Gondwana Research 18 (2010) 106–137

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Gondwana Research
j o u r n a l h o m e p a g e : w w w. e l s ev i e r. c o m / l o c a t e / g r

A new perspective on metamorphism and metamorphic belts☆

Shigenori Maruyama a,⁎, H. Masago b, I. Katayama c, Y. Iwase d, M. Toriumi e, S. Omori a, K., Aoki a
a
Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Japan
b
Center for Deep Earth Exploration, Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology, Japan
c
Department of Earth and Planetary Systems Science, Graduate School of Science, Hiroshima University, Japan
d
Department of Earth and Ocean Sciences, National Defense Academy of Japan, Japan
e
Department of Earth and Planetary Science, Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Japan

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: The discovery of ultrahigh-pressure rocks from collision-type orogenic belts has revolutionized the classic
Received 8 February 2010 interpretation of (1) progressive and retrogressive metamorphism recorded on surface exposures of regional
Received in revised form 22 March 2010 metamorphic belts, (2) geochronology of the various stages of metamorphism, (3) origin of metamorphic
Accepted 23 March 2010
textures, (4) P–T–t path, (5) metamorphic facies series, (6) exhumation model, and (7) role of fluids during
Available online 30 March 2010
regional metamorphism. Based mainly on our recent studies of the Kokchetav, Dabie Shan, Indonesia,
Franciscan and Sanbagawa belts, we suggest the following revolutionary paradigm shifts.
Keywords:
Metamorphism
The so-called mineral isograds defined on the maps of regional metamorphic belts were a misunderstanding
Facies series of the progressive dehydration reaction during subduction because extensive late-stage hydration has
Isograd mostly obliterated the progressive minerals in pelitic–psammitic and metabasic rocks. Progressively zoned
Barrovian hydration garnet has survived as the sole progressive mineral that was unstable with the majority of matrix-forming
Exhumation minerals. The classic Barrovian isograds should therefore be carefully re-examined. The well-documented
Tectonics SHRIMP chronology of spot-dating zoned zircons with index minerals from low-P in the core, through HP–
UHP in the mantle to low-P on the rim clearly shows that the slow exhumation speed of 23–40 My from
mantle depth to mid-crustal level was followed by mountain building with doming at latest stage. Extensive
hydration of the UHP–HP unit occurred due to fluid infiltration underneath, when the UHP–HP unit intruded
the low-grade to unmetamorphosed unit at a mid-crustal level. Most deformation textures such as mineral
lineations, porphyroblasts, pull-apart, or boudinaged amphiboles, formed during extensive hydration at the
late stage do not constrain the progressive stress regime. The P–T–time path determined by thermo-
barometry using mineral inclusions in garnet and forward modeling of garnet zoning, independent of the
matrix minerals, indicates an anticlockwise trend in the P–T space, and follows an independent P–T change in
the metamorphic facies series. This is consistent with the numerically calculated geotherm along the
Wadati–Benioff plane. Collision-type orogenic belts have long been regarded as being characterized by the
intermediate-pressure type metamorphic facies series. The kyanite–sillimanite is an apparent type facies
series formed by the late-stage extensive hydration. In contrast, the original high-P to ultrahigh-P type facies
series with an anticlockwise kink-point at around 10 kb is a progressive type. A collision-type regional
metamorphic belt crops out as a very thin unit sandwiched between overlying and underlying low-P or
weakly metamorphosed units. The metamorphic belt has an aspect ratio (thickness vs width) of 1:100, and it
extends for several hundreds to a thousand km. It resembles a thin mylonitic intrusion from the mantle
extending from 100 to 200 km depth into the crustal rock unit. The underlying unit is thermally
metamorphosed in the andalusite–sillimanite type facies series. The major reason for the misunderstanding
of the progressive metamorphism in collision-type orogenic belts is the underestimation of the role of fluids
derived from the underlying low-grade metamorphic unit, when juxtaposed at a mid-crustal level. The
circulation of fluids along the plate boundaries is more important than a P–T change.
© 2010 International Association for Gondwana Research. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

☆ Adapted and modified from the article by Maruyama, S., Masago, H., Katayama, I.,
Iwase, Y., Toriumi, M., 2004. A revolutionary new interpretation of a regional
metamorphism, its exhumation and consequent mountain building. Journal of
Geography, 113, 727–768 (in Japanese).
⁎ Corresponding author.
E-mail addresses: smaruyam@geo.titech.ac.jp (S. Maruyama),
omori@geo.titech.ac.jp (S. Omori).
1. Introduction
Our understanding of regional metamorphism is pivoted on infor-
mation from experimental petrology combined with thermodynam-
ics, structural and petrological studies of regional metamorphic belts
from microscopic to map scale, and the paradigm established by plate
tectonics (e.g. recent works by Brown 2010-this issue, Omori et al.,

