The geological setting of Matra ore deposit (France): insights from lithostratigraphy and polyphase deformation history

Abstract

Arsenic sulfide mineralization in Matra mine (southern Alpine Corsica) is hosted by two tectonic units belonging to the Schistes Lustrés Complex. Country rocks include a Jurassic ophiolitic sequence and related sedimentary covers, which were metamorphosed. Geological mapping and thin section analysis were used to understand lithostratigraphy and the tectononic-metamorphic history. The polyphase deformation history includes four phases of ductile deformation during the Late Cretaceous–Early Oligocene Alpine orogeny, with associated high-pressure–low-temperature metamorphism culminating in eclogite facies. The post-Alpine phase includes an N–S extensional fault system that controls the movement of ore fluids.

Keywords

• Field mapping
• ductile to brittle deformation
• Matra fault
• Schistes Lustrés Complex
• Alpine Corsica