Istituto Superiore per la Protezione
e la Ricerca Ambientale

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Tectonic history of the Dent Blanche

Swiss Tectonic Studies Group Field Excursion – 2016

The Dent Blanche Tectonic System (DBTS), a stack of continental slices of Adriatic origin, is the highest tectonic element of the collisional wedge in the Western Alps, and it straddles the Italian-Swiss border. This excursion is intended to discuss its tectonic history. For this purpose, it describes key localities, allowing the examination of three main points. Firstly, the well-preserved pre-Alpine rocks of the Valpelline series will allow a statement about the structure and evolution of the lower crust during the Permian. Secondly, the frontal contact of the DBTS continental rocks with the underlying ocean-derived rocks (Piemonte-Liguria ocean) will be visited during the second day, in order to discuss the nature of this contact. Thirdly, the Roisan-Cignana Shear Zone, a major boundary inside the DBTS, will be visited during the third day, allowing a better
interpretation of the internal geometry of the DBTS.

DOI: 10.3301/GFT.2017.02

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ISPRA
Technical Periodicals
(Periodici Tecnici) Geological Field Trips and Maps
9 (2.1)/2017
2038-4947