1342-937X/$ – see front matter © 2010 International Association for Gondwana Research. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.gr.2010.03.007
 S. Maruyama et al. / Gondwana Research 18 (2010) 106–137
2009; Santosh and Kusky, 2010, Zhang et al., 2009, among others). The
empirical and conceptual developments during the period 1965 to
1980 led to various advances in this field and laid the basis for a
modern approach (Miyashiro 1998). Thermodynamic database and
experimental data on subsolidus phase relations became available in
the late 70s (Helgeson et al., 1978) which was further improved by
later workers. Analyses of pressure–temperature–time (P–T–t) paths
became possible through the application of electron microprobe in the
study of rock-forming minerals in regional metamorphic belts. These,
combined with radiogenic isotope geochronology and thermal history
by numerical simulation, led to the proposal of tectonic models for the
exhumation of regional metamorphic belts such as the benchmark
work of England and Thompson (1984). It was an epoch making
success which demonstrated the potential of metamorphic petrology
in modeling mountain building processes along consuming plate
boundaries by combining information from geology and petrology
(e.g., Spear et al., 1990). Thus, systematization of metamorphic
petrology under Earth Science was generally believed to have been
successfully achieved.
However, it was at this period that ultrahigh-pressure (UHP)
metamorphic rocks were discovered from some orogenic belts. This
discovery was a trigger to reconsider the existing concepts of regional
metamorphism from the narrow realm of metamorphic petrology to a
much larger canvas, particularly incorporating processes in consum-
ing plate boundaries as well as the information from geophysics.
Although the first finding of coesite-bearing of UHP rocks from Alps
(Chopin, 1984) was a major breakthrough, it soon became apparent
that this is not an isolate case, and that UHP rocks occur in many
regional metamorphic belts formed by continent–continent collision
as revealed by reports in the last 20 years (e.g. Zhang et al., 2009 and
references therein; Masago et al., 2009). Traditionally, and empiri-
cally, intermediate-pressure type metamorphism was considered to
be a characteristic for the collision-type orogeny, and was regarded to
be a progressive metamorphism. However, this was proved wrong by
subsequent studies as progressive metamorphism ranged from low-T
high-P type facies series covering blueschist through eclogite to
coesite and or diamond facies metamorphism. Recently, similar
results were also obtained from the Pacific-type regional metamor-
phic belts (Aoki, 2009). Therefore, metamorphic petrology systema-
tized through the generally accepted models of England and
Thompson (1984) and Spear et al. (1990) faced new challenges. The
new discoveries warranted a restructuring of the basic framework of
metamorphic petrology in terms of the geodynamics and tectonics of
regional metamorphic belts. A paradigm shift in this field should be
able to address: (1) progressive regional metamorphism; (2)
retrogressive and probably hydration metamorphism; (3) geochro-
nology; (4) metamorphic textures and structures and the estimation
of stress; (5) P–T–t path; (6) metamorphic facies series; (7)
exhumation tectonics and (8) the behavior of metamorphic fluid.
Most of these themes are now facing several new challenges and
drastic revision of previous concepts based on technological and
conceptual advancements. In this paper we synthesize the traditional
ideas and concepts of metamorphic petrology and evaluate the recent
observations, finally leading to the proposal of some new concepts.
2. A brief historical review of regional metamorphism
In this section we provide a brief overview of the existing major
concepts including salient assumptions on regional metamorphism.
2.1. Metamorphic rocks exposed on the surface indicate absence of fluids
If excess fluid enriched in water is always available during meta-
morphism, a chemical equilibrium must prevail, and hence high-
grade metamorphic rocks cannot be present on the surface of the
Earth. Zeolite facies minerals such as clays are the stable assemblages
107
under the surface, at temperature and pressure conditions prevailing
in the wet region. However, exposed regional metamorphic belts such
as those of Alps, Himalaya and other areas show the presence of high
temperature minerals such as plagioclase and pyroxene on a regional
scale. The common presence of anhydrous high-T minerals in region-
ally exposed metamorphic belts suggests disequilibrium under
surface environment (Fig. 1). A possible explanation for this phe-
nomenon is the absence of fluid during the exhumation from deep
crust to the surface.
Mineral isograds have been traditionally constructed to explain
the progressive nature of regional metamorphic belts (see example
shown in Fig. 2). From low- to high-grade of metamorphism, the
change in pelitic mineral assemblages define the isograds, such as for
example the chlorite, biotite, garnet, staurolite, sillimanite and
kyanite isograds in the collision-type Scottish Highland (Barrow,
1893; Fettes, 1979) (Fig. 2), and chlorite, garnet, biotite and oligoclase
in the Pacific-type Sanbagawa belt, Japan (Higashino, 1990). These
isograds can be explained by P and T increase, which promote dehy-
dration reactions at given chemical composition. Interpretation was
that excess fluid was present during the P–T increase leading to the
completion of chemical equilibria promoting the progressive meta-
morphism (Fig. 1a,b). However, after the thermal peak (P–T
maximum) the recrystallized metamorphic belts return to the surface.
If there is no fluid, the mineral assemblages formed at specific P–T
conditions should remain frozen and will not undergo any change
(Fig. 1c). The presence of high-grade mineral assemblages in the
exposed metamorphic belts has been taken to indicate the absence of
fluids after the thermal peak, a speculation that has been well
demonstrated in petrology and supported by empirical considera-
tions. Therefore, even though the logic is somewhat circular, most
petrologists endorsed this concept.
2.2. Meaning of mineral isograd
As shown typically in the case of Scottish and Appalachian meta-
morphic belts, the appearance of anhydrous minerals seems to be
common with increasing metamorphic grade. Therefore, in a given
rock system, such as pelitic or mafic, the mineral assemblages indicate
dehydration reactions at the high-T side to expelling fluids at the
higher-grade side. This process is envisioned as progressive meta-
morphism and records a P–T increase during regional metamorphism.
Therefore, the mineral isograds preserve the P–T structure during the
maximum-P–T conditions.
However, if we consider the texture of metamorphic rocks, the
margin of amphibole or garnet is often replaced by low-temperature
minerals, which indicate minor hydration and recrystallization
following the peak metamorphic conditions. Thus, hydration recrys-
tallization was considered to be minor during the exhumation of
regional metamorphic belts. It was thus considered that high-grade
metamorphic rocks could be transported to the surface without any
significant hydration–recrystallization.
As will be discussed in detail later, this notion was wrong. The late-
stage retrogression was extensive to obliterate almost all progressive
mineralogy at high grades, hence we need to reconsider the basic
concept of metamorphism and metamorphic belts.
2.3. Exhumation model
Almost all regional metamorphic belts were considered to be
generally stable within the stability field of plagioclase. Plagioclase
occupies more than 50% modal content among the mineral assem-
blages in psammitic to pelitic sedimentary rocks and metabasites. The
upper stability limit of plagioclase in both metabasite and metasedi-
mentary rocks is up to 12 kbar (Miyashiro, 1973, 1994a,b). Therefore,
transportation depth of regional metamorphic belts was considered to
have never exceeded the bottom of continental crust (ca. 35 km).
108 S. Maruyama et al. / Gondwana Research 18 (2010) 106–137

Fig. 1. Schematic diagram of regional metamorphism in subduction zones. (a) The formation of protolith. Accretionary complex formed at trench and gradually decreased its water
contents during subduction (shown with change in density of dots in the metamorphic belts in the diagram from a and b). As most prograde metamorphic reactions are dehydration
with excess aqueous fluid, chemical equilibration is achieved at prograde to peak stages. (b) On the contrary, most retrograde reactions during the exhumation stage are hydration
reactions, which cannot proceed without sufficient water being supplied from outside the system. For this reason, it has long been believed that metamorphic rocks exposed on the
surface preserve near peak stage of the metamorphic mineral assemblages (c). However, recent studies have clearly revealed that metamorphic belts have undergone
recrystallization with a large amount of water infiltrating at the mid-crustal level (d).

