The Lyndhurst discontinuity is a major east–west structure located some 40 km north of Rouyn–Noranda. It separates the rhyolitic and sedimentary units of the Hunter Mine Group to the north from the basalts of the Kinojévis Group to the south. Evidence of deformation is observed only in the rhyolites and sediments along the south edge of the Hunter Mine Group. The deformation zone is approximately 1 km wide and is continuous for about 30 km. The Kinojévis Group rocks are not deformed. Deformed rhyolites show a strong sericite and chlorite alteration of hydrothermal origin. The competency of the rhyolites is significantly reduced by the presence of these phyllosilicates, which results in the deformation being preferentially localized in the more altered rocks. Competency contrasts observed on a mesoscopic scale are also valid on the microscopic and megascopic scales. The structural analysis of the deformation zone reveals different arrays that characterize three distinct sectors. These arrays reflect competency contrasts of the lithology and a crenulation cleavage. The stretching lineation is generally steeply plunging. Although the deformation seems significant in a zone contiguous to the Lyndhurst discontinuity, the poor development of the stretching lineation, the preservation of the original crystalline shapes of phenocrysts in the rhyolites, and the constant symmetry of the pressure shadows suggest a global coaxial deformation. This deformation regime is difficult to reconcile with a compressive fault such as a thrust fault.
Eocene high grade metamorphism and crustal anatexis in the North Himalaya Gneiss Domes, Southern Tibet
