ARCHEAN TANZANIA CRATON

 The Tanzania Craton constitutes the nucleus of preserved

Archaean continental crust in East Africa, extending from central
Tanzania to western Kenya and southeast Uganda
 The geologic-tectonic subdivisions of the Tanzania Craton has
been eolving(changing) over time. From 1956 by Quennel
McKinley et al. was classified into Kavirondian System, Nyanzian
System and Dodoman System to the most recent by Kabete,
McNaughton et al 2012 into
 Lake Victoria Region; East Lake Victoria Super terraine, Mwanza-
Lake Eyasi Super terraine, and Lake Nyanza Super Terraine.
 Central Tanzania Region; Moyowosi-Manyoni Super terraine,
Dodoma Schist Super terraine, Dodoma Basement Superterraine,
and East Ubendian- Mtera Super terraine
 Based on the distribution of greenstone belts, the superterrane can
be divided into
 northen part (lake victoria Region) and
 central part(Dodoma supergroup)
 The craton is subdivided into two main terranes:
 The high-grade metamorphic terrane of central Tanzania (Dodoman
Belt) and is made of granite, granodiorite, granitic gneisses and
migmatites
 the low-grade granite–greenstone terrane of northern Tanzania
which contains the Nyanzian and Kavirondian Supergroups. The
terrane is made of metavolcanic rocks and clastic, chemical
sedimentary rocks that are surrounded and intruded by syn- to post-
orogenic granitoids
 The central tanzania part
• The central tanzania region(Dodoma
supergroup) comprises of mainly sedimentary
origin and granitoid belts with intercalated ,
narrow greenschist to amphibolite-facies
greenstone and schist belts
• The sedimentary rocks were intruded by
granitoids and covered by volcanic rocks. Later
rock were overprinted by greenschist to
amphibolite-facies metamorphism.
It has different rock type such as; banded
hematite quartzites, sericite, talc, chlorite,
corundum schists, hbl- orthogneisses,
amphibolites and granites. Also present are
slices of greenschist to amphibolites facies
greenstones of the Mazoka and Mafulungu
belts
The maximum age of sedimentation of
metasedimentary is 3604Ma
 Mineralization in the central Tanzania
• The high-grade terrane of central Tanzania is not
highly mineralized as compared to its low-grade
granite-greenstone terrane of northern Tanzania
counterpart. However, gold occurrences are known
in Undewa-Ilangali gold province which includes
Mazoka –Mafulungu greenstone belts in central
Tanzania.
• Gold in these belts occurs in laminated quartz veins
within quartz diorite schists (in Mafulungu belt) and
in sheared/mylonitised quartz-sericite schist, and
stockwork quartz veins in basalts and andesites (in
Mazoka belt).
 The northen tanzania part.
 Also known as The Nyanzian supergroup, it’s divided into the
Lower Nyanzian and Upper Nyanzian sequence. The Nyanzian
group is uncomformably overlain by the clastic sedimentary
rocks of the Kavirondian Supergroup.
 Six greenstone belts are identified in the northen tanzania
craton: Sukumaland, Musoma-mara, Shinyanga-Malita,
kilimafedha, Nzega and Iramba-Sekenke
 The youngest volcanism in the greenstone belts of the Tanzania
Craton is from the MMGB as indicated by a zircon U-Pb age of
2667 ±8Ma obtained from dacites collected near Tarime.
 The oldest volcanism in the belt is at the Sukumaland
Greenstone Belt with the age of 2.8Ga
 Sukumaland greenstone belt
 The SGB consists of two intermittently exposed arcs
of metavolcanic and metasedimentary rocks that are
cored and flanked by granitoids and gneisse.
 The SGB has world-class gold deposits with four
operating mines at Geita, Bulyanhulu, Tulawaka and
Buzwagi.
 The inner arc of the SGB represents Lower
nyanzian which consists of gabbros, pillow lavas,
dolerite and few felsic volcanic rock
 The outer arc of the SGB represents Upper
nyanzian consisting of shales, sandstones,
siltstones, cherts and rocks of Banded Iron
Formatio (BIF)
 The mafic volcanic rocks are not restricted to the
inner belt nor are metasedimentary rocks found
only in the outer belt.