Based on this assumption, it was generally held that continental crust
cannot subduct into mantle and would only underplate leading to
crustal duplication as in the case of the model proposed for Himalayas
(England and Thompson, 1984). Advances in experimental petrology
led to the compilation of an exhaustive database on the thermody-
namic properties of most of the rock-forming minerals (e.g. Helgeson
et al., 1978, Holland and Powell, 1998). Using this database,
metamorphic P–T paths have been traced by the continuous change
in the composition of minerals such as garnet that are assumed to be
in equilibrium with the matrix minerals. If chemical equilibria were
perfectly maintained, then the radiometric ages derived from key
minerals provide valuable insights into the exhumation mechanism of
regional metamorphic belts.
One of the best examples for widely cited exhumation model is the
Himalayan metamorphic belt proposed by England and Thompson
(1984). We will now consider the tectonic history of this belt. The
estimated horizontal movement is about 70 to 80 km/My from
computations based on the northward migration of Indian continent
at the rate of 7 to 8 cm/year (England and Thompson, 1984). If the
subduction angle is 30°, the leading edge of the continent would reach
Moho depths within 1 million year (Fig. 3a). Therefore, thermal
calculation justifies the instantaneous overlapping of two continental
crusts (Fig. 3b). In this calculation, it was assumed that the temperature
at the surface of the subducted continental crust was zero degree
centigrade. The surface of the subducted crust is heated up through time
by the overlying lower crust of Asia, to an estimated temperature of
500 °C. The geotherm on the top surface of the Indian continent is thus
gradually heated up to attain a steady state geothermal gradient which
is a function of time (Fig. 3b). In this case, a time span of only 5 million
years is sufficient to attain such a state.
Because the subducted continental crust is expected to have large
buoyancy, this crust must uplift right after the duplication of the two
blocks following isostatic requirements (Fig. 3a, right upper panel).
The present day surface exposure of the Himalayan regional
metamorphic belts exhibit a continuous sequence from very low
grade (300 °C) to high grade (700 °C), suggesting that the belt
exposes the subducted Indian crust from surface to the lower
structural level. The protoliths of Himalayan metamorphic rocks
still preserve some of the lithostratigraphy derived from the
Gondwana continental assembly, and the paleontological records
are also consistent with this inference (Gansser, 1964; Lefort, 1975).
Therefore, the Asian continental crust, which constitutes the upper
part of duplicated continents, seems to have been significantly
eroded, the debris from which now constitute the voluminous Bengal
fan deposits within the Indian Ocean. Judging from Fig. 3b, the
surface regions which recrystallized below 300 °C were not heated
up above by the high-temperature Asian lower crust, and the
exhumation must have been extremely fast and short that occurred
within a few million years.
We now consider the P–T architecture of the subducted Indian crust.
The Indian crust was transported to a depth of ca. 45 km within 1 million
year. The fast rate of subduction means that during the initial stage of
subduction, only the pressure must have increased with temperature
remaining nearly constant (Fig. 3c). At the depth of 45 km, the
subducted crust stays for a considerable time when P must be constant
whereas T must gradually increase. This is due to the fact that heat
transfer occurs only by conduction which is a very slow process as
compared to the speed of the plate movement (England and Thompson,
1984). It should be noted that due to isostatic rebound, metamorphic
belts slowly uplift leading to temperature increase vis-à-vis pressure
decrease to exhume the metamorphic belts to the surface by buoyancy.
Simultaneously, extensive erosion occurs on the surface (Fig. 3c). As
expected in such a model, a clockwise rotation of the P–T path occurs
which matches well with the P–T time path deduced from chemically
zoned garnets (Spear, 1993). This model has been supported by several
petrological studies and Ganguly et al. (1998) estimated the average
exhumation speed of metamorphic belts in the Himalaya based on the
diffusion velocity of trace elements from zoned garnet (see also Tirone
and Ganguly, 2010-this issue for recent models on garnet diffusion). The
results were also consistent with an extremely rapid exhumation.
 S. Maruyama et al. / Gondwana Research 18 (2010) 106–137
Fig. 2. (a) Map view of metamorphic zoning and mineral isograd on the Scottish Highland. (b) The appearance and disappearance of index minerals in pelitic rocks with increasing metamorphic grade (Fettes, 1979). Intermediate-pressure
type metamorphic facies series in Scottish Highland has been called as Barrovian and regarded to be the world standard of progressive metamorphism in the regional metamorphic belts. (c) AFM ternary expression of the progressive
disappearance of staurolite. Staurolite-bearing assemblages change to an assemblage of sillimanite + garnet + biotite (right) with the disappearance of staurolite due to temperature increase (center). (d) The appearance and disappearance of
index minerals in a model pelitic rock with increasing metamorphic grade along prograde P–T path of the Kokchetav UHP metamorphic rock (after Masago et al., 2010-this issue). Compare (b) and (d) to evaluate the late stage of hydration to
mask the stability field of progressive HP minerals at highest grades.

109
110 S. Maruyama et al. / Gondwana Research 18 (2010) 106–137

Fig. 3. Classic model for continent collision orogeny of England and Thompson (1984). (a) Schematic cross section of the collisional orogen showing crustal duplication by collision
(left) and subsequent isostatic uplift and erosion (right). (b) Thermal profiles along the depth of the collision zone at various stages after collision. The discontinuous thermal profile
formed by double thickened crust (0 Ma) recovers to a steady state geotherm with time. (c) Pressure–temperature paths for the hanging wall and footwall of the orogen. Both show
clockwise P–T time path through the orogeny.

3. A revolutionary change in the concepts of metamorphism that UHP metamorphic rocks are remarkably exotic in terms of P–T
condition, many people still consider the England and Thompson (1984)
3.1. Discovery of UHP metamorphic rocks model for Himalayan metamorphic belts as an acceptable model.

