et al., 1995; Gahlan and Arai, 2009; Ali et al., 2010). In the
Gerf nappe, Zimmer et al. (1995) reported a N-MORB signature for
pillow basaltic lavas and sheeted dykes based on major and trace
element geochemical data. These rocks also show εNd
between þ4.5 and þ8.8, further supporting a juvenile signature
(Zimmer et al., 1995). SmeNd whole-rock isochrone ages of
720  9 and 758  34 Ma were obtained for gabbros and basalts,
whereas one gabbro yielded a SmeNd mineral isochrone age of
771  52 Ma (Zimmer et al., 1995). Kröner et al. (1992) reported
PbePb zircon evaporation ages of 741  21 and 808  14 Ma for a
gabbro of the Gerf ophiolite and a plagiogranite of the Onib
ophiolite, respectively. In turn, zircons from a layered gabbro from
the Allaqi ophiolite present a weighted mean 206Pb/238U age of
730  6 Ma (UePb LA-ICP-MS; Ali et al., 2010). Mineral chemistry
and whole-rock geochemical data indicate that peridotites of the
Allaqi ophiolite show compositions similar to fore-arc peridotites
(Azer et al., 2013).
Hence, data indicate the presence of Cryogenian oceanic litho-
sphere younger than Rodinia break-up, although remnants of
contemporaneous or even older oceanic rocks are present as well.
The presence of older oceanic lithosphere could be explained by
geological evidence supporting that several cratons were not part
of Rodinia (Section 2, Fig. 1a; Cordani et al., 2003; Kröner and
Cordani, 2003). Likewise, most Neoproterozoic ophiolites were
associated with convergent settings, i.e. supra-subduction zones or
island arc sequences (Fig. 8; e.g., Samson et al., 2004; Ali et al., 2010;
Azer et al., 2013; Fortes de Lena et al., 2014), thus suggesting that
S. Oriolo et al. / Geoscience Frontiers 8 (2017) 1431e1445 1441they might represent limited events of extension of internal oceans
rather than the development of major Cryogenian oceanic basins
(Cordani et al., 2003; Johansson, 2014). The amalgamation of
Western Gondwana thus resulted from introversion, which is
further supported by paleogeographic reconstructions indicating
that Western Gondwana assembly took place in the southern
hemisphere, where most cratons were positioned since Rodinia
assembly (Fig. 1a; Meert and Torsvik, 2003; Li et al., 2008; Evans,
2009; Evans et al., 2016). Nevertheless, extroversion can still be
considered valid for the amalgamation of Western and Eastern
Gondwana based on paleogeographic reconstructions (Tohver et al.,
2006; Li et al., 2008; Evans, 2009), as indicated by Murphy and
Nance (2003). Consequently, the assembly of Gondwana resulted
from a combination of introversion and extroversion.6. Concluding remarks
After assembly during the Late Mesoproterozoic, Rodinia un-
derwent rifting at ca. 800e700 Ma leading to the opening of a
major ocean between Laurentia and Eastern Gondwana cratons. In
contrast, most Western Gondwana cratons occupied a marginal
position in the southern hemisphere and recorded a different
evolution during the same period, including subduction with back-
arc extension, island arc development and limited formation of
oceanic crust in internal oceans. Hence, paleogeographic re-
constructions for the TonianeCryogenian, which classically
consider a geodynamic scenario related to Rodinia break-up, need
to be reevaluated.
The first collisional event during Gondwana assembly is recor-
ded at ca. 630 Ma between the Río de la Plata and Congo-São
Francisco cratons, which was succeeded by the assembly of the
Amazonian and West African cratons to this early Gondwana nu-
cleus up to ca. 600 Ma along the West Gondwana Orogen. These
events are coeval with the onset of the opening of the Iapetus
Ocean at ca. 610e600 Ma, which gave rise to the separation of
Baltica, Laurentia and Amazonas and resulted from the final Rodinia
break-up. The East African/Antarctic Orogen records the subse-
quent amalgamation of Western and Eastern Gondwana after ca.
580 Ma, contemporaneously with the beginning of subduction in
the Terra Australis Orogen along the southernmargin of Gondwana.
Finally, the Kalahari Craton was incorporated during the Late
EdiacaraneEarly Cambrian. The proposed Gondwana evolution
rules out the existence of Pannotia, as the final Gondwana amal-
gamation postdates latest connections between Laurentia and
Amazonia. Likewise, the contemporaneous record of final Rodinia
break-up and Gondwana assembly has major implications for the
supercontinent cycle, as supercontinent amalgamation and break-
up do not necessarily represent alternating episodic processes but
overlap in time.
On the other hand, εHf vs. UePb zircon age data from different
BrasilianoePan-African belts show a fanning isotopic array indi-
cating increased continental loss towards the timing of Gond-
wana assembly as expected for collisional orogenies (Collins
et al., 2011; Roberts, 2012). Reworking of mostly Archean and
Paleoproterozoic crust is recorded in the Damara Belt and the
West Gondwana Orogen, being closely related to metacratoni-
zation of several crustal fragments in the latter, such as the Nico
Pérez Terrane, the São Francisco Craton, the Borborema Province
and the LATEA Metacraton. Remobilization of much younger
crust and subordinated addition of juvenile Late Neoproterozoic
continental crust took place along the northern African Gond-
wana margin. The Hf fingerprint of the assembly of Gondwana is
thus controlled by metacratonization processes that, in turn,were strongly influenced by the pre-collisional location of active
margins and back-arc zones. In contrast to crustal reworking
during Gondwana assembly, crustal growth resulting from
addition of juvenile continental crust along convergent margins
was dominant since the Late Tonian in several Western Gond-
wana regions.
Finally, Late TonianeCryogenian oceans between Western
Gondwana blocks were closed during the assembly of Western
Gondwana, thus pointing to introversion. Nevertheless, pre-
Neoproterozoic remnants of oceanic crust are present as well and
can be explained as the result of isolation of several Western
Gondwana cratons during the amalgamation of Rodinia. As extro-
version is recorded during Western and Eastern Gondwana amal-
gamation, an alternative model of combined introversion and
extroversion is proposed for the assembly of Gondwana.Acknowledgements
S. Oriolo thanks DAAD for a long-term PhD scholarship (A/12/
75051). Craig Robertson is greatly acknowledged for discussions
and literature exchange regarding the origin of the term Gond-
wana. The authors also want to thank M. Santosh and R. D. Nance
for their suggestions and editorial work as well as J.-P. Liégeois, R.
Strachan and two anonymous reviewers for their invaluable
comments.Appendix A. Supplementary data
Supplementary data related to this article can be found at http://
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