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TECTONOPHYSICS

ELSEVIER Tectonophysics 268 (1996) 23-63

Late to history of the East European : dynamics of evolution

A.M. Nlkishin• " " a*, , P.A. Ziegler b, R.A. Stephenson c, S.A.P.L. Cloetingh c, A.V. Fume a, P.A. Fokin a, A.V. Ershov a, S.N. Bolotov a, M.V. Korotaev ", A.S. Alekseev a, V.I. Gorbachev d,

E.V. Shipilov e, A. Lankreijer c, E.Yu. Bembinova a, I.V. Shalimov a a Geological Faculty, Moscow State University, Leninskie Gory, 119899 Moscow, b Geological-Palaeontological Institute, University of Basel, Bernoullistr. 32, 4056 Basel, Switzerland c Vrije Universiteit, Faculty of Sciences, De Boelelaan 1085, 1081 HVAmsterdam, Netherlands d NEDRA, Yaroslavl, Russia e Institute of Marine Geophysics, Murmansk, Russia Received 5 September 1995; accepted 31 May 1996

Abstract

During its to Palaeozoic evolution, the was affected by phases during Early, Middle and Late Riphean, early Vendian, early Palaeozoic, Early and Middle-Late Devonian times and again at the transition from the to the and the Permian to the Triassic. These main rifting cycles were separated by phases of intraplate compressional at the transition from the Early to the Middle Riphean, the Middle to the Late Riphean, the Late Riphean to the Vendian, during the mid-Early , at the transition from the Cambrian to the , the to the Early Devonian, the Early to the Middle Devonian, the Carboniferous to Permian and the Triassic to the . Main rift cycles axe dynamically related to the separation of continental from the margins of the East European Craton and the opening of Atlantic-type palaeo-oceans and/or back-arc basins. Phases of intraplate compression, causing of extensional basins, coincide with the development of collisional belts along the margins of the East European Craton. The origin and evolution of sedimentary basins on the East European Craton was governed by repeatedly changing regional fields. Periods of changes coincide with changes in the drift direction, velocity and rotation of the East European plate and its interaction with adjacent plates. Intraplate magmatism was controlled by changes in stress fields and by hot-spot activity. Geodynamieally speaking, different types of magmatism occurred simultaneously.

Keywords: East European Craton; palaeotectonics; sedimentary basins; palaeogeography

1. Introduction basins, intraplate tectonic phenomena and for the analysis of the dynamic processes governing them. The East European Craton (EEC) is a classical The EEC is bounded in the east by the Uralian- for the study of intracratonic sedimentary Novaya Zemlya-Taymyr orogen, to the south by the Scythian and Crimean- orogens, to the * Corresponding author. southwest by the Tornquist Line, to the northwest

0040-1951/96/$15.00 Copyright © 1996 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved. PIIS0040-1951(96)00228-4 24 A.M. Nikishin et al./Tectonophysics 268 (1996) 23-63

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Fig. 1. Main provinces of the East European Craton. 1 = Archaean and Early terranes, undivided; 2 = 1.1-0.55 Ga age terranes; 3 = Precambrian terranes, undivided; 4 = early Palaeozoic fold belts; 5 = late Palaeozoic fold belts; 6 = fold belts; 7 = Alpine fold belts; 8 = outlines of East-European Craton; 9 = passive continental margins; 10 = area with very thin continental or oceanic . by the and to the north vestigated by many researchers, including Shatsky by the oceanic Eurasian Basin (Fig. 1). The EEC (1964), Vinogradov (1969), Bogdanov (1976), is characterized by a Precambrian crystalline base- Bronguleev (1978), Bogdanov and Khain (1981), ment outcropping in the Fennoscandian (Baltic) and Bronguleev (1985), Milanovsky (1987), Ziegler Ukrainian shields and the Voronezh Massif; else- (1989, 1990) and Khain and Seslavinsky (1991). where, this is covered by sediments with This paper reviews, on the basis of a set of inter- thicknesses up to 23 km. The Late Precambrian pretative palaeogeographic-palaeotectonic maps and and evolution of the EEC has been in- supporting basin analysis studies, the Late Precam- A.M. Nikishin et al./Tectonophysics 268 (1996) 23-63 25 brian and Palaeozoic evolution of the EEC. The a large anorogenic rapakivi- province devel- dynamics of the evolution of sedimentary basins are oped between 1.65 and 1.55 Ga (Gorbatchev and Bog- analyzed in the framework of processes affecting the danova, 1993). The rapakivi of the Ukrainian margins of the craton, resulting from its interaction are 0.1-0.2 Ga older (Shcherbak, 1991; Gor- with adjacent plates. This paper provides the reader batchev and Bogdanova, 1993). with an introduction to our current understanding of The Pechora- basement province is the geology and geodynamics of Eastern . poorly known. The few wells which reached base- ment yield ages ranging from 1.0 to 0.55 Ga (Dedeev 2. Basement provinces and Zaporozhtseva, 1985; Kogaro et al., 1992; Senin, 1993; Shipilov, 1993; Puchkov, 1993). The compos- The Precambrian EEC consists of several base- ite Pechora-Barentsia was probably welded ment provinces which differ in the age of their to Fennosarmatia at the end of the Precambrian (D- consolidation (Fig. 1). The main constituents are: edeev and Zaporozhtseva, 1985; Zonenshain et al., the Early Precambrian Fennosarmatian Craton (ter- 1993; Puchkov, 1993). minology of H. Stille; Milanovsky, 1987); the Goth- The Late Precambrian Northern Taymyr-Sever- ian Sveconorwegian terrane (1.75-1.55 Ga), which naya Zemlya block contains remnants of Cambrian was welded to Fennosarmatia during the Dalslandian flysch, unconformably covered by Ordovician plat- (1.2-0.9 Ga; Gorbatchev and Bogdanova, form series (Milanovsky, 1987). Reconstruction of 1993); the Late Precambrian Pechora-Barents Sea the early Palaeozoic history of this region is prob- (Pechora-Barentsia), which was ac- lematic; however, it is possible that the Northern creted to the northeastern margin of Fennosarmatia Taymyr-Severnaya Zemlya block was accreted to during Vendian-Early Cambrian times; the Late Pre- the Pechora-Barentsia terrane at the transition from cambrian Taymyr-Severnaya Zemlya terrane, which the Cambrian to the Ordovician. was accreted to the evolving EEC probably at the No reliable age dates are available for the possi- end of the Cambrian (Dedeev and Zaporozhtseva, bly Late Precambrian (Dalslandian?) and 1985; Getsen, 1987; Uflyand et al., 1991; Zonen- Pre-Dobrogea blocks. shain et al., 1993); and the Astrakhan-Peri-Caspian (Nevolin, 1988) and Pre-Dobrogea blocks of pos- 3. Working methods sibly Late Precambrian age (Garetsky, 1990). The palaeo- incorporating all these older than The sedimentary cover of the EEC records its Late Early Riphean blocks is here referred to as . Precambrian and Phanerozoic evolution (Fig. 2). Fennosarmatia is the core of the Baltica palaeo-con- Geophysical and well data provide information on tinent, the outlines of which changed significantly the geometry and deformation of sedimentary basins through time. and permit analysis of their and uplift The Fennosarmatian craton consists of Archaean histories and of the dynamic processes governing domains and Early Proterozoic orogenic belts (Bog- their evolution. Determination of the timing of the danov and Khain, 1981; Bogdanova, 1986; Mi- different tectonic events, which controlled basin sub- lanovsky, 1987; Park, 1991; Nikishin, 1992; Gor- sidence and destruction, depends entirely on the ac- batchev and Bogdanova, 1993; Abbot and Nikishin, curacy of dating the different sedimentary sequences. 1996). Prior to the Riphean, the EEC was affected by Riphean and Vendian sediments record a Riph- major orogenic cycles during which several continen- ean-early Vendian rifting (aulacogen) and a late Ven- tal terranes were amalgamated to form a huge com- dian-early Palaeozoic (Shatsky, 1964; posite continental craton; this process terminated with Bogdanov, 1976; Milanovsky, 1987). Although wells the development of the Andean-type Trans-Scandina- provide ample control on the thickness and litholog- vian magmatic belt (1.82-1.65 Ga; Park, 1991; Gor- ical composition of the Riphean sediments, palaeon- batchev and Bogdanova, 1993). Orogenic and mag- tological control is poor and often conflicts with marie activity terminated during the earliest Riphean. the available K/Ar dates. As correlations between To the east of the Trans-Scandinavian magmatic belt, basins are not very reliable, the stratigraphic chart 26 A.M. Nikishin et al./ Tectonophysics 268 (1996) 23-63

1--15

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Fig. 2. Main sedimentary basins of the East European Craton and location of wells and seismic profiles used for 1-D and 2-D modelling. 1 = Early Precambrian basement (shield); 2 = Late Precambrian basement (0.8-0.55 Ga); 3 = intraplatform highs; 4 = rifted basins; 5 = platform areas; 6 = very deep sedimentary basin (up to 20-23 km); 7 = foreland basins (Fore- basin, Fore-Timan basin, Fore-Carpathian basin); 8 = outlines of some sedimentary basins; 9 = boundary of EEC; 10 = of the Atlantic- Ocean. Names of structures: DMR = Don-Medveditsa rifted basin; DnR = rifted basin; DrR = Dniepr rifted basin; EMB = East-Manych basin; KBR = Kama-Belaya rifted basin; KDR = Kandalaksha-Dvina rifted basin; KH = Kotelnicb High; KKZ = Karpinsky Kryazh zone; KPH = Komi-Permyak High; KR ---- Krestets rifted basin; LR = Ladoga rifted basin; MR = Moscow rifted basin; NTO = North-Taymyr orogen; OrR = Orenburg rifted basin; PcR = Pachelma rifted basin; PKR = Peehora-Kolva rifted basin; PR = Pripyat rifted basin; SH = Sysola High; SR = Soligalich rifted basin; Tall = Tatarian High; VOR = Volyn-Orsha rifted basin; VyR = Vyatka rifted basin. Solid lines labelled 701 and 702: location of profiles given in Fig. 11. Black dots and numbers: location of wells used for subsidence analyses in Figs. 5 and 6. A.M. Nikishin et al. / Tectonophysics 268 (1996) 23-63 27