The attractive models proposed for the formation and exhumation of
the Himalayan regional metamorphic belts provide a typical case of the
systematization of metamorphic petrology and illustrate the consisten-
cy between theoretically predicted model and the field and petrologic
data. Hence, metamorphic petrologists and geologists widely applied
the Himalayan model for other regional metamorphic belts formed by
continent–continent collision employing a similar petrological, tectonic
geochronological method. This template study thus became a common
currency over the world and similar models for different regional
metamorphic belts in space and time were proposed.
However, the discovery of UHP metamorphic rocks from Alps
(Chopin, 1984) marked a historic change in our concepts on regional
metamorphism and cast the first shadow of doubt on the Himalayan
models. Chopin's (1984) report of coesite-bearing white schist from the
highest grade of the Penninic nappe in the Italian Alps was followed by
further similar findings such as the discovery of coesite from Norwegian
Caledonides (Smith, 1984). Thereafter, ultrahigh-pressure metamor-
phic rocks have been reported from a number of collisional orogenic
belts over the world (see Zhang et al., 2009 and references therein), and
new reports continue even today adding to the number of UHP localities,
which already exceed 25 (Fig. 4). Although there is a general consensus
3.2. Mode of occurrence: coherent, allochthonous or autochthonous?
Following the discovery of UHP rocks, one of the main topics of
debate was the mode of occurrence of the metamorphic belts. The
pressure conditions of UHP rocks range from 30 to 70 kbar, which is
clearly outside the stability field of plagioclase, the stability of which
denotes pressures of only less than 12 kbar. This led to a contradiction in
the conceptual framework of regional metamorphism. One possibility is
that UHP rocks were caught up within low-pressure regional meta-
morphic belts as tectonic blocks. The second view is that it is similar to
gravel within conglomerates or olistostrome (Wang et al., 1992). The
third possibility is that the regional metamorphic belt itself was
subjected to high-pressure to ultrahigh-pressure metamorphism
followed by hydration–recrystallization along intermediate-P series
below 12 kbar (see a summary by Wang et al., 1992). Among these three
interpretations, most people believed the former two cases, possibly
because UHP rocks were derived from eclogites which were thought to
be derived from ophiolites. Another reason for this contention was due
to the fact that the major portion of regional metamorphic belts was
derived from psammitic to pelitic or orthogneiss which do not exhibit
the HP–UHP metamorphic conditions.
 S. Maruyama et al. / Gondwana Research 18 (2010) 106–137
Fig. 4. Global distribution of UHP metamorphic rocks (partly modified after Parkinson et al., 2002). Numbers below the localities represent ages in Ma.
However, continued studies on UHP metamorphism revealed that
the possibility (3) mentioned above is the most viable scenario. A
detailed case study was reported by Katayama et al. (2000) who
analyzed zircon inclusions separated from pelitic and psammitic rocks
from diamond-grade Kokchetav UHP regional metamorphic belt using
laser Raman spectrometry. More than 20 minerals were identified
within the zircons. Metamorphic mineral zoning was established
based on the mineral inclusions in zircons, and the results clearly
demonstrated that the psammitic and pelitic metamorphic units of
Kokchetav must have undergone regional metamorphism under HP–
UHP conditions. These metasedimentary rocks comprise more than
90% of the belt, and therefore the metamorphic belt itself must have
been subjected first to HP–UHP facies series and was later affected by
intermediate-pressure metamorphism within Moho depth (Katayama
et al., 2001; Masago et al., 2010-this issue). This study, and similar
other works were a turning point on the concept of collision-type
regional metamorphism.
3.3. Concept of regional metamorphism faces serious challenge
Following the Kokchetav research, similar results were obtained
from the Dabie–Sulu Triassic collisional orogenic belts in South China
(Liu et al., 2002; see Zhang et al., 2009 for a recent review). Moreover,
coesite was also discovered in granitic gneiss from the western part of
Himalayan belt, the Pakistan and Indian Himalayas (Kaneko et al.,
2003). This led to a drastic change in concept and it became apparent
that most of the collisional metamorphic belts must have suffered first
HP–UHP metamorphism during the prograde stage (e.g. Nishimiya
111
et al., 2010; Santosh and Kusky, 2010), followed by exhumation up to
mid-crustal level when hydration obliterated part of the progressive
metamorphic history through replacement by intermediate facies
series recrystallization.
The prograde and retrograde metamorphic history and the time
gap between these two episodes were clearly identified through spot
analysis of zircons from UHP rocks using SHRIMP method pioneered
by Katayama et al. (2001). The history recorded from the core and
margin of single zircon grains provided new insights into the
markedly different P–T conditions; for example, a diamond-bearing
core against graphite and plagioclase bearing rim. Thus, two
independent metamorphic episodes were distinguished with ca. 20
to 30 million years difference between the two events. This has been
confirmed not only in Kokchetav, but also in other UHP terranes
including the Dabie–Sulu and Himalayas (Wang et al., 1992; Tabata
et al., 1998; Liu et al., 2002; Kaneko et al., 2003; Sachan et al., 2004;
Zhang et al., 2009). The time gap reaching 20 to 30 million years
indicate extremely slow exhumation rate.
The Kokchetav and Dabie–Sulu examples, among other terranes,
finally led to the understanding that HP–UHP metamorphism was not
an exotic phenomenon and represents part of a progressive metamor-
phic cycle association with the deep subduction of continental margins
followed by late-stage hydration–recrystallization during exhumation.
The information so far available indicates that UHP metamorphic rocks
are generally restricted to Phanerozoic orogenic belts, and no typical
Archean and Proterozoic examples have been reported, except minor
exceptions for latest Proterozoic examples from Brazil and Africa (Caby,
1994; Campos Neto, 2000; Parkinson et al., 2002).
112 S. Maruyama et al. / Gondwana Research 18 (2010) 106–137
3.4. Impact on the Pacific-type orogenic belts
The new findings from collision-type regional metamorphic belts
such as those of Kokchetav were soon extended to the Pacific-type
orogenic belts such as the Sambagawa metamorphic belt in Japan (Ota
et al., 2004; Aoki et al., 2007, 2008, 2009). At the highest metamorphic
grade for Sambagawa belt in the Shikoku island of SW Japan, an
amphibolite mass of approximately 10 × 4 km2 is exposed with a relict
mineral assemblage corresponding to eclogite facies, the pressure
conditions of which are markedly higher than the already described
surrounding amphibolite facies rocks (below 12 kbar). However,
these eclogites were considered as tectonic blocks occurring along
fault zones (Takasu 1989). More recently, eclogite facies mineral
assemblages were widely mapped over the entire mass (Ota et al.,
2004). Moreover, small eclogite bodies were also reported from the
surrounding Sambagawa metamorphic rocks (Aoya and Wallis, 1999).
These findings radically revised the traditional concepts of progres-
sive Sambagawa metamorphism along HP intermediate facies series
below 12 kbar, which represents only a later stage hydration–
recrystallization after exhumation and emplacement at mid-crustal
level. Thus, the high-pressure progressive metamorphism might have
occurred at an earlier stage.
4. New paradigm
The framework of concepts on the dynamics of regional meta-
morphism underwent rapid changes in the recent years and in this
section we summarize some of the crucial aspects.
4.1. Intermediate facies series
One of the aspects to be evaluated is whether or not the kyanite–
sillimanite type characterizes metamorphism in collisional orogenic
belts. Miyashiro (1961) defined three independent metamorphic
facies series and two intermediate groups between the three. The type
localities listed by Miyashiro (1961) are the Franciscan, Sambagawa,
Scottish Highland, New Zealand and the Ryoke belt (Miyashiro, 1973).
Based on the description of regional metamorphic belts, it was
pointed out that the intermediate-pressure type metamorphic belts
characterize the collision type. On the contrary, high-P to high-
pressure-intermediate variety denotes the Pacific-type subduction,
also low-pressure type paired with HP type. Furthermore, the
metamorphic facies series were employed to define a clockwise P–T
path (Fig. 5). The finding of UHP metamorphic rocks from several
regional metamorphic belts proved that Miyashiro's generalizations
do not hold true. Regardless of whether the orogeny is collision-type
or Pacific-type, the regional metamorphic belts display progressive
metamorphism under HP to UHP conditions. Also, the P–T–time path
is not clockwise, but anticlockwise as will be shown in a later section.
4.2. Re-examination of mineral isograd
We will now examine the question whether it is possible to
reconstruct the progressive metamorphism during subduction. Major
minerals of pelitic and psammitic metamorphic rocks in collisional belts
are plagioclase, quartz, biotite, muscovite and amphibole which are
obviously not the products of the prograde high-pressure meta-
morphism during subduction as discussed before. If so, what were the
minerals and their composition, the stable mineral assemblages and
reactions during the progressive stage? Can these be retrieved?
Compared to pelitic and psammitic schists, metabasites are massive
and more competent and therefore, the central portion of a metabasite
body tend to preserve the progressive stage of metamorphism even if
the unit witnessed late-stage hydration–recrystallization. Thus careful
field investigations, mapping and detailed sampling is essential to trace
the signature of progressive metamorphism as illustrated in the case of
Fig. 5. Metamorphic facies series and the representative metamorphic belts (modified
after Miyashiro, 1965). Three metamorphic facies series (high-P/T, medium-P/T and
low-P/T) and two intermediate series were proposed. Medium- and high-P/T series
were regarded to characterize collision- and Pacific-type metamorphism respectively.
Zeo: zeolite facies; PA: Pumpellyite–actinolite facies; PrA: Prehnite–actinolite facies;