 GEOCHRONOLOGY
 Sm–Nd isochron age of 2823 ± 44 Ma (Rwamagaza
metabasalts) from the inner arc of the SGB is
indistinguishable from the 2780 ± 3 and 2803 ± 3 Ma
(Homolo rhyolitic pyroclastics) of the outer arc of the
SGB. thus although far separated from each other by
granitic intrusives, their emplacement is likely in a single
event and the emplacement of the basalts in different
locations of the SGB was largely coeval.
 The pillowed metabasalts show geochemical affinities
with MORB and island arc basalts and the rhyolites show
geochemical affinities with modern adakites. The affinities
are also featured in back arc basins and the SGB is thus
interpreted to have formed in an Archaean back-arc
basin.
The mineralization of Au in the SGB
• Quartz vein hosted mineralization in a shear zone with host rocks
ranging from argillite at the contact between metabasalts and
felsic volcanics (Bulyanhulu), metavolcanics and at the contact
between granite and metavolcanics (Mawemeru-Busolwa),
volcanosedimentary rocks (Tulawaka). The ore is associated with
sulphides mainly pyrite and/or pyrrhotite.
• K-feldspar Granite hosted mineralization in a shear zone (e.g at
Buzwagi)
• BIF hosted mineralization in a shear zone (Geita deposits, golden
ridge) with the ore associated with sulphides.
 Musoma-mara greenstone belt(MMGB)
 The Musoma-mara greennstone belt is an oval-shaped, E-
W-trending belt and the belt is the Neoarchaean granite–
greenstone terrane which is subdivided into Northern and
Southern Musoma Mara respectively.
 The greenstone sequence in the MMGB is made of 2676–
2669 Ma high-Mg andesites that are overlain by∼2668 Ma
felsic volcanic rocks of adakitic composition and that is the
oldest rock in the area.
 It is also intruded by syn-orogenic granitoids of TTG
composition, both of which are considered to represent
additions of juvenile mantle-derived material into the
continental crust at ∼2668 Ma
 The magmatic evolution of the MMGB concluded
at∼2649 Ma with the emplacement of K-rich granites
forming abundant intrusive rocks in the area.
 MMGB is unconformably overlain by the rocks of the
Kavirondian Supergroup, which is largely composed of
conglomerates, sandstones and silts that are
interbedded with thin horizons of volcanic rocks
 The conglomerates are composed of rounded clasts of
chert and quartzite with either silica or ferruginized
material as the cement. Because of their fault-
bounded nature, the stratigraphic relationship with
other rock units in the belt is difficult to establish
These rocks have very low contents of the
transition elements Cr and Ni but high
concentration of Th, U, Zr and Pb, which cou-
pled with high SiO2and K2O excludes
derivation from a mafic source and supports
derivation of the rocks from an evolved crustal
source
Thus, whereas the earlier TTG magmatism in
the MMGB represents Neoarchaean growth of
juvenile continental crust, the potassic
magmatism only involved secondary intra-
crustal recycling of pre-existing material
MINERALIZATION
The mineralization in the MMGB is in shear zone,
its host rocks being granodiorite (Nyabirama, North
Mara), porphyritic andesite to dacites (Gokona),
mafic volcanics (Buhemba, Kiabakari). Mineralization
occurs as disseminated nuggets in quartz veins/reefs
and in sulphides and is associated with silicification
(and albite alterations for north Mara deposits).
The NMMBG differs from SMMGB in the following
ways
SMMGB is Bimodal where basalt and rhyolite are
cogenetic also the volcanism age is 2.7Ga. While the
NMMGB has high Magnesium Andesite, Dacite and
Rhyolite where the Na-rich magmatism TTG was
coeval with eruption of Dacite. Here the age of
volcanism is 2.67Ga.
 Iramba-Sekenke greenstone belt
The Iramba–Sekenke greenstone belt is situated in
central Tanzania and is the most southerly and
easterly of all the green-stone belts of the
Tanzania Craton
It forms part of the elevated Iramba plateau that
is bordered by the Wembere depression to the
northwest and consists of discontinuous patches
of faulted greenstone belt, the general E–W trend
of which has been changed to N–S and/or NE–SW
Basing on their higher degree of deformation,
the oldest rocks in the area are the granite-
gneisses found in the north and northeast of the
belt and which is overlain by volcanic rocks and
tuffs, banded iron formations and silvery schists
which constitute the greenstone belt.