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Fig. 3. Stratigraphic scheme of Riphean sediments: 1 = conglomerates and conglomeratic sands; 2 = sandstones and siltstones; 3 = mudstones; 4 = limestones; 5 = ; 6 = marls; 7 = ; 8 = tufts; 9 = hiatus; 10 = fossils; 11 = isotope dating. summarising the Riphean sedimentary record of the tention was paid to the distribution and devel- Russian Platform (Fig. 3) must be considered as ten- opment of mapping intervals in terms of depositional tative. For the same reason, it is difficult to develop versus erosional basin edges, transport directions Riphean palaeogeographic-palaeotectonic maps for of clastics, monitoring the uplift of adjacent cra- the entire craton. In contrast, the Vendian and tonic highs or orogenic belts, and to intrabasinal Palaeozoic stratigraphy is quite well constrained by syn-depositional tectonic and volcanic activity. The biozonations; therefore, basin-to-basin correlations, evolution of selected basins (cf. Fig. 2) was ana- summarised in Fig. 4, are more reliable. For the Pre- lyzed by calculating tectonic subsidence curves on cambrian, the time scale of Semikhatov et al. (1991) the basis of well data, applying conventional back- and for the Phanerozoic, the Harland et al. (1990) stripping techniques (e.g., Watts, 1992); examples of scale were adopted. such subsidence curves are shown in Fig. 5. Subsi- Our analysis of the Riphean to early Mesozoic dence curves were converted into plots of subsidence evolution of the EEC is based on regional compi- and uplift rate (Fig. 6) permitting ready compari- lations and syntheses of stratigraphical and struc- son of the different basins. Selected basin transects, tural data, an inventory of magmatic activity, and controlled by reflection-seismic profiles, were ana- the construction of a set of regional, interpretative lyzed and palinspastically restored (cf. Nikishin et palaeogeographic-palaeotectonic maps. Special at- al., 1995). 28 A.M. Nikishin et al./ Tectonophysics 268 (1996) 23-63

I

',: ', I II ,HHU H H HI I I "'1 IllI I i I I i I I I I

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Palaeogeographic-palaeotectonic maps were con- 4.1. Early Riphean (1650-1350 Ma) structed for a sequence of time slices, corresponding to the main steps in the evolution of the craton. In pre-Riphean times, the EEC was affected by These time-slices are large and variable. Preliminary a sequence of major orogenic cycles during which versions of these maps, showing the present distri- continental and orogenic terranes were amalgamated bution of sediments pertaining to the respective time to form a large continental craton referred to as interval, as well as hypothetical depositional basin 'Baltica'. outlines, are given in Fig. 7 in a present-day geo- During and just before the Early Riphean a graphic framework. In discussions of these maps all large rapakivi-granite province developed east of the direction indications pertain to the present coordi- Trans-Scandinavian magmatic belt (Fig. 7a). Intru- nates of the EEC. sion of the more than 20 constituent plutonic massifs was accompanied by the subsidence of -tec- 4. Riphean to Early Triassic evolution of the EEC tonic depressions above them and by the injection of major swarms. The duration of rapakivi-granite A stage-by-stage discussion of the Riphean to Tri- plutonism spanned about 200 m.y. and terminated at assic evolution of the EEC is given below. For each ca. 1.5 Ga (Milanovsky, 1987; Svetov et al., 1990; of the main stages one or several schematic maps Shcherbak, 1991; Haapala and Ramo, 1992; Gor- are presented. More detailed maps are in preparation batchev and Bogdanova, 1993). and will be published at a later date. Here, the main During the middle Early Riphean, the southeast- conclusions and outstanding problems of ongoing ern parts of Baltica were affected by a major rift research are highlighted. cycle, the timing of which is, however, poorly con- strained by radiometric data. Major include the A.M. Nikishin et al./Tectonophysics 268 (1996) 23-63 29

Geological time Geological time

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Fig. 5. Tectonic subsidence for some deep wells. Locationof wells is shown in Fig. 2. Time scale after Harland et al. (1990). Eustatic sea-level changes were disregarded. deep Peri-Ural Basin and its branches, the Pachelma, A regional hiatus between the Early and Middle Orenburg and Abdulino basins. Sediments, attaining Riphean series (Fig. 3) indicates that towards the end thicknesses of more than 6 km, are developed mainly of the Early Riphean the entire craton was uplifted, in a continental clastics facies in the craton-ward perhaps in response to compressional deformation parts of these basins and grade laterally into shallow- of its western and eastern margins. Occurrences of marine series and carbonates. Sedimentation was metamorphic rocks and granitic plutons, yielding ra- accompanied by the intrusion of tholeiitic basaltic diometric ages in the 1.4-1.2 Ga range, have been magmas and a basic plutonism (Mirchink, 1977; reported from eastern Poland, the Trans-Scandina- Lagutenkova and Chepikova, 1982; Lozin, 1994). As vian magmatic belt, and the Urals (Pozaryski, 1977; the tectonic setting of these rifts resembled that of Semikhatov et al., 1991; Milanovsky et al., 1994). an Atlantic-type rift system, it is very likely that the middle Early Riphean rifting cycle culminated in the 4.2. Middle Riphean (1350-1050 Ma) separation of a continental terrane from the south- eastern margin of Baltica and the opening of a new A new rifting cycle apparently commenced dur- oceanic basin. ing the mid-Middle Riphean (Fig. 7b), giving rise 30 A.M. Nikishin et al./Tectonophysics 268 (1996) 23-63

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V, ICml 0 ]S I D I C I el 'TT~ i-v= Ic~ o ISlD c IPITrgl Fig. 6. Comparison of tectonic subsidence rates for selected wells from the East European Craton. Note correlation between main subsidence phases. For well locations see Fig. 2. Names of wells are listed on Fig. 5. to the subsidence of the deep Tomquist (Den- tinental deposits. Subsidence of the Ladoga, Kan- mark-Poland-Dobrogea) and the Peri-Timan-Peri- dalaksha and Krestets basins was accompanied by Ural rifts along the present-day western and eastern volcanism and the intrusion of plutons. Contempora- margins of Baltica, respectively. At the same time neous dike swarms occur on the . There the interior of Baltica was transected by the Mid- is also some evidence for basic plutonism in the Peri- Russian, Kandala.,ksha-Dvina, and Gulf of Bothnia Uralian basins (Lagutenkova and Chepikova, 1982). system of aulacogens and the Ladoga rift. Sediments In view of the sedimentary record of these basins, accumulating in the peri-cratonic rift basins consist it is postulated that during the Middle Riphean rifting of continental to shallow-water terrigenous clastics cycle, probably as part of a general plate reorgan- which grade laterally into very thick carbonates. In isation, continental fragments were separated from contrast, the interior rifts are characterized by con- the western and eastern margins of Baltica, result- A.M. Nikishin et al./ Tectonophysics 268 (1996) 23-63 31 ing in the development of new passive margins and sumed that during the Late Riphean yet another abortion of the intracratonic rifts. crustal block was separated from the eastern mar- At the transition from the Middle to the Late gin of Baltica. Whereas the interior rifts are char- Riphean, possibly the entire craton was affected by acterised by predominantly continental sediments, regional compression, as evident by the inversion marine strata, dominated by carbonates, characterise of the Middle Riphean rifts and the development of the peri-cratonic rifts (Getsen, 1991; Milanovsky et the Dalslandian orogen along the western margin of al., 1994). Baltica. This reflects a further major change in the A regional pre-Vendian unconformity is evident megatectonic setting of Baltica. Traces of the Dal- on the entire Baltica Craton (Fig. 3). As this end- slandian orogen are recognised in western Norway, Riphean hiatus is not associated with compressional southern Sweden and possibly also in the Dobrogea deformations and magmatism, it is likely to be of (Garetsky, 1990). Angular unconformities between a eustatic origin related to early Vendian glaciation Middle and Late Riphean series are also evident in (see below), the Uralian domain from which low-grade metamor- Fig. 8 summarises the Riphean tectonic history and phic and plutonic rocks have been reported (Keller drift patterns of the EEC. Riphean aulacogens contain and Chumakov, 1983; Semikhatov et al., 1991). Also a considerable amount of volcanic rocks. There are in the interior rifts, a major break in sedimenta- numerous Riphean dike swarms (Milanovsky et al., tion straddles the Middle-Late Riphean boundary 1994; Grachev et al., 1994). Geochemical data show (Fig. 3). that Riphean rift-related volcanic rocks are basalts, These deformations are indicative of a major trending towards alkali-basalts, typical for intraplate change in the megatectonic setting of Baltica. Dur- magmatism (Grachev et al., 1994). ing the Dalslandian orogenic cycle, which spanned 1.2-0.9 Ga and is the time equivalent to the Grenvil- 4.4. Vendian (650-540 Ma) lian orogeny of (Gorbatschev, 1985; Gorbatchev and Bogdanova, 1993), Baltica was During the Vendian, rifting activity along the welded along Grenvillian-Dalslandian sutures in the western and southwestern margin of Baltica testifies west to - and in the south to Ama- to increasing instability of the Late Riphean Pangea zonia and thus was incorporated in the Late Riphean (Hoffman, 1991; Andrrasson, 1994). Pangea (Hoffman, 1991; Dalziel et al., 1992). On the EEC, the lower parts of the Vendian are subdivided into the Laplandian glacial and the 4.3. Late Riphean (1050--650 Ma) Volyn flood stages. The upper parts of the Vendian are represented by extensive continental Instability of the post-Grenvillian Pangea is re- and shallow-marine sediments; these cover much of flected in Baltica by the Late Riphean rifting cycle the craton and form part of a single depositional which affected mainly the eastern margin and the sequence which extends into the earliest Cambrian. eastern-central parts of the EEC. Main elements of In large parts of Baltica, the oldest Vendian sedi- this rift system are the pericratonic Peri-Timan and ments were deposited during the Laplandian stage Peri-Ural basins and the interior Pachelma aulaco- which coincides with a major global glaciation gen, the Moscow rift belt and the Kandalaksha (Hambrey and Harland, 1981). Laplandian glaciers aulacogen (Fig. 7c). Contemporaneous dike swarms covered much of Baltica, as indicated by remnants occur on the Baltic Shield (Svetov et al., 1990; Sche- of glacial deposits found along its margins and also glov et al., 1993). Significantly, the early Riphean in its interior (Fig. 7d). These often attain sizeable Abdulino and Pachelma and the Middle Riphean thicknesses (Sokolov and Ivanovsky, 1985; Sokolov Kandalaksha and Ladoga aulacogens were - and Fedonkin, 1985), evidencing significant glacial ally reactivated during the Late Riphean rifting cycle, , perhaps of the order of hundreds of metres whereas other older rifts remained quiescent. and up to 1 km. Glacial erosion deeply truncated As the Peri-Timan and Peri-Ural basins have the the Riphean and possibly also earliest Vendian sed- characteristics of rifted passive margins, it is as- iments which had been deposited in the interior 32 A.M. Nikishin et al. I Tectonophysics 268 (1996) 23-63

