Evidence for Transpression and Strain Partitioning Developed During the Eo -Cimmerian Orogeny in the Aghdarband Erosional Window

Theerosional window of Aghdarband, located in NE Iran to the SE of Mashhad is a unique place for study of the Eo-Cimmerian event. This event (Late Triassic-Middle Jurassic) resulted from clousureof thePaleothetys ocean and collision between the Iran and Turan plates. These two plates were separated from each other before Late Triassic, and therefore they had different tectonic and sedimentary histories. At this time the Aghdarband area was located on active margin of Eurasia, and therefore the units that are exposed in the erosional wiondow of Aghdarband have basic differences with their counterparts in other places of Iran. During the Eo Cimmerian event, the Aghdarband area was affected by a sinistraltranspression. Strain in this transpressional zone was intensively partitioned, and three major structural domains with different structural characteristics were formed in it. A sinistral strike-slip fault zone and an imbricate thrust fault zone were formed respectively in northern and southern part of the Aghdarband area. Development of this transpressional zone may be attributed to the oblique convergence between Iran and Turan plates during above mentioned time interval.