GS: Greenschist facies; EA: Epidote–amphibolite facies; AM: Amphibolite facies; BS:
Blueschist facies; EC: Eclogite facies; HGR: High-P granulite facies; LGR: Low-pressure
granulite facies; Px-HR: Pyroxene-hornfels facies.
Kokchetav and Dabie–Sulu. However, the volume of metabasites is small
and generally less than 10% of the total volume of rocks exposed in such
belts. The remaining 90% is composed of para- or orthogneiss. The
matrix minerals of metasedimentary rocks have recrystallized under
mid-crustal level. The rare metabasites, even though occurring as thin
units, locally preserve jadeite + coesite+ garnet, as in the case where
they are enclosed within metacarbonates (Ogasawara et al., 2002). In
some cases, metamorphosed sandstones surrounded by metacarbo-
nates preserve similar UHP assemblages. The stable HP and UHP
minerals are preserved within zircon crystals and include coesite,
diamond, garnet, jadeite and silica-rich phengite. These minerals and
mineral assemblages are different from the matrix-forming minerals in
psammitic and pelitic rocks. In this case, UHP metamorphic belts were
generated by subduction of passive margin sediments down to 100 or
even 200 km depth, dehydrated, and dried at maximum depths.
Thereafter they exhume along the Benioff plane up to mid-crustal
levels of 10 to 15 km depth, where extensive hydration and recrystal-
lization occurred when most of HP–UHP minerals disappeared except
those occurring as inclusions within robust minerals such as garnet and
zircon (Masago et al., 2010-this issue). This critical observation refuted
the generally accepted notion that the composition and assemblages of
matrix minerals are the basic starting point (e.g., Spear, 1993) to
understand regional metamorphism. Some of the fundamental concepts
thus collapsed warranting a new framework of metamorphism.
4.3. Tracing prograde metamorphism from zoned garnet
Garnet in pelitic and psammitic metamorphic rocks is the only major
rock-forming mineral, which may have been stable during prograde
metamorphism. Nevertheless garnet was not in equilibrium with matrix
minerals. Since zoned garnet has been regarded as the ideal mineral to
draw pressure–temperature change through time, garnet solid solution
chemistry has been used most frequently to estimate P–T–t path and a
large number of papers have been published. However, some of the
underlying concepts were erroneous. We cannot use matrix minerals at
all, because of the late-stage extensive hydration–recrystallization. Is it
 S. Maruyama et al. / Gondwana Research 18 (2010) 106–137
possible to reconstruct prograde change of mineral assemblages from
pelitic and psammitic regional metamorphic rocks? There are two ways
to estimate the prograde P–T path from the zoning of garnet.
The inversion using Gibb's method (e.g., Spear et al., 1990;
Okamoto and Toriumi, 2001; Inui and Toriumi, 2002; Okamoto and
Toriumi, 2004) starts from a provided initial condition and traces solid
solution chemistry of garnet and other equilibrium minerals to
reproduce the prograde P–T change. This method is a feasible
approach, although if the prograde garnet and other minerals have
been lost during retrogressive metamorphism this method cannot be
used. On the other hand, Gibb's method does not include enthalpy for
the calculation and uncertainties derived are minimal. Another
method is a forward modeling of the mineral assemblage by extensive
thermodynamic calculation using an internally consistent thermody-
namic database of the minerals such as Holland and Powell (1998).
The calculation predicts equilibrium mineral assemblages in P–T–X
space. Even though the matrix minerals, except garnet, are totally
retrograded, the prograde P–T path can be estimated from mineral
inclusions in garnet grain and composition of garnet near by the
inclusion. If some geothermobarometer could be applied to the
inclusion and garnet, the estimate will become more quantitative
(Omori and Masago, 2004; Masago et al., 2009). However, such a
forward calculation needs enthalpies of phases, which is a parameter
with a large uncertainty. Both the methods have advantages and
disadvantages and therefore if these are used in combination, a
realistic P–T path can be obtained.
4.4. The Sambagawa metamorphism
With increasing metamorphic grade, the minerals in pelitic schist
range from chlorite, garnet and biotite to oligoclase. These minerals
have long been believed to be the products of progressive metamor-
phic reactions. That is, these minerals were formed by the dehydration
reactions by plate subduction with resultant pressure–temperature
increase to reach P–T maximum under which oligoclase was formed at
maximum-P and T (Fig. 6). The estimated P–T conditions were 12 kbar,
600–700 °C. The contradiction then was that oligoclase is not stable
under these conditions.
If all minerals except garnet were formed during hydration
recrystallization at later stage, the progressive metamorphism in the
Sambagawa belt needs to be re-examined, particularly using zoned
garnet and its inclusions at different metamorphic grades. Studies on
these lines by Okamoto and Toriumi (2001, 2004), Inui and Toriumi
(2002), and Aoya et al. (2003) led to the identification anticlockwise
P–T path instead of the previously believed clockwise P–T path for the
Sambagawa belt.
Quartz schist and calcareous schist, which are impervious to fluid
infiltration, tend to preserve the history of progressive metamorphic
minerals. The identification of talc, phengite, paragonite and jadeite
from pelitic schist shows that although these rocks are minor
components in HP–UHP belts, they provide valuable information on
the progressive nature of metamorphism. The studies also indicate
that plagioclase was not stable at the highest pressure and
temperature conditions (Aoki, 2009).
4.5. A re-examination of pressure–temperature path
4.5.1. Drastic shift in pressure estimate and P–T–t path
P–T path of metamorphic belts have been calculated by zoned
garnet in many cases, although in most examples plagioclase is
present as a stable matrix mineral and all the minerals stable below
12 kbar are assumed to be in chemical equilibrium. The results always
show clockwise P–T paths below 12 kbar. On the contrary, the actual
pressures of prograde metamorphism were 3 to 7 times higher (30 to
70 kbar) and the nature of P–T path could also have been different.
Because plagioclase is unstable at the highest grade during regional
113
metamorphism, some of the fundamental assumptions in studies,
which traced clockwise P–T paths, were erroneous. A more realistic
approach is based on mineral inclusions within garnet and zircon,
which show progressive compositional change during progressive
metamorphism. The results indicate a remarkable difference from the
previous approach. Thus, (1) maximum pressure estimates changed
from less than 12 kbar up to 70 kbar; (2) clockwise path in P–T space
turned to anticlockwise; and (3) the P–T time path was identical to the
metamorphic facies series (Masago et al., 2009) as shown in a later
section.
4.5.2. Low-grade metamorphism
The discovery of UHP–HP metamorphism radically revised the
concepts of high-grade metamorphism, although the finding was
restricted to the highest-grade metamorphic rock such as eclogite. A
similar misunderstanding was prevalent in the case of low-grade
metamorphic rocks. Metabasites under low-grade metamorphic condi-
tions of pumpellyite–actinolite facies sometimes show the texture of
glaucophane enclosed by actinolite (Fig. 7) (Maruyama et al., 1986). This
texture indicates early high-pressure conditions followed by tempera-
ture increase at constant pressure to stabilize actinolite because the
reaction between glaucophane and actinolite has a gentle, positive
slope. The idea of a clockwise P–T path was derived from the concept of
underplating where an accretionary complex is transported to about
15 km depth by descending oceanic plate and underplated against the
hanging wall. In this case, the transportation to 15 km depth takes only
0.2 million year if the subduction speed is 10 cm/year. Since this time
span is geologically very short, the resultant scenario is only pressure
increases at constant temperature. However, once accreted to the
hanging wall, then temperature increases at constant depth since the
hanging wall is always of higher temperature being part of the mantle
wedge.
However, the reaction mentioned above is not dehydration, but a
hydration reaction and substantial volume of water is necessary to
generate actinolite through the consumption of glaucophane. Meta-
morphic belts require the supply of large amounts of water from
outside. Therefore, this texture can be explained by pressure decrease
at constant temperature instead of isobaric temperature increase
(Fig. 7). Important process here is the infiltration of water-rich fluids,
similar to the case of eclogite at highest grade. The lower grade units
underlying the regional metamorphic belts such as those of the
Shimanto belt contain large amounts of hydrous minerals, indicating
the infiltration of large volumes of hydrous fluids during the
exhumation from depths to shallow levels. The structurally interme-
diate units of the Sambagawa belt contain eclogite facies rocks that
show the highest P–T grade (Banno et al., 1978; Banno and Sakai,
1989; Ota et al., 2004) (Fig. 8). These are remarkably hydrated and
recrystallized to amphibolite. Below the structural intermediate level,
lower pressure and temperature rocks are present which are more
hydrated and recrystallized than those in the highest-grade meta-
morphic core at the structurally intermediate level (Fig. 8). The source
of fluids would have been the underlying low-grade metamorphic
rocks of the Shimanto belt (Fig. 8).
4.5.3. Re-examination of metamorphic age
If continent–collision-type regional metamorphic belts were
formed by overlapped continental crust, the clockwise P–T–t
exhumation of regional metamorphic belt must have occurred within
an extremely short time span. From the beginning of subduction
through transport to great depths and final exhumation to the shallow
levels must have occurred within a few million years as calculated by
the numerical simulation of overlapping continental crust (see Fig. 3).
On the contrary, zircon U–Pb SHRIMP ages clearly indicate a much
longer time span than that predicted above. For example the SHRIMP
age of zircon, which contains coesite inclusions, shows 48 Ma at 100 km
depth in the Pakistan Himalaya (Kaneko et al., 2003). After return from
114 S. Maruyama et al. / Gondwana Research 18 (2010) 106–137