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21.,.3 <14 \ 5 Fig. 8. Riphean drift pattern of Baltica (after Posenen et al., 1989) and reconstructions of the palaeotectonic environments. Legend: 1 = orogenic belt; 2 = intracratonic basin; 3 = rapakivi granites and Trans-Scandinavian magmatic belt; 4 = zone; 5 = spreading zone.

of Baltica. In this context it should be noted that, basalt province developed along the southwestern on the Norwegian margin of Baltica, Laplandian margin of the EEC (Volovnin, 1975; Znamenskaya tillites are preceded by a thick Vendian succession et al., 1990; Garetsky and Zinovenko, 1994). These of continental, shallow-marine and in part even tur- subaerial flood basalts attain maximum thicknesses biditic sediments that were apparently deposited in of 500 m. In areas where basalts are associated transtensional basins (Nystuen and Siedlika, 1988; with zones they are devoid of tufts, whilst Winchester, 1988). towards the basin margins pyroclastics dominate Laplandian sediments cover Riphean rifted basins (Bronguleev, 1985; Garetsky and Zinovenko, 1994). mainly in the southwestern parts of the EEC and The bulk of the flows consists of basalts with subor- in the Peri-Ural Basin. The outlines of these lower dinate andesites and dacites. Vendian basins differ significantly from those of The tectonic setting of the Volyn basalt province the Riphean aulacogens. Evidence of early Vendian can be compared with that of the Mesozoic Parana- rifting in the interior of Baltica comes from southern Etendeka and Karoo and the Palaeogene Deccan Sweden (Winchester, 1988) and may have controlled flood basalts. This suggests that the Volyn flood on a much wider scale the distribution of interior basalt province developed during the rifting stage basins; however, this is very difficult to ascertain on which preceded the opening of the Tornquist Ocean. the basis of the available data. This concept is compatible with contemporaneous During the Volyn stage, the large Volyn flood rifting and magmatic activity in the Arctic-North A.M. Nikishin et al./ Tectonophysics 268 (1996) 23-63 43

Atlantic domain (Winchester, 1988; Andrrasson, The Moscow- rests on the Mid-Rus- 1994). Rift-like early Vendian basins, associated with sian-Kandalaksha-Dvina Riphean rift system and alkaline olivine- and trachy-basalts, occur also along has the configuration of a broad post-rift sag basin. the eastern margin of Baltica in the middle Urals However, there is a great time gap between the end of (Maslov and Ivanov, 1995). Middle Riphean rifting and the beginning of post-riff subsidence. Unless the available dating of the Riph- 4.5. Late Vendian-Early Cambrian (620-530 Ma) ean sequences is erroneous, indicating dates that are far too old, other factors must be invoked to explain The boundary between the lower and upper Ven- the apparent time gap between syn- and post-riff dian series is of great significance as it marks the sedimentation. The fill of the Moscow-Mezen Basin onset of a regional transgression, resulting in the consists of shallow-marine and continental clastics, establishment of very large shelf basins covering deposited under a cold climate (Bronguleev, 1985; much of Baltica (Fig. 7e). This reflects a major reor- Sokolov and Fedonkin, 1985). ganisation of regional subsidence patterns to which The Peri-Timan-Peri-Ural Basin is a typical fore- a number of factors may have contributed. During land basin that developed in front of the collisional late Vendian and Cambrian times sea-levels rose eu- Timan-Pechora-Urals orogen. It overlies a Late statically (Vail et al., 1977), partly in response to Riphean--early Vendian passive margin sedimentary deglaciation and partly in response to the opening of prism. Thin late Vendian tuff horizons, occurring in new oceanic basins during the break-up of the Late the Moscow-Mezen and Peri-Timan basins (Sokolov Riphean-early Vendian Pangea. and Fedonkin, 1985; Yakobson and Nikulin, 1985), During late Vendian-Early Cambrian times, the may be related to volcanic activity in the evolving poorly known orogenic Pechora-Barentsia-Urals Pechora-Ural fold belt. terrane began to collide with the eastern margin of The late Vendian-Early Cambrian depositional Baltica (Fig. 7e; Baikalian orogeny). In contrast, rift- cycle terminated with the mid-Early Cambrian uplift ing in the North Atlantic--Central European domain of Baltica that was accompanied by weak inver- accelerated during the late Vendian and culminated sion of the Soligalich aulacogen of the Mid-Russian at the transition to the Cambrian in the separation of aulacogen belt (Milanovsky, 1987; Garetsky, 1990; Baltica from the Riphean Pangea and the opening of Kuzmenko et al., 1991). Uplift affected the eastern the Iapetus and Tornquist oceans (Winchester, 1988; part of Baltica first (Milanovsky, 1987), whereas the Kamo et al., 1989; Hoffman, 1991). outlines and structures of the more western basins The four main late Vendian-Early Cambrian sed- changed (Garetsky, 1990). This so-called Soligalich imentary basins of Baltica are the West-Norway, event, which was accompanied by a regional regres- Dniestr (Lvov-Kishinev), Moscow-Mezen and the sion (Figs. 4 and 6), coincides with the climax of Peri-Timan-Peri-Ural basins (Fig. 7e). As the north- orogenic activity in the Timan-Pechora-Urals fold western margin of the Moscow-Mezen Basin and the belt (along which the continental Pechora-Barentsia eastern margin of the Norway Basin are erosional, blocks were sutured to Baltica; Puchkov, 1995), and it cannot be excluded that much of the Fennoscan- with possible transtensional deformations along the dian Shield was transgressed in late Vendian-Early Tornquist zone during the oblique opening of the Cambrian times; this concept is supported by the Tornquist Ocean. occurrence of late Vendian erosional remnants in the Gulf of Botnia. 4.6. Late Early Cambrian-Early Devonian The rifted Dniestr and West-Norway basins, (530-386 Ma) which are characterised by regional transgressions, developed during the Early Cambrian into pas- During Cambrian, and certainly during Ordovi- sive continental margins. In Norway, shallow-marine cian to end-Silurian times, Baltica was a separate clastics grade laterally into carbonates. In the Dniestr plate. However, following the Early Cambrian open- Basin, shallow-marine clastics overstepped the Volyn ing of the Tornquist and Iapetus oceans, the drift flood basalts. pattern of Baltica changed and it began to converge 44 A.M. Nikishin et aL /Tectonophysics 268 (1996) 23-63

during Middle and Late Cambrian times with Lau- able stratigraphic information is restricted to tectonic rentia--Greenland to which it was sutured at the end and erosional remnants of these formerly very large of the Silurian along the Arctic-North Atlantic Cale- shelf and foreland basins. donides. With this, Baltica was incorporated into the In the Peri-Tornquist-Baltic Basin, sedimentation Laurussian mega-continent (Ziegler, 1989; Torsvik resumed during the late Early to Late Cambrian et al., 1992). with transgressive shallow-marine sands overlain by In comparison with the distribution of late Ven- shales, reflecting increasing water-depths (Garetsky, dian-earliest Cambrian basins, the pattern of late 1981, 1990). A large embayment occupied the Baltic Early Cambrian to Early Devonian basins reflects area from where a sea arm extended northeastwards again a radical change that must be related to through the into the Barents Sea. Dur- a fundamental reorganisation of plate interactions ing the Ordovician and Early Silurian (Fig. 7g-i), (Fig. 7e-k). Along the eastern margin of Baltica, carbonate-dominated shelves developed, giving way Baikalian orogenic activity ceased and gave way laterally to deeper-water graptolitic shales. There is to crustal extension. In contrast, along its western only minor evidence for syn-depositional tectonic margin, development of the Caledonian orogen com- movements; for instance, Early Ordovician mild ten- menced during the Late Cambrian and persisted into sional tectonics may have controlled the develop- earliest Devonian times (Gee and Sturt, 1985; Harris ment of the linear depocentre of the Baltic Basin and Fettes, 1988; Andrrasson, 1994). (Myannil, 1965; Kaplan and Suveizis, 1970; Roten- The main late Early Cambrian to Early Devonian feld et al., 1974; Geodekyan et al., 1978; Floden, sedimentary basins of Baltica are, along its western 1980; Suveizis, 1982). Late Silurian flysch series, margin, the Baltic-Peri-Tornquist, West-Norway and derived from the rising Caledonides, were deposited Barents Sea basins, and, along its eastern margin, in a . In Poland, the foreland basin the Taymyr-Severnaya Zemlya, West-Urals and the entered a shallow-water and ultimately a continental Peri-Caspian basins. Rising sea-level accounted for stage only during the mid-Early Devonian, whereas progressive overstepping of basin margins so that in southern Norway, Late Silurian series (Fig. 7j) by Late Ordovician-Early Silurian times only the are already developed in a continental red-bed facies central parts of the Sarmatian and possibly also of (Garetsky, 1990; Ziegler, 1990). the Fennoscandian shields formed persisting land In Norway and western Sweden, the main phases masses (Fig. 7h, i). of the Caledonian orogenic cycle include the Mid- Cambrian to Early Ordovician Finnmarkian and the 4.6.1. Western margin of Baltica Silurian Main-Scandinavian orogenic pulses during The Early to Middle Cambrian evolution of the which major systems were emplaced on the western margin of Baltica was governed by progres- margin of Baltica (Gee and Sturt, 1985; Andrras- sive opening of the Iapetus and Tornquist oceans. son, 1994). The foreland basin of the Scandinavian However, during the Middle and Late Cambrian, Caledonides was destroyed by erosion in Late Per- these oceans began to close again. The Caledonian mian-early Mesozoic times (see below). The north- orogenic cycle, spanning Late Cambrian to earliest ward continuation of the Caledonides into the area Devonian times, culminated in the suturing of Lau- of the western Barents Sea is suggested by results rentia-Greenland and Baltica along the Arctic-North of deep reflection-seismic surveys (Gundlaugsson et Atlantic Caledonides and the of Gond- al., 1987). Results of recent surface geological stud- wana-derived terranes to the southwestern margin of ies indicate that the Caledonian deformation front is Baltica. These terranes are enveloped in the North located to the east of the Spitsbergen Archipelago German-Polish and the Mid-European Caledonides (Gee and Page, 1994; Gee et al., 1995). For the (Ziegler, 1988, 1989, 1990). In the course of the western Barents Sea, the maps presented in Fig. 7f-k Caledonian orogeny, the western and southwestern must be regarded as conceptual as there is virtually passive margins of Baltica were destroyed and fore- no stratigraphic information available on Cambrian land basins superimposed on their proximal parts to earliest Devonian series. during the Silurian (Fig. 7j). Correspondingly, avail- A.M. Nikishin et aL /Tectonophysics 268 (1996) 23-63 45

