Cu–Au–Pb–Zn–Ag metallogeny of the Alpine–Balkan–Carpathian–Dinaride geodynamic province / Cu–Au–Pb–Zn–Ag металлогения Альпийско-Балканско-Карпатско-Динаридской геодинамической провинции

The Alpine-Balkan-Carpathian-Dinaride (ABCD) belt is one of the world’s oldest mining areas and played a major role in the history of European civilizations, from well before the peak of the Greek and Roman civilizations up untilthe present day. Today, it is Europe’s premier Cu-Au (-Pb-Zn-Ag) province, especially for gold-rich deposits associated with calc-alkaline magmatism, which have become a focus of renewed exploration interest after the political change in the eastern part of CentralEurope. The Alpine–Balkan–Carpathian–Dinaride metallogenic and geodynamic province is part of the AlpineHimalayan orogenic system which extends from western Europe through Iran and the Himalayas to China and Malaysia. This orogenic system is the result of convergence of the African, Arabian and Indian plates and their collision with Eurasia, mainly from the Cretaceous to the present. Along the Alpine-Himalayan system, major calc-alkaline magmatism is associated with certain segments only, whereas other segments are characterised by extensive regionalmetamorphism. This is a reflection of the complex geometry of the collision interface, with interfering microplates giving rise to several discontinuous sutures, highly diachronous magmatism, and transient subduction of continental crust leading to variable crustal thickening followed by extension and orogenic collapse. These interfering processes led to a very complex arcuate trace of the orogen, especially in the ABCD segment (e.g. Channell and Horva´th 1976; Csontos 1995; Nemcok et al. 1998; Wortel and Spakman 2000; Ciobanu et al. 2002, this volume). The segmented geodynamic character of the orogen is reflected in an equally discontinuous distribution of ore deposits (Mitchell 1996; Jankovic 1997). This character stands in marked contrast to the long-lasting subduction of oceanic plates along the margins of the Pacific basin, which resulted in relatively stable magmatic arcs with elongate belts of magmatichydrothermalore deposits, notably in the Andes. As a result of the complex geodynamic history, with severaloceanic sub-basins and indenting continental microplates, the metallogeny of the ABCD region comprises severalphases of major ore formation, in segments of limited lateral extent along the trace of the orogen. Major chromite deposits and copper-rich volcanic rock-hosted massive sulphides formed during precollisional oceanic magmatism between Early Jurassic and Middle Cretaceous, but probably in an oceanic arc rather than in a mid-ocean spreading environment. Three spatially and temporally distinct tectonic and metallogenic belts are associated with the Late Cretaceous to Neogene tectonic evolution of the ABCD belt (Fig. 1; Table 1) and are the focus of this Issue of Mineralium Deposita. <...>