Fig. 6. (a) Metamorphic zoning on the map view. (b) and (c) Mineral appearance/disappearance diagram for Sambagawa pelitic schist in central Shikoku (Higashino, 1975, 1990;
Enami, 1982), (d) Interpretation for progressive mineral change during subduction. Higher-grade index minerals indicate higher P and T, hence oligoclase must be highest P and T
minerals during subduction. (e) Progressive change of mineral assemblage in pelitic system where oligoclase is not stable at highest grade (Aoki, 2009). Late-stage extensive
hydration caused the birth of Barrovian minerals such as biotite and oligoclase during the return pass to the surface.

this depth to the mid-crustal level (15 to 10 km depth), the extensive
hydration recrystallization occurred at 25 Ma, as plagioclase occurs as
inclusions the zone developed in the zircons at this stage. These results
show that it took about 23 million years for the return journey from UHP
depths to the Barrovian recrystallization depths. Moreover, the drill core
data of Bengal fan deposit in the Indian Ocean (ODP Leg 116) show that
the mountain building in the Himalayas began since 8 Ma (Derry and
France-Lanord, 1996). This is grossly inconsistent with the exhumation
rate of regional metamorphic belts from mantle depths to mid-crustal
level. Therefore, mountain building of the Himalayas seems to be
unrelated to the event of regional metamorphism.
Similarly, the time span for transport from mantle depths of 100 to
200 km to the mid-crustal level took about 30 million years
(Katayama et al., 2001) (Fig. 9). The time span for the subduction
and exhumation is one order of magnitude higher than that envisaged
in the crustal duplication model. Obviously, the field observations
refute the model of continent duplication as discussed earlier in Fig. 3.
In the case of Himalayan metamorphic rocks, most of the radio-
metric ages of K–Ar and Ar–Ar concentrate at about 25 Ma derived
from phengite or muscovite (Searle, and Freyer, 1986; Hubbard and
Harrison, 1989; Copeland et al., 1991; Guillot et al., 1994). According
to the previous speculation, 25 Ma is the timing when the high
temperature regional metamorphic belts pass through the depth
equivalent to 400 °C by the exhumation of deep-seated regional
metamorphic belt to the mid-crustal depth. Therefore, peak meta-
morphism must be much older than 25 Ma. Recent observations
suggest that the concept of closure temperature might be wrong, and
that the K–Ar dates may represent recrystallization ages at the above
depths by extensive fluid infiltration underneath. One way to test the
closure temperature is the spot analysis of white mica formed during
 S. Maruyama et al. / Gondwana Research 18 (2010) 106–137 115

Fig. 7. P–T path estimation from the growth texture of amphibole (Maruyama et al., 1986).
Attached figure shows crossite mantled by actinolite. The texture can be explained by
either isobaric heating (a) or isothermal decompression (b). In either case extensive
hydration is necessary. Crs — crossite; Act — actinolite; Chl — chlorite; Ab — albite.

the progressive stage and which now occurs as mineral inclusion

within garnet or zircon and compare with the spot analysis of white
mica from matrix in the same rocks. In the case of Himalayas, if matrix
white mica yields 25 Ma ages from eclogite facies rocks, then
the white mica inclusions within zircon and garnet must be 48 Ma.
If such is the result, then the popular interpretations based on closure
temperature would be wrong. This idea needs to be tested in future
studies.
In the case of Sambagawa metamorphic belt, a similar problem
exists as that in the Himalayas. The age of prograde eclogite facies
metamorphism is SHRIMP date of 120 Ma (Okamoto et al., 2004). On
the contrary, the ages obtained from white mica are 60 to 80 Ma by K–
Ar and Ar–Ar ages (Itaya and Takasugi, 1988; Takasu and Dallmeyer,
1990). Whether the 60 to 80 Ma age represents the time of hydration
recrystallization at mid-crustal level or the much older white mica
under UHP conditions at 120 Ma was reset at 400 °C due to closure
temperature effects need to be examined by spot analyses of mica
inclusions in garnet.
5. Re-examination of metamorphic facies series
It has been previously believed that one metamorphic rock records
one metamorphic facies. The concept of metamorphic facies series
was formulated by integrating the distribution of low to high-grade
Fig. 9. P–T-time path for the Kokchetav massif (Katayama et al., 2001). Inset figure
shows a zoned zircon with a core which is as old as 1.1 to 1.4 Ga mantled by
metamorphic overgrowth with coesite, diamond and jadeite. The outermost margin
includes quartz, graphite and albite. These three zones were dated by SHRIMP yielding
the ages shown in the figure. Extremely slow average exhumation speed is estimated by
this method. (d) Shown on the bottom of the figure are the P–T conditions when high
temperature solid intrusion of HP–UHP belt occurred generating a contact metamor-
phic aureole (D) at 501 ± 10 Ma with temperatures of 500–650 °C and pressures of 3 to
4 kbar.
facies rocks in regional metamorphic belts (Miyashiro 1961, 1965)
(Fig. 10a).
In general terms, metamorphism begins with increasing pressure
and temperature from the surface condition to P–T maximum at depth
and thereafter the return to surface. Thus, the rocks in regional
metamorphic belts could have been subjected to several metamorphic
grades (Fig. 10b). de Roever and Nijhuis (1963) proposed the pioneering
concept of plurifacial metamorphism based on the observation that one
metamorphic rock preserves several facies under the microscope such