4.6.2. Eastern margin of Baltica gently uplifted and subjected to erosion; this was In contrast to the collisional setting of the western accompanied by minor compressional deformations margin of Baltica, the evolution of its eastern margin (Beliakov, 1994; Dedeev et al., 1995). was governed by tensional tectonics. These can be It is unknown whether the East-Barents Sea area unravelled only in limited areas. was also affected by early Palaeozoic rifting events; Cambrian flysch, unconformably covered by however, its early Palaeozoic subsidence is inferred an Ordovician carbonate platform has been re- on the basis results of deep wells drilled in the ported from the Taymyr-Severnaya Zemlya-Novaya Pechora Basin and reflection-seismic data (Senin, Zemlya region (Uflyand et al., 1991; Kogaro et 1993; Shipilov, 1993; Johansen et al., 1993). al., 1992). The tectonic position and origin of this In the West-Ural Basin, south of the Pechora flysch basin is unknown. It is assumed that colli- Basin and north of the Peri-Caspian Basin, there is sion between the Pechora-Barentsia and the North- clear evidence for latest Cambrian-early Arenig rift- Taymyr-Severnaya Zemlya terrane had terminated ing activity, accompanied by rift flank uplift that pro- at the Cambrian-Ordovician boundary. The position vided a clastic source (Puchkov, 1995; Maslov and of this collisional belt is unknown and its rela- Ivanov, 1995). Late Arenig onset of sea-floor spread- tion to the contemporaneous Finnmarkian orogen of ing (Maslov and Ivanov, 1995) probably entailed is still an open question. Thus, it is the separation of continental crustal fragments from inferred that the North-Taymyr-Severnaya Zemlya Baltica. The resulting Ordovician-Silurian passive region formed part of the Pechora-Barents Sea area margin shelf was apparently narrow (Puchkov, 1995; since Ordovician times. cf. Fig. 7h-j). In pre-Middle Devonian time, this On Novaya Zemlya, Cambrian to Early Devonian shelf underwent minor uplift and erosion (Akhmetiev strata consist of shallow- to deep-water sediments, et al., 1993). deposited in rifted basins (Kogaro et al., 1992). In the Peri-Caspian basin, only along its north- These basins were incorporated into the passive mar- em and western flanks, a few deep wells pene- gin of the Ural palaeo-ocean (Zonenshain et al., trate Ordovician, Silurian and Early Devonian sed- 1993). iments. This series consists of basal siltstones and Surface geological data show that a Late Cam- sandstones that grade upwards into carbonates (Mi- brian tiffing event occurred along the North-Polar lanovsky, 1987; Nevolin, 1988; Dmitrovskaya, 1990; Urals and Pay-Khoy belts (Belyaev, 1994). At about Akhmetiev et al., 1993; Chibrikova and Olli, 1993). the same time, thin sediments were deposited in There is a lack of information on the tectonic set- the Pechora Basin (Dmitrovskaya, 1990). These ting of this area; it may have formed part of the are overlain by Ordovician and Silurian, mainly Late Cambrian-Early Ordovician rift system of the shallow-marine carbonates (Borisov, 1986; Beli- eastern Baltica margin. akov, 1994; Kostyuchenko, 1994). Early Ordovi- cian rifting is evident in the Pechora-Kolva Basin. 4.6.3. Pre-Middle Devonian hiatus (402-388 Ma) In the Polar Ural-Pay-Khoy belt, rifting persisted On Baltica, the Early Cambrian to Early Devo- during the Tremadoc-early Arenig and culminated nian sedimentary cycle terminated with a regional in late Arenig separation of a continental terrane erosional unconformity that coincides with a global from Baltica, the onset of sea-floor spreading, and low-stand in sea-level (House, 1983; Johnson et al., the opening of the Uralian Ocean (Belyaev, 1994; 1985). Moreover, this break in sedimentation appears Savelieva and Nesbitt, 1996). Thereafter, the Pe- to be associated with broad lithospheric deforma- chora Basin formed part of a carbonate-dominated tions and inversion of some of the rifted structures of passive margin. During the Early Devonian (Lochko- the Mid-Russian aulacogen belt and the Baltic Basin. vian), a new rifting phase occurred during which These deformations commenced during the latest the Ordovician Pechora-Kolva palaeorift was reac- Silurian and lasted until Middle Devonian times tivated as a transtensional basin (Fig. 6; Dedeev et (Chaikin, 1986; Milanovsky, 1987; Kuzmenko et al., al., 1995; N.A. Malyshev, pers. commun., 1995). 1991). Data from the demonstrate Prior to the Middle Devonian the Pechora Basin was that the main uplift event took place between mid- 46 A.M. Nikishin et al. / Tectonophysics 268 (1996) 23-63

Lochkovian and mid-Emsian times (Alekseev et al., with , giving rise to the development of the 1996) and thus is coeval with the uplift and transten- mainly hypothetical Lomonosov fold belt (Ziegler, sional deformation of the Pechora Basin (Dedeev et 1989, 1990). The latter is reflected by the progra- al., 1995; V.N. Malyshev, pers. commun., 1995). dation of deltaic complexes, derived from northern Based on limited data, it is inferred that during the sources, onto the northern parts of the Barents shelf Early Devonian the area of the present Barents Sea carbonate platform (Fig. 71-n). Along the southern was occupied by a broad carbonate shelf, the western margin of Baltica, intermittent back-arc rifting and margin of which was dominated by clastics derived compression governed the evolution of the Variscan from the Caledonides (Fig. 7k). Similar carbonate 'geosynclinal system'. The intra- Mag- shelves occupied the passive Timan-Pechora and nitogorsk arc-trench system paralleled the eastern Uralian shelves, whereas in the Peri-Caspian area margin of Baltica (Ziegler, 1989; Zonenshain et al., carbonates and evaporites prevailed. Broad uplift of 1993). the central and western parts of the EEC may reflect Cyclically rising sea-levels accounted for Middle a lithospheric response to the build-up of compres- and Late Devonian transgressions on Baltica and the sional stresses during the terminal phase of the Cale- establishment of broad, carbonate-dominated shelves donian orogeny in response to collisional coupling on the Moscow Platform and in the eastern Barents between the foreland and the Arctic-North Atlantic Sea (Fig. 71-n). The distribution of Middle and Late and North German-Polish Caledonides. The fore- Devonian sedimentary basins differed considerably land basin of the Norwegian-Swedish Caledonides, from that of the Cambrian-earliest Devonian. The largely destroyed during Late Permian-early Meso- Fennoscandian Shield may have remained emergent zoic times, is only shown conceptually on Fig. 7k. throughout the Devonian. Caledonian suturing of Baltica with Laurentia- During the Givetian, new rift systems developed Greenland entailed a fundamental plate reorgani- on the eastern and southeastern parts of Baltica sation in which abandonment of the Arctic-North and during the Late Devonian rifting activity af- Atlantic subduction system and the development fected the entire eastern parts of the EEC from the of a new one in the Ural Ocean played a major Pripyat-Dniepr-Donets rift in the south to the east- role. Moreover, earliest Devonian consolidation of ern Barents Sea (Fig. 7m, n; Milanovsky, 1987; the Arctic-North Atlantic and North German-Polish Gavrish, 1989; Garetsky, 1990; Nikishin et al., Caledonides was followed by major sinistral trans- 1993). Figs. 9 and 10 provide a summary of tectonic lations along the Arctic-North Atlantic mega- activity in the late Palaeozoic rifts of the EEC; how- zone and rifting in the domain of the Mid-European ever, given the accuracy of available stratigraphic Caledonides, causing subsidence of the Variscan and palaeontological data, timing of the different 'geosynclinal system' of basins in a back-arc po- events is only tentative. sition with respect to the Palaeo-Tethys subduction The Devonian rifts of the EEC often cross-cut zone (Ziegler, 1989, 1990). Riphean rifts but in some cases reactivated them. Detailed subsidence analyses suggest the occurrence 4. 7. Middle Devonian-earliest Carboniferous of more or less discrete rifting pulses during the (386-350 Ma) late Givetian, early, middle and late Frasnian, and the early Famennian (Fig. 6). The main rift phase is During Middle Devonian to earliest Carbonifer- early Frasnian in age; it was coupled with the uplift ous times, sinistral translation of Baltica and Lau- of large domes and a widespread, partly kimberlitic, rentia-Greenland along the Arctic-North Atlantic magmatic activity. There are considerable variations mega-shear continued. At the same time, the con- in the tectonic setting of the different rifts, the level tinental Arctica terrane, which includes present-day of volcanic activity, the degree of lithospheric ex- Chukotka and the , was sutured tension and uplift of intervening arches. Magmatic to the northern margin of Laurentia-Greenland along activity was not exclusively confined to rift zones the Inuitian orogen. During the Late Devonian the (Figs. 9 and 10). northern, passive margin of the Barents shelf collided A.M. Nikishin et al./ Tectonophysics 268 (1996) 23-63 47

FZ 2

8

2 i• i¢" o

'- ~*i*

: "O-~/(1~a. '-..