The other plutonic rocks are syenites, diorite,
dolerites and gabbro.
 The volcanic rocks are usually carbonated and sheared
with the less deformed ones showing both vesicular
and pillow structures.
 The presence of pillow structures in the less deformed
mafic volcanic rocks, BIF capping the volcanic rocks as
well as the absence of terrigeneous sediments all argue
in favour of an oceanic setting. The combined
geochemical evidence from tectonic setting
discrimination diagrams and trace element ratios is
consistent with formation of the Iramba–Sekenke
greenstone belt in a back-arc setting
Sm–Nd geochronology shows that the entire
volcanic rock suite was emplaced at 2742±27 Ma
The youngest group of rocks in the belt is the
Sekenke conglomerate and superficial deposits of
the Wembere depression which are considered to
be of Tertiary age
The volcanic rocks have been metamorphosed to
the lower amphibolite facies to the west of the belt
where they have been converted into amphibolite
schists.
 Nzega greenstone belt (NGB)
 The Nzega Greenstone Belt (NGB) is an E–W trending
greenstone belt that contains volcanic and
sedimentary rocks belonging to Nyanzian Supergroup.
 The greenstone sequence at Golden Pride gold
deposit in Nzega greenstone belt of northern
Tanzania is cross-cut by several intrusions which are
geochemically categorized into two main rock suites:
the granodiorites (which include the porphyries) and
the lamprophyres (formerly intermediate intrusions)
The cross-section showing the Golden Pride mine stratigraphy
(adopted from Vos et al. (2009))
 The rocks in this suite are interpreted to have formed
by partial melting of an enriched mantle wedge
through two metasomatic events:
• subduction-related fluids/melts and by
• metasomatism related to asthenospheric mantle
upwelling caused by slab break-off. Entire greenstone
sequence and the associated intrusions at Golden
Pride gold deposit formed in a late Archaean
convergent margin. Since they show strong affinity
to subduction related magmas
 U–Pb age date of 2780 ± 3 Ma from rhyolite
pyroclastics in the adjoining greenstone belt is
potentially associated with the rhyolitic volcanic rocks
in the eastern end of the NGB. The rest of the belt is
characterized by greenschist facies, fine-to medium-
grained siliciclastic rocks interbedded with banded iron
formations (BIFs)
 The NGB is centrally dissected by the 150 km long
prominent E–W striking shear structure called the
Bulangamirwa (or locally called the Golden Pride) Shear
Zone
 kilimafedha greenstone belt(KGB)
 The Kilimafedha greenstone belt forms an asymmetrical
horseshoe-shaped exposure of metavolcanic and minor
metasedimentary rocks in the area east and southeast of Lake
Victoria
 The greenstone sequences start with a poorly preserved mafic
volcanic unit now converted into actinolite and hornblende
schist in the extreme southeastern and northern margins of
the belt (within the Serengeti National Park boundary).
 The rocks are thus metamorphosed into greenschist facies
except for the hornblende schists that are proximal to granitic
intrusions. This unit has locally been found to be pillowed
suggesting extrusion of the lavas under water.
The predominant intermediate rocks are often
amygdaloidal, with streams of vesicles filled
up with quartz, epidote, and chlorite. Other
less vesicular types have large phenocrysts of
albite-oligoclase.
The presence of chlorite and epidote in the
Kilimafedha volcanic rocks suggests that these
rocks have mainly been metamorphosed into
greenschist facies.
• Diagrammatic
representation of the
stratigraphic sequence
of Kilimafedha
greenstone belt
The mafic volcanic rocks are overlain by a more
extensive and better preserved thick sequence of
intermediate volcanic rocks with infrequent felsic
volcanic rocks patched in the intermediate rocks.
This sequence locally contains thin horizons of
tuff and metasediments including chert, jaspilite,
and quartzite.
The felsic volcanic rocks were dated 207Pb/206Pb
zircon ages of 2712±5Ma and 2720±5Ma
 Archean greenstone belt in other parts of
the world
The important occuraces are
• Swaziland supergroup,Berbarton,South Africa
• Zimbabwe belts
• Western australia
• Dharwa Supergroup,Southern India
• Superior and slave provinces,Canada
The greenstone belts are bordered and intruded
by ‘granitic’ plutons which are not open to
dispute
 END

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