Fig. 8. Hydration effect on the Sambagawa belt from the underlying Shimanto belt. The cross section along the N–S in central Shikoku is schematically shown. Note the underlying
Shimanto belt is very low grade under PA (Pumpellyite–actinolite facies) to PrA (Prehnite–actinolite facies). The structurally intermediate unit of Sambagawa is composed of eclogite
facies rocks formed under 20 kbar and 800 °C (Ota et al., 2004). Peak mineral assemblages and texture are only preserved in the core of large mafic bodies such as the Iratsu eclogite
amphibolite due to extensive fluid infiltration from underneath (Ota et al., 2004).
116 S. Maruyama et al. / Gondwana Research 18 (2010) 106–137
Fig. 10. Definition of the metamorphic facies series by Miyashiro (1965). (a) Miyashiro
defined the metamorphic facies series as the curve that connects the P–T conditions
shown as thick solid lines. (b) An individual rock may have experienced several
metamorphic facies in a single metamorphism. The highest-grade rock in the figure
experienced 5 metamorphic facies as shown as circled numbers 1 to 5. This was earlier
defined as plurifacial metamorphism (de Roever and Nijhuis, 1963). Spear et al. (1990)
redefined the metamorphic facies series as a curve that connects the thermal peak
conditions of the P–T path of individual rock (thin solid line) within a metamorphic belt.
See text for discussion.
as zoned Ca–Na amphibole and Ca–Na pyroxene. The clockwise P–T time
path connecting several metamorphic facies has become a fashion since
1980 from the analysis of regional metamorphic belts over the world.
Since one rock specimen preserves several metamorphic facies in cases
where high-grade metamorphism has operated, Miyashiro's proposal of
metamorphic facies series needed redefinition. Thus to avoid confusion,
the highest T at given P condition for each rock was connected to draw
the P–T path and was defined as the metamorphic facies series (Spear
et al., 1990) (Fig. 10b).
The metamorphic facies series thus defined is again clockwise in P–
T space; with increasing depths the temperature gradient tends to
increase. If we consider the facies series characterized by clockwise P–T
path at depths over 10 kb along consuming plate boundary, the
temperature must increase beyond the solidus of basalt or peridotites,
and slab must be partially melted. Thus, the subducted materials above
oceanic crust together with the sediments on the top will be melted
almost completely. However, observation from natural examples
along the modern subduction zones does not support this, because arc
magmatism behind the trench is not in conformity with the idea of
slab-melting in the case of old slab N25 Ma (Defant and Drummond,
1990; Drummond and Defant, 1990). Seismological observations also
do not indicate any slab-melting at great depths.
The P–T change along the descending slab has been calculated
numerically (for example, Peacock 1996) (Fig. 11a). The results clearly
indicate an anticlockwise trend, instead of a clockwise path. Such a
trend is commonly recognized by geophysicists who consider plate
boundary as a thermal boundary layer and it is well recognized that
geothermal gradient is not constant with increasing depth. For
example, the Kokchetav HP–UHP units show an anticlockwise path
(e.g. Masago et al., 2009) (Fig. 11b) and the slope of the estimated P–T
curve changes at about 13 kbar and 700 °C to a much straight path
with no significant increase in temperature up to 40 kbar. This trend
appears to be common not only in continent collision zones but also in
Pacific-type orogenic belts (Inui and Toriumi, 2002, Aoya et al., 2003;
Okamoto and Toriumi, 2004; Masago et al., 2009).
6. Re-examination of textures
6.1. Metamorphic texture
Regional metamorphic rocks contain a variety of textures related to
prograde metamorphism, recrystallization and deformation. For
example, albite porphyroblasts often include a variety of minerals
defining internal deformation fabric. Elongate minerals such as
amphiboles define mineral lineations. Boudin or pull-apart textures
are also common which indicate extension and breakdown of the
elongated minerals into several fragments, all of which have long been
considered to have been formed during subduction, i.e., progressive
textures. Also common are snowball garnets which entrail the rotation
and growth of inclusion minerals, as well as pressure shadows. Other
microstructures include sheath folds, deformation of radiolarians and
rounded cobbles and crenulation fold within mica-rich domains. These
textures offer information on the direction of stress and its relative
magnitude under the assumption of boundary conditions and initial
state.
In the Sambagawa belt, mineral lineation and crenulation fold axis
of mica, boudin or pull-apart texture of mineral grain or elongated
minerals, and radiolarian deformation, among other features indicate
E–W extension, which is parallel to the orogenic belt (e.g., Toriumi,
1982). This elongation coincides with the direction of metamorphic
fluid flow in which the elongated minerals have grown. These
structures have long been considered to form during progressive
metamorphism through subduction during the Cretaceous time and
relative plate motion. However, all of these mineral textures and
deformation were not formed during progressive recrystallization,
but were generated at a later stage after the emplacement at mid-
crustal level by the addition of fluids underneath (Toriumi, 1982, 1985
and Toriumi and Noda, 1986).
Albite porphyroblast appears at the highest grade in the Sambagawa
belt and the zone in which abundant albite is present has been termed as
the spotted zone. Empirically, this zone corresponds to the biotite zone
at the highest grade. The timing of formation of the porphyroblast in
relation to the progressive or retrogressive metamorphism is important
to discuss the origin of the metamorphic texture. This texture appears
restricted only to the highest-grade portion because its development
has been traditionally linked to progressive metamorphism at the
highest, and therefore, the deepest conditions. However, the albite
porphyroblasts include even retrogressive minerals developed at lower
pressure conditions during hydration (Toriumi, 1975). Therefore, the
timing of the formation of these porphyroblasts must be after the
emplacement of the Sambagawa belt into the mid-crustal level.
Presumably, large amounts of fluids infiltrated into the Sambagawa
belt, which promoted extensive scale of recrystallization at 80 to 70 Ma.
The texture and deformation of the rocks in this belt also indicate lack of
preservation of the progressive stage. An E–W extension strain is
derived from the deformation pattern of gravels in metaconglomerate
schist and the recrystallized age of white mica by K–Ar method. The
conglomerate schist in Oboke area has been considered to be a part of
the Sambagawa metamorphic belt from deformational patterns.
However, LA-ICPMS U–Pb detrital zircon age separated from quartz
porphyry cobble in the conglomerate indicates 92 ± 4 Ma (Aoki et al.,
2007). This age represents the timing of consolidation of the acidic
magma for the protoliths of gravels. Therefore, the sedimentary age of
conglomerate must be younger than 92 Ma. On the other hand, the
Sambagawa progressive metamorphism is dated as 120 Ma (Okamoto
et al., 2004) clearly indicating that Oboke conglomerate is not a part of
 S. Maruyama et al. / Gondwana Research 18 (2010) 106–137 117