Fig. 9. Middle-Late Devonian-Early Carboniferous rift basins of the East European Craton. Legend: 1 = outlines of EEC; 2 = passive margins; 3 = rifts; 4 = area with very thin continental or ; 5 = intraplate volcanism; 6 = ; 7 = outlines of synrift domes; 8 = oceanic basins; 9 = active fold belts; 10 = inactive fold belts; 11 = subduction zones.

4.7.1. Rifts associated with the southern margin of velopment of the PDD and the Peri-Caspian rift sys- the EEC tem, similar to the Variscan 'geosynclinal system', is Devonian-Early Carboniferous rift systems along related to back-arc extension governed by the geom- the southern margin of Baltica consist of the back-arc etry of the north-dipping Palaeo-Tethys subduction basins forming the Variscan 'geosynclinal system', zone (Ziegler, 1989, 1990). the some 1500 km long Pripyat-Dniepr-Donets- Along the northern and western periphery of the Donbas-Karpinsky rift (PDD), and the Peri-Caspian Peri-Caspian Basin, a well documented complex sys- rift system (Fig. 9). It has been suggested that the de- tem of Middle-Late Devonian rift structures occurs 48 A.M. Nikishin et al./ Tectonophysics 268 (1996) 23-63

1~ 2~ 3~f~ 4~ 5~-~ 6~ 7[~

Fig. 10. Correlation of Middle Devonian-Early Carboniferous tectonic and magmatic events on the EEC. Legend: 1 = uplift episode; 2 = rifting phase; 3 = syn-compressional rapid subsidence phase; 4 = inversion event; 5 = volcanism; 6 = non-compensated subsidence; 7 = compensated subsidence.

(Fig. 9). Reflection-seismic profiles, crossing the sion, the and Voronezh High were margins of the Peri-Caspian Basin, show numerous partially covered by marine Middle Devonian sedi- Middle-Late Devonian normal faults (Kiryukhin et ments (Alekseev et al., 1996). Volumetrically signif- al., 1993), indicating that this basin subsided in re- icant magmatism (Wilson and Lyashkevich, 1996), sponse to crustal extension. Its present sedimentary accompanied by a broad lithospheric doming of the fill of 23 km and its thin, high-velocity crust suggest rift flanks, commenced shortly after or contempo- that Devonian rifting may have progressed to crustal raneous with the onset of crustal extension. The separation and the opening of a limited ocean basin main phase of rifting occurred in Frasnian-Famen- (Nevolin, 1988; Zonenshain et al., 1993). The Peri- nian times with a moderate reactivation occurring in Caspian Basin shows no evidence for major syn-rift the Visean after a period of quiescence in the earliest doming of its flanking areas (Milanovsky, 1987). Carboniferous (Stovba et al., 1996; cf. Fig. 6). The The PDD evolved during late Middle and Late Karpinsky and Donbas segments of the PDD were Devonian times by northwestward rift propagation, subsequently heavily inverted. The sedimentary fill possibly nucleating in the Peri-Caspian area (e.g., of the PDD decreases in thickness from 19 km in Gavrish, 1989). Prior to the onset of crustal exten- the Donets sector to about 2.5 km in the Pripyat A.M. Nikishin et al./ Tectonophysics 268 (1996) 23-63 49

Trough, in tandem with a decrease in rift width nian and persisted into the Early Carboniferous (Als- and magnitude of crustal stretching (Gavrish, 1989; gaard, 1993; Junov, 1993a,b; Nikishin et al., 1993). Garetsky, 1990; Chekunov et al., 1992; Stephenson This notion is supported by the occurrence of Mid- et al., 1993; Kivshik et al., 1993; Kuzsnir et al., dle-Late Devonian extensional structures on Novaya 1996; Stovba et al., 1996; van Wees et al., 1996). Zemlya, which are associated with Frasnian tholei- As the level of magmafic activity in the PDD itic and trachytic basalts, cross-cutting Ordovician cannot be explained by crustal extension alone, ones (Kogaro et al., 1992). Reflection-seismic data mantle hot-spot activity has been invoked (Wilson, (Shipilov, 1993; Johansen et al., 1993; Ignatenko and 1993; Scheglov et al., 1993; Lukjanova et al., 1994; Cheredeev, 1993; Alekhin, 1993; Popova and Krylov, Lyashkevich, 1994; Kuzsnir et al., 1996; Wilson and 1993; Junov, 1993a,b) show that the eastern Barents Lyashkevich, 1996). However, as the main phase of Sea was occupied during the Middle Devonian to lithospheric doming of the PDD commenced after Late Carboniferous by a deep-water basin, infilling the onset of crustal extension, as shown in Fig. 10, a of which commenced only during the Late Permian combination of 'passive' and 'active' rifting presum- (Fig. 11; cf. Nikishin et al., 1995). This basin, which ably governed its evolution. is characterised by a thin, high-velocity crust of possibly oceanic nature (Fig. 2; Senin, 1993; Ship- 4.7.2. Rifts associated with the eastern margin of ilov, 1993), probably subsided in response to Middle Baltica Devonian-Early Carboniferous crustal extension. Devonian rifts occupy an almost 1000 km wide The Timan and Kolva rifts (Fig. 6), characterised belt paralleling the 4500 km long eastern passive by Late Devonian volcanism, do not show any ev- margin of Baltica which had developed at the end idence for syn-rift uplift of flanking arches (Mi- of the Early Ordovician rifting cycle. Rifting activity lanovsky, 1987; Ehlakov et al., 1991; Belyaeva et resumed during the Middle Devonian and persisted al., 1992; Dedeev et al., 1995). The Late Devonian into Early Carboniferous times. From north to south, basalts of the Pechora-Kolva rift display a geochem- major elements of this rift system are the Barents ical signature typical for a back-arc environment. Sea, Kola, Kolva, Timan, Vyatka and Soligalich rifts In contrast, regional arching of the Kola-White (Fig. 9). Sea area, accompanied by alkaline and The Barents Sea contains a number of long-lived magmatism and weak (Fig. 9; rifted structures. The rifted basins of the western Kramm et al., 1993), probably occurred during the Barents Sea are associated with the Arctic-North Late Devonian but is poorly controlled by strati- Atlantic mega-shear (Ziegler, 1988, 1989). These graphic data; the petrogenesis of the Kola-White basins are characterised by sedimentary thicknesses Sea magmatic province is indicative of hot-spot ac- in excess of 10 km. Seismic lines, calibrated by tivity (Scheglov et al., 1993; Kramm et al., 1993; wells, suggest that main tiffing activity occurred Lukjanova et al., 1994). during the Early to Middle Carboniferous; however, Middle Devonian subsidence of the Vyatka rift Late Devonian rifting cannot be excluded (Johansen was associated with the uplift of a broad lithosphetic et al., 1993; Shipilov, 1993; Nottvedt et al., 1993). arch (Kuzmenko et al., 1991), whereas the Soligalich In the eastern Barents Sea, reflection-seismic data rift shows no evidence of such doming (Fig. 9). indicate the presence of a complex system of rifted Devonian rifts associated with the eastern mar- basins which contains up to 18-20 km of sediments gin of Balfica can be interpreted as forming part of (Johansen et al., 1993; Senin, 1993; Shipilov, 1993; a major back-arc extensional system which is re- Verba, 1993). The lack of sufficiently deep well lated to a west-dipping subduction zone associated control impedes determination of the main rifting with the postulated intra-oceanic Magnitogorsk arc- stages. However, in analogy with the on- and off- trench system (Ziegler, 1989; Khain and Seslavin- shore Timan-Pechora area and the Kola Peninsula sky, 1991; Zonenshain et al., 1993; Nikishin et al., (Milanovsky, 1987; Kogaro et al., 1992; Scheglov et 1993; Zonenshain and Matveenkov, 1994; Seng/Sr al., 1993), it is assumed that rifting activity resumed et al., 1993). Although Devonian palaeotectonic re- in the eastern Barents Sea during the Middle Devo- constructions of the Ural system are still very hy- 50 A.M. Nikishin et al./Tectonophysics 268 (1996) 23-63

W Line 701 E P~ 0 water km 5 D3-C 10 Ma 15 0 km 5 10 15 Present time

250 km

W Line 702 E P~ 0 km 5 250 Ma 0 km 5 10 15

Present time Fig. 11. Evolution of the East-Barents Sea basin, based on seismic lines 701 and 702 (without decompaction of sediments). For location of profiles see Fig. 2. pothetical, all data available support the model of (1993), and Seng6r et al. (1993) postulate a west-dip- a Middle-Late Devonian subduction system within ping subduction zone. In contrast, Iudin (1990) and the Ural Ocean, the polarity of which, however, is a Puchkov (1993) favour an east-dipping subduction matter of dispute. Ziegler (1989), Zonenshain et al. system, in which case a back-arc rift model would A.M. Nikishin et aL / Tectonophysics 268 (1996) 23-63 51 not apply to the rift system of the eastern margin of intermittent back-arc extension. Obviously, a more Baltica. precise correlation of tectonic and magrnatic events A model of westward subduction beneath the within the craton and inside the Uralian belt is Peri-Ural rift belt is compatible with the following required to test such a hypothesis. observations. Firstly, whereas an early Palaeozoic ophiolite complex can be followed throughout the 4. 7.3. Dynamics of Middle Devonian-earliest Uralian orogen, the southern Urals also contain Mid- Carboniferous rifting dle Devonian ophiolites west of the Mugodjary zone; The above suggests that processes related both to the latter are interpreted as representing remnants back-arc extension and hot-spot activity may have of an oceanic back-arc basin (Korinevsky, 1989; played a role in Middle Devonian to earliest Car- Puchkov, 1993; Zonenshain and Matveenkov, 1994). boniferous rifting along the southern and eastern Both ophiolite zones are located to the west of a margin of Baltica. A possible genetic relationship Devonian arc-related magmatic belt. Secondly, at the among these is suggested by their contemporaneity. latitude of the Pechora Basin, magmatic rocks within Although it appears that hot-spot activity is not the the Urals indicate, on the basis of geochemical cri- basic driving mechanism of lithospheric extension teria, a change to subduction-related magmatism at (e.g., Hill et al., 1992), it may contribute towards the Early to Middle Devonian boundary (Bochkarev, the localisation of riffs by weakening the 1990) and, as such, suggest a change in subduction (Wilson, 1993). It is unknown to what extent such polarity at that time. Thirdly, conodont stratigraphy thermal mantle processes contributed towards the (Puchkov, 1993; Savelieva and Nesbitt, 1996; A.V. development of the pre-Middle Devonian regional Maslov, pers. commun., 1995) indicates that in the unconformity on the EEP (Fig. 10). central Urals, Middle Devonian arc volcanics rest Following the end-Silurian Caledonian suturing on Silurian-Early Devonian sediments; this suggests of Laurentia--Greenland and Baltica, global-scale that arc volcanism, related to the development of a changes in plate interaction, governing the Middle west-dipping subduction zone, began no earlier than Devonian accretion of to Laurussia and in- during the Middle Devonian. creasing collisional coupling between the latter and Observations from the southern Urals indicate Arctica, were apparently accompanied by changes in that back-arc spreading in the West-Mugojari region the Palaeo-Tethys and Uralian subduction systems. occurred during the late Eifelian and that middle These gave rise to poly-phase back-arc extension Eifelian--early Frasnian, subduction-related volcan- and mantle upwelling beneath Baltica. In contrast, ism is related to a west-dipping subduction system. the contemporary evolution of Laurentia--Greenland Moreover, at the transition from the Frasnian to was dominated by compressional stresses related to the Famennian, accelerated orogenic activity is in- the development of the Antler and Inuitian orogens dicated in the Zilair-Magnitogorsk Basin by flysch along its western and northern margins, respectively deposits, derived from an eastern source, overly- (Ziegler, 1989). 'Passive' and 'active' rifting pro- ing a deep-water pelagic series (Veimarn et al., in cesses appear to have variably contributed to the press); this was accompanied by a phase of compres- development of the late Palaeozoic rifts of Baltica. sional deformation of the Sakmarian back-arc basin Strike-slip movements were important in the Arc- (Korinevsky, 1989; Milanovsky, 1989; Zonenshain tic-North Atlantic domain, the Pechora-Barents Sea and Matveenkov, 1994). Thereafter, back-arc exten- and along the Timan-Varanger belt. sion may have resumed. However, during the late Tournaisian--early Visean, west-dipping subduction 4.8. Carboniferous-Early Permian (365-256 Ma) terminated at the onset of the during which the Sakmarian back-arc basin was closed and The first collisional contacts between subducted to the east beneath the terrane and Laurussia were established during the Famen- (Fig. 70). nian in the West-Mediterranean domain. As a con- Therefore, Devonian-Early Carboniferous rifting sequence of their collisional coupling, the clockwise on the eastern margin of the EEC may be related to rotational motion of Gondwana was imparted on 52 A.M. Nikishin et al./ Tectonophysics 268 (1996) 23-63

Laurussia which also rotated clockwise during its shelves in which the sediment-starved, deep-water progressive suturing with Gondwana during the Car- Peri-Caspian and East-Barents Sea basins stand out. boniferous Variscan and the Permo-Carboniferous During Late Carboniferous and Permian times, the Alleghenian orogenic cycles. During latest Carbonif- Barents Sea area formed part of the extensive Arctic erous and Early Permian times, dextral motions be- shelf that included the Canadian Arctic Archipelago tween Gondwana and Baltica were compensated by and the New Siberian Islands. During these times, a conjugate system of wrench faults which tran- the Fennoscandian Shield formed a relatively low- sected the Variscan fold belt and its northern fore- relief highland (Ziegler, 1989). land, resulting in the collapse of the Variscan orogen In the domain of the Variscan 'geosynclinal sys- (Ziegler, 1989, 1990). tem', intermittent back-arc extension ceased by mid- Suturing of Arctica with the northern margin Visean time and gave way to regional back-arc of Laurussia along the Inuitian-Lomonosov oro- compression, governing the development of the col- gen was completed during the earliest Carbonif- lisional Variscan orogen that is characterised by erous (Fig. 7o). During the Early Carboniferous, major , extensive high pressure-low tem- sinistral motions along the Arctic-North Atlantic perature , and plutonic activity. The mega-shear gradually ceased and gave way at the Variscan foreland basin developed during the Na- transition to the Late Carboniferous crustal extension murian and Westphalian and was partly destroyed by (Fig. 7p). The Carboniferous rotational movement of thin-skinned thrusting during the Westphalian termi- Lanrussia was coupled with collision of the Kaza- nal phases of the Variscan orogeny (Ziegler, 1990; khstan and Siberian with each other and the cf. Fig. 7p). Magnitogorsk arc-trench system, the development The Variscan orogen links to the east with the of an east-dipping subduction zone and progressive Scythian orogen which fringes the southern margin closure of the oceanic Sakmarian back-arc basin. of the EEC; in the Scythian orogen crustal shortening Collision of the Uralian orogen with the eastern, persisted into the Permian. In the Pripyat-Dniepr- passive margin of Baltica commenced in the south Donets-Donbas-Karpinsky rift system, the main during the Bashkirian and progressed in time north- phase of crustal extension ceased at the end of wards (Ziegler, 1989, 1990; Zonenshain et al., 1993; Devonian times. Its late Visean-Serpukovian early Puchkov, 1995). post-rift stage was characterised by very rapid sub- These fundamental changes in plate interaction sidence (Fig. 6g; Stovba et al., 1996; van Wees et and motions had major repercussions for the evo- al., 1996). Collision-related compressional stresses, lution of the Baltica sub-plate. Moreover, strong related to the development of the Scythian orogen, glacio-eustatic sea-level fluctuations, in combina- may have contributed to this phenomenon. Similar tion with tectonic processes, provided for major syn-compressional subsidence accelerations are - changes in basin geometries (see Fig. 7o--q; Vail served during the Palaeocene and Neogene evolution et al., 1977; Ross and Ross, 1987). Although tec- of the North Sea Basin (Cloetingh and Kooi, 1992; tonic environments on Baltica were, at the begin- Ziegler et al., 1995) and the Late Cretaceous pre- ning of the Carboniferous, still similar to those of inversion stage of the Polish Trough (Dadlez et al., the Late Devonian, the evolution of the Variscan 1995). and Uralian orogens accounted for major palaeo- In the southern parts of the Urals, an east-dip- geographic changes during Late Carboniferous and ping subduction zone developed in conjunction with Early Permian times. This was paralleled by changes the probably intra-Visean collision of the Kaza- in stress systems controlling the subsidence of in- khstan block with the Uralian arc-trench system. tracratonic basins on the EEC. Analyses of these Activity along this new subduction system con- basins show that their evolution was characterised by trolled the gradual closure of the Sakmarian back-arc several phases of accelerated and decelerated sub- basin (Bocharova and Scotese, 1993; Zonenshain and sidence and uplifting phases (Fig. 6). During the Matveenkov, 1994; Koroteev et al., 1995). Collision Carboniferous-Early Permian, the eastern parts of of the evolving Uralian orogen with the southeastern Baltica were dominated by carbonate and evaporitic parts of the EEC passive margin commenced at the A.M. Nikishin et al./ Tectonophysics 268 (1996) 23-63 53 transition from the Serpukhovian to the Bashkirian, Zemlya and Taymyr into Triassic-Early Jurassic as indicated by the development of a classical fore- times, whereas the central and southern parts of the land basin (Puchkov, 1995). During the Late Car- Urals had become tectonically inactive (Milanovsky, boniferous and Early Permian, this collision front 1989). On the other hand, crustal extension persisted propagated northward and reached the area of the in the Arctic-North Atlantic rift system and com- Northern Urals (Fig. 7q). Middle and Late Carbonif- menced in the Tethys domain (Ziegler, 1989, 1990). erous rapid subsidence events on the EEC (Fig. 6) During the Late Permian, the Barents Sea was mould be related to stresses exerted on the EEC occupied by a large shale-dominated basin in which from the Uralian collision front. During the As- the eastern Barents Sea deep-water basin, located selian-Artinskian, the Ural foredeep subsided very in the foreland of Novaya Zemlya, stands out (Jo- rapidly under the load of the advancing nappe sys- hansen et al., 1993). From the Arctic shelves a sea tems. The Uralian orogeny climaxed during the Kun- arm extended through the Arctic-North Atlantic rift gurian. By this time the eastern margin of Baltica and terminated in the evaporitic Zechstein basins was fringed by the Himalaya-type Ural of Western and (Milanovsky, 1987; belt (Zonenshain et al., 1993). Ziegler, 1989). The southeastern parts of Baltica During the Early Permian phases of the Uralian were covered by an extensive carbonate platform orogeny, the Devonian-Early Carboniferous Timan that became covered by clastics during the Late Per- and Pechora-Kolva were partly inverted mian (Fig. 7r). Post-rift subsidence continued in the (Fig. 12). Inversion of the Donbas-Karpinsky seg- PDD basin. The Late Permian was characterised by ment of the Pripyat-Dniepr-Donets rift system is a cyclical lowering in global sea levels, reaching a thought to be related to the evolution of the Scythian minimum at the Permian-Triassic boundary (Ross orogen (Milanovsky, 1987; 1989). Two-sided thrust- and Ross, 1987). loading of the Peri-Caspian Basin by the south- Due to diachronous termination of crustal short- ern Urals and the Karpinsky swell caused its rapid ening in the Ural-Pay-Khoy-Novaya Zemlya oro- subsidence during the Asselian-Artinskian and the genic belt, the Late Permian history of the corre- progradation of major deltaic complexes into deeper sponding sectors of the associated foreland basin waters (Zamarenov, 1970; Kiryukhin et al., 1993). differs considerably, Whereas thrusting terminated During the Kungurian, the remnant basin was filled in the Urals during the Permian, it persisted in the in with thick salt deposits (Milanovsky, 1987). Pay-Khoy-Novaya Zemlya-Taymyr belt during the Whereas the Urals were characterised during the Late Permian and Triassic and terminated only at the latest Carboniferous and Early Permian by intense transition to the Jurassic (Milanovsky, 1989; Kogaro crustal shortening, the by now inactive Variscan fold et al., 1992). belt and its northern foreland record transtensional During the Late Permian, the Ural foredeep, the and transpressional tectonics, accompanied by an ex- Peri-Caspian and the Moscow-Mezen--Ural tensive basaltic and rhyolitic volcanism. This defor- basins were filled with clastics, mainly derived from mation phase can be related to a dextral translation the Ural . The Peri-Caspian Basin contin- of Gondwana relative to Baltica during the Alleghe- ues to subside rapidly with sedimentation rates of nian orogeny of the Appalachians. At the same time, clastics and carbonates matching subsidence rates rifting activity persisted in the Arctic-North Atlantic (Milanovsky, 1987). domain (Ziegler, 1989, 1990). At the beginning of the Late Permian, the eastern Barents Sea-Pay-Khoy-Novaya Zemlya Basin cor- 4.9. Late Permian-Triassic (256-208 Ma) responded to a deep-water trough. However, in the course of the Late Permian, major deltaic complexes During the Late Permian, the Variscan-Appa- prograded into this basin from the east, southeast lachian between Gondwana and Laurussia, and southwest (Junov, 1993a,b; Popova and Krylov, which together formed the core of the Permo-Trias- 1993; Ignatenko and Cheredeev, 1993; cf. Figs, 7r sic Pangea, had become inactive. Crustal shortening and 11). In the Pay-Khoy-Novaya Zemlya region, continued, however, in the Pay-Khoy, in Novaya these clastics consist of material derived from an 54 A.M. Nikishin et al./Tectonophysics 268 (1996) 23-63

t~ oo o

CO

(7 i IIIIIIIIII~I(II•~IIIII i~•~! i. i•'~,•~ ~I~ • i & ~•i'ii

j

~-~" ~'~oa

SWell SWell • i ii.i • ~×

Fig. 12. Late Palaeozoic-early Mesozoic inversion structures of the East European Craton. orogenic belt (Kogaro et al., 1992). In the Pechora of the western parts of the Fennoscandian Shield and Basin, continental to shallow-marine molasse-type the Scandinavian Caledonides commenced during sediments accumulated and apparently prograded the Late Permian and persisted into Early Mesozoic along the axis of this foreland basin into the Bar- times, possibly in response to a large radius doming ents Sea (Popova and Krylov, 1993). Deltas prograd- of the Arctic-North Atlantic rift zone (Ziegler, 1988, ing from the Kola Peninsula into the Barents Sea 1990). testify to contemporaneous uplift of the Fennoscan- Although the timing of collision of the Pay- dian Shield; this is compatible with fission-track data Khoy-Novaya Zemlya-Taymyr orogenic system from southern and central Sweden (Zeck et al., 1988; with the Barents Sea passive margin is unknown, D. Gee, pers. commun., 1996) that indicate that uplift the oceanic basin separating them was closed no A.M. Nikishin et aL /Tectonophysics 268 (1996) 23-63 55

later than at the beginning of the Late Permian. 1989), as well as along the Scythian belt (Manych Thereafter, the eastern Barents Sea was incorpo- rift system; Nikishin et al., 1994). Basalts occurring rated into the Ural-Novaya Zemlya-Taymyr foreland in the Polar Ural-Pay Koy foreland basin (Andre- basin. Superposition of major Late Permian and Late ichev, 1992) may form part of the rift-related vol- Triassic deltaic clinoform complexes in the eastern canic province of the West-Siberian Basin (Surkov Barents Sea (Kerusov, 1993), separated by an Early and Zhero, 1981; Peterson and Clarke, 1991). Triassic flooding event, testifies to a two-phase No- At the transition to the Jurassic, the Pay-Khoy- vaya Zemlya orogeny in which Early Triassic rapid Novaya Zemlya-South Taymyr orogenic system was deepening of the foreland basin presumably corre- affected by a last, albeit major phase of crustal short- sponds to a period of rapid thrust-loaded subsidence ening and granitic plutonism (Milanovsky, 1987; (Fig. 11). Uflyand et al., 1991; Kogaro et al., 1992; Zonen- Increasing instability of the core of Pangea during shain et al., 1993). Foreland thrusting in the eastern the latest Permian and Triassic, was manifested by Barents Sea (Komaritsky, 1993) was paralleled by an acceleration of rifting activity. During the Early further inversion of Devonian rifts in the Timan- Triassic, the Arctic-North Atlantic rift system prop- Pechora area (Figs. 6 and 12). There is also evidence agated southwards into the area of the North Sea for end-Triassic compressional deformation within and to the west of the British Isles. Rifting intensi- the Urals (Milanovsky, 1989; Sokolov, 1992). fied also in the Tethys domain and began to propa- Along the southern margin of the EEC, a Late gate westwards during the Triassic. A branch of the Triassic collisional event affected the Caucasus- evolving Tethys rift system can be seen in the Polish Scythian area; it was accompanied by further inver- Trough (Dadlez et al., 1995), which is superimposed sion of the Karpinsky Kryazh belt (Fig. 12; Nazare- on the Tornquist line, marking the southwestern mar- vich et al., 1986; Kazmin and Sborschikov, 1989; gin of the Precambrian EEC. By Late Triassic times, Nikishin et al., 1994). the Tethys and Arctic-North Atlantic rift systems in- terfered with each other in the North Atlantic domain 5. Craton boundary evolution and intraplate (Ziegler, 1988, 1990). stresses On the EEC, the distribution of Triassic basins is similar to that of the Late Permian; however, a Repeated changes in the configuration of sed- gradual reduction of the area covered by sedimentary imentary basins on the Precambrian EEC and in basins is evident (Fig. 7r, s). Despite rising sea levels, the mechanisms governing their subsidence (rift- sedimentation ceased towards the end of the Triassic ing, post-rift sag basins, foreland basins, etc.) reflect on much of the , resulting changes in the stress systems affecting the craton in the development of a regional hiatus (Milanovsky, and its thermo-mechanical properties. Changes in the 1987). The dynamics controlling this broad uplift are intraplate stress regime are mainly controlled by pro- unknown. On the other hand, sedimentation contin- cesses affecting the plate boundaries (Zoback, 1992; ued on the Barents shelf and in the rift-related basins Zoback et al., 1993), which through time, repeatedly of Western and Central Europe, the Arctic-North coincided with the margins of the EEC. However, Atlantic and Tethys domains (Ziegler, 1988, 1990). different plate boundary processes affected opposite Subsidence curves for the Peri-Caspian Basin, margins of the craton synchronously, as seen, for the Russian Platform, the West-Siberian Basin and instance, during the late Vendian-Early Cambrian the Scythian Platform reflect a similar rapid sub- and the Late Carboniferous-Early Permian. There- sidence event and accelerated sedimentation rates fore, intraplate palaeostress regimes were often very straddling the Permian-Triassic boundary, as seen complex and are difficult to reconstruct. also in the Eastern Barents Sea and the Mid-Polish In this respect, a comparison of the drift pattern Trough (Dadlez et al., 1995). Contemporaneous rift- of the EEC, its interaction with neighbouring plates, ing events are evident within and along the Ural belt, and its intraplate stress history is of special interest. controlling subsidence of grabens and the extrusion Figs. 8 and 13 summarise the complex Riphean and of basalts (e.g., Chelyabinsk ; Milanovsky, Palaeozoic drift pattern of Baltica, which was char- 56 A.M. Nikishin et al./ Tectonophysics 268 (1996) 23-63 65 132 208 200 363 439 540 680 750 6ONtl ! ! ~N j J,

OlL A J sos! !,'ij i

B

I

r 16i

161 i C ] i '

i I i 16i , ! LAUR~NTIA

1

I : I D

3 i vole! II rift E 1

Fig. 13. (A) Latitudinal drift velocity of Baltica (reference location: 60°N, lifE) and Laurentia (reference location 40°N, 270°E) since Riphean time. Time scale after Harland et al. (1990), except for Vendian--Cambrian boundary. (B) and (C) Latitudinal drift rates for Baltica and Laurentia, separated into southward and northward movements. (D) Angular clockwise and anti-clockwise rotation rates for Baltica and Laurentia (after Gurnis and Torsvik, 1994). (E) Main tectonic and magmatic events in Baltica; volc = flood basalt volcanism, rift = main tiffing phases, coll= main collisional events, plat = periods of regional intracratonic platform subsidence. acterised by repeated changes in direction, velocity palaeomagnetic data (Posenen et al., 1989; Gurnis and rotational motions. The timing of plate motion and Torsvik, 1994), periods of major plate reorgan- changes and the evolution of sedimentary basins on isations can be compared with the following signif- the craton indicates that the stress history of the EEC icant events which are recorded in the evolution of was controlled by global plate kinematics, plate in- sedimentary basins on the EEC (cf. Figs. 8 and 13): teractions and their changes through time. Based on (1) The end Early (4-1350 Ma) and end Middle A.M. Nikishin et al./Tectonophysics 268 (1996) 23-63 57

(4-1050 Ma) Riphean phases of basin inversion, (12) Slowing of plate motions at the Permo-Trias- although chronostratigraphically poorly constrained, sic boundary (-4-245 Ma) coincides with extensional appear to coincide with significant changes in and intraplate magmatism along the west- motions (Milanovsky et al., 1994). ern, southern, and eastern margins of the EEC and (2) Late Riphean rifting along the eastern margin orogenic activity in the Pay-Khoy-Novaya Zemlya of the EEC (4-1050--650 Ma) is contemporaneous system. with an acceleration of the southward movement of The global stress map shows that present-day Baltica. intraplate stresses are related to the direction of (3) Dalslandian incorporation of Baltica into the plate motion (Zoback, 1992; Zoback et al., 1993; Riphean Pangea, ending at 0.9 Ga, was followed by Cloetingh et al., 1994). If this applies also to the past, an abrupt change in drift pattern. then changes in plate motion ought to correlate with (4) Late Vendian-earliest Cambrian (4-620-530 changes in intraplate stress regime. Data available for Ma) rifting along the western margin of the EEC, the EEC provide an opportunity to further evaluate culminating in opening of the Iapetus and Tornquist this concept. oceans and thus its separation from the Riphean Pangea, is marked by a sharp change in the drift 6. Conclusions pattern of Baltica and a cycle of regional subsidence. (5) Middle Early Cambrian (4-540 Ma) intracra- The Precambrian EEC consists of a collage of tonic inversion tectonics (Soligalich deformation continental and arc-related terranes which were as- phase) coincide with the suturing of the Barentsia sembled and welded together during a sequence of terrane to the northeastern margin of the EEC, uplift orogenic cycles spanning Archaean, Early Protero- of the latter and an abrupt change in its drift pattern. zoic, and Riphean times. During the Late Riphean (6) Collision of the northern Taymyr-Severnaya and Vendian, Baltica formed part of a Pangea-type Zemlya terrane with the EEC at the transition from from which is was separated again at the Cambrian to the Ordovician (4-510 Ma) coin- the end of the Vendian. During Cambrian to Late cides with the Finnmarkian orogeny of the North Silurian times, Baltica played the role of an indepen- Scandinavian Caledonides and a change in the drift dent plate. Upon its Caledonian suturing to Lauren- velocity of Baltica. tia-Greenland, it formed part of the Laurussian plate (7) During the Early Ordovician (4-510-475 Ma) which was integrated into Permo-Triassic Pangea minimum in latitudinal plate velocity, rifting affected during the Variscan-Appalachian and Uralian oro- the eastern margin of the EEC and culminated in the genic cycles. opening of the Palaeo-Ural ocean. The sedimentary cover of the EEC consists of (8) Late Silurian (4-425--410 Ma) collision of a mosaic of superimposed basins of different age Baltica and Laurentia--Greenland and their sutur- and origin. Basins developed in conjunction with ing along the Arctic-North Atlantic Caledonides en- repeated rifting cycles, separated by periods of ther- tailed an abrupt change in plate motion. mal subsidence and collisional phases during which (9) The Middle Devonian to earliest Carbonifer- flexural foreland basins developed and intraplate ous (4-385-362 Ma) cycle of rifting and possible compressional stresses controlled the inversion of plume activity was accompanied by a deceleration in pre-existing tensional basins. the motion of Baltica. The contribution of eustatic and tectonically in- (10) The intra-Visean (4-345 Ma) onset of the duced sea-level fluctuations, controlling sedimenta- main-phase of Variscan-Sakmarian orogeny coin- tion and erosion on the EEC, warrants further analy- cides with the development of an east-dipping sub- sis and comparison with other cratons. duction zone in the Ural Ocean. The EEC records several phases of intraplate (11) The climax of Uralian orogeny at the Car- magmatism of different origin, including, plume, boniferous-Permian boundary (4-290 Ma) coincides intracratonic and back-arc 'passive' rifting and post- with the onset of anti-clockwise rotation of Baltica orogenic magmatism related to slab detachment and which, by this time, formed part of Pangea. the collapse of orogenic belts. Due to insufficient 58 A.M. Nikishin et al./ Tectonophysics 268 (1996) 23-63

geochemical, isotope and trace element data, it is not Barents Sea according to seismic data. In: E.E Bezmaternykh, possible at present to separate the different types of B.V. Senin and Ed.V. Shipilov (Editors), Sedimentary Cover magma generation and to propose dynamic processes of the West-Arctic Metaplatform (tectonics and seismostratig- raphy). Murmansk, Sever, pp. 1 I0-116 (in Russian). responsible for the development of the observed cy- Alekseev, A., Kononova, L. and Nikishin, A., 1996. The De- cles of intracratonic magmatism. vonian and Carboniferous of the Moscow Syneclise (Rus- The Middle and Late Devonian rifting cycle of sian Platform): stratigraphy and changes. In: R.A. the EEC may be related to changes in the sub- Stephenson, M. Wilson, H. de Boorder and V.I. Starostenko duction geometry of the Uralian and Palaeo-Tethys (Editors), EUROPROBE: Intraplate Tectonics and Basin Dy- namics of the Eastern European Platform. Tectonophysics, arc-trench systems, possibly controlling back-arc ex- 268:149-168 (this volume). tension. There are indications for contemporaneous Alsgaard, P.C.. 1993. Eastern Barents Sea Late Palaeozoic setting activity. and potential source rocks. In: T.O. Vorren, E. Bergsager, O.A. Preliminary correlations between the stress his- Dahl-Stamnes, E. Holter, B. Johansen, E. Lie, T.B. Lund tory of the craton, the evolution of its sedimentary (Editors), Arctic Geology and Petroleum Potential, Vol. 2. NPF Special Publication, Elsevier, Amsterdam, pp. 405-418. basins, and lithospheric plate motions through time, Andrrasson, P.G., 1994. The Baltoscandian margin in Neopro- indicate that the kinematics of plate interaction con- terozoic-early Palaeozoic times. Some constraints on terrane trolled the origin and development of intracratonic derivation and accretion in the Arctic Scandinavian Cale- sedimentary basins. donides. Tectonophysics, 231: 1-32. Andreichev, V.L., 1992. Rb-Sr age of basalts of Polar Pre-Urals. Dokl. Akad. Nauk SSSR, 326(1): 139-142 (in Russian). Acknowledgements Beliakov, S.L., 1994. Structural complexes of the Tyman- Pechora region sedimentary cover. In: Yu.G. Leonov, M.P. An- We thank E.E. Milanovsky, V.E. Khain, A.E tipov. A.E Morozov and L.N. Solodilov (Editors), Tectonics Morozov, B.A. Sokolov, E.Yu. Dmitrovskaya, S.N. and Magmatism of East-European Platform. KMK, Moscow, Stovba, S.V. Bogdanova, L.I. Filatova, A.Yu. pp. 134-144 (in Russian). Rozanov, L.I. Lobkovsky, Yu.Yu. Podladchikov, E.S. Belyaev, A.A., 1994. Lithological peculiarities of Palaeozoic formations of the Kara side of Pay-Khoy. In: N.P. Yushkin and Nikashin, M. Wilson, N.A. Malyshev, D.G. Gee, J. A.M. Pystin (Editors), Geology and Mineral Resources of the Wijbrans, Y.T. Kuzmenko, M. Burzin, R.G. Garet- European North-East of Russia (Abstracts, Vol. 1). Geological sky, Yu.G. Leonov, and E.V. Saprykin for fruitful dis- Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences, Syktyvkar, pp. 55-58 cussions and support. Our project received financial (in Russian). support from INTAS grants 93-3346 and 94-1805, Belyaeva, N.V., Korzun, A.L., Stashkova, E.K. and Grinko, T.G., 1992. Model of the structure of the Upper Devonian- by Russian RFFI (RBRF) grant 96-05-65-739, and Tournaisian complex of sediments on the north of Verkhne- by ROSCOMNEDRA of Russia. We thank the In- Pechora subbasin. Komi Scientific Centre of the Russian ternational Lithosphere Programme, EUROPROBE Academy of Sciences, Syktyvkar, Vol. 43, 16 pp. (in Rus- and IGCP project No. 369 for their technical and sian). moral support of the our investigations. Critical and Bocharova, N.Yu. and Scotese, C.R., 1993. Palaeogeography of the North Caspian basin. Center for Russian Geology and constructive comments to an earlier version of this Tectonics, Department of Geology, University of at paper by V.E. Khain, P.E.R. Loverlock, D. Vaslet, Arlington, Arlington, Texas (unpublished manuscript). D.G. Gee, and D. Fairhead are gratefully acknowl- Bochkarev, V.V., 1990. Magmatic formations of the northern part edged. This is the Netherlands Research School of of the Peri-Polar Urals. Urals Branch of the USSR Academy Sedimentary Geology contribution number 960404. of Sciences, Sverdlovsk, 67 pp. (in Russian). Bogdanov, A.A., 1976. Tectonics of Platforms and Fold Belts. Nedra, Moscow, 340 pp. (in Russian). References Bogdanov, A.A. and Khain, V.E., 1981. International Tectonic map of Europe and adjacent areas. Scale 1:2,500,000. UN- Abbot, D. and Nikishin, A.M., 1996. The growth of Northern ESCO, Moscow. . Advances in Geophysics (in press). Bogdanova, S.V., 1986. Earth Crust of the Russian Platform in Akhmetiev, M.A., Lozovsky, V.P., Olferiev, A.G., Ovnatanova, the Early Precambrian (the Volga-Ural region as example). N.S. and Shik, S.M. (Editors), 1993. Bulletin of the Regional Nauka, Moscow, 233 pp. (in Russian). 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