Fig. 11. (a) Numerically simulated temperature profile along the Benioff plane of a subducting slab at 10 cm/yr (Peacock, 1996). Geotherm is gentler at shallow level usually less than
50 km and turns to steep at deeper with anticlockwise sense of P–T path. In the case of a young slab, it would be gentler than the older, and where the slab is old, it is steeper. Dotted
line C shows the generally estimated metamorphic P–T path with a clockwise sense. If the clockwise path C is correct, subducted slab must have been melted. In the bottom figure,
line A shows the geothermal gradient within plate shown below. Line B shows the geothermal gradient along Benioff plane, corresponding to those paths on the top figure. Also
shown are wet solidus of MORB and anhydrous solidus of MORB. Numbers of 2, 5, 10, and 50 denote the age of subducted slab. (b) P–T estimate of the Kokchetav massif covering
epidote amphibolite facies grade through amphibolite to high pressure granulite, amphiobole– to zoisite–eclogite and dry eclogite (see Masago et al., 2010-this issue). Metamorphic
facies series shows an anticlockwise path, which is different from the traditional clockwise path. Progressive P–T path follows an isothermal decompression during exhumation.

the Sambagawa metamorphic belt. Hence, the so-called Sambagawa
belt must be divided into two different metamorphic belts. When the
Sambagawa metamorphic rocks were emplaced at mid-crustal level,
above the Shimanto belt, both Sambagawa and Shimanto shared the
same history of recrystallization and deformation with E–W extension.
The microfabrics of the Sambagawa schist are remarkably similar to the
deformation patterns associated with low-grade metamorphism in the
Shimanto belt. This shows that the metamorphic texture of the
Sambagawa schist does not correspond to the progressive stage, but is
related to retrogressive hydration stage. The major texture of the
Sambagawa schist was formed during the retrogressive hydration stage
at 80 to 70 Ma when Sambagawa was juxtaposed to the Shimanto belt.
The metamorphism of basic and pelitic schist in the Shimanto belt
reached up to blueschist facies. The zircon U–Pb chronology yielded
84 Ma for the protolith age, and the abundant grained white mica
yielded K–Ar ages around 60–65 Ma for the metamorphism (Aoki et al.,
2008). It is difficult unequivocally define the textures or fabric formed
during progressive stage of metamorphism, and to differentiate the
earlier stage of exhumation from mantle depths to the mid-crustal level
with the presently available information except in specific cases. One
such example is a relict eclogite formed at the highest grade of the
Sambagawa metamorphism. The elongation axis of the omphacite
and related textures show orogen-vertical N–S slide. The disposition of
the Sambagawa belt shows a structurally intermediate position, vertical
to the strike of the orogenic belt, and pre-dates the development of
the E–W lineation (Toriumi and Kohsaka, 1995; Yamamoto et al.,
2004). There are minor rocks in outcrop scale or microscale, which show
the texture or deformation during the exhumation from the mantle
depths. However, all of those do not preserve the progressive stage of
subduction. The deformation fabric during progressive metamorphism
must be restricted to mineral inclusions within garnet and zircon. The
snowball garnets may provide one of the tools to reconstruct the three-
dimensional movement of the progressive deformation.
7. Discovery of top and bottom boundary of regional
metamorphic belts
One of the fundamental requirements is to define the top and
bottom boundaries of the regional metamorphic belt, although this
has not been resolved in most cases. Metamorphic petrologists have
often neglected the presence of discontinuous boundary by simply
assigning a continuous gradation into the lower grade rocks gradually
without considering a discontinuous gap above and below the
metamorphic units, although structural geologists had predicted the
presence of a clear boundary. On outcrop scale, a sharp boundary
cannot be identified between the two units because of mode of
deformation and metamorphic grade do not show any marked
difference. The maximum thickness of regional metamorphic units
such as the Sambagawa reaches up to 2 km. The pressure gradient
within the belt remained unresolved. Among the models proposed for
the Sambagawa, a structural break is commonly noted along the
boundary of the metamorphic zone such as in the Kanto Mountains
(Hashimoto et al., 1992).
UHP–HP belts often exhibit remarkable pressure difference within
the belts. Detailed studies in the Kokchetav unit covering 250 km×
20 km helped in identifying nearly horizontal top and bottom boundary
(Kaneko et al., 2000). Locally, tectonic windows are present revealing the
underlying unmetamorphosed units because the bottom boundary is
118 S. Maruyama et al. / Gondwana Research 18 (2010) 106–137
nearly flat (Kaneko et al., 2000). And more interestingly, a contact
metamorphic aureole in the unit underlying the Kokchetav UHP–HP unit
was also identified. This contact aureole is divided into four zones and the
metamorphic grade progressively increases towards the boundary.
Metamorphic facies series belong to andalusite–sillimanite type and
contact aureole reaches up to 600 °C at 2 kbar (Terabayashi et al., 2002).
Metamorphic zircon separated from contact zone yielded SHRIMP U–Pb
age of 501± 10 Ma which coincides with the age of the extensive
hydration and recrystallization stage within the HP–UHP units
(Katayama et al., 2001). This observation indicates that the contact
metamorphism was a result of the emplacement of the HP–UHP units
into upper crustal level at 6 km depth. Thus, a new concept of the
exhumation of diamond-grade metamorphic rocks and their high
temperature solid intrusion emerged, similar to magma intrusion. This
idea clearly demonstrated that a radical change from the traditional
concept of buoyancy-driven upward exhumation and erosion of regional
metamorphic belts is undoubtedly wrong.
A suite of 7000 samples were collected from the Kokchetav from
which 350 were analyzed by electron microprobe and zircons
separation performed from 250 samples to evaluate the detailed P–T
structure. The study yields maximum pressures of 60–70 kbar at 900–
1000 °C (see a summary by Maruyama et al., 2002). Metamorphic
units within the 2 km thick belt were sub-divided into five mineral
zones with the structurally intermediate zone showing the highest
grade. The metamorphic grade decreases both upward and downward
with a pronounced pressure gradient with only 5–6 kbar at the
boundaries. However, the boundaries of mineral zones are continuous
without any sharp structural breaks, indicating ductile deformation to
emplace those mineral zones upwards after the thermal peak. Overall
thermobaric structures show symmetric pattern with an axis at the
structural intermediate. However, the thickness of each mineral zone
is not symmetric above and below. The deformation structure
indicates that the structurally intermediate zone moved from south
to north (Kaneko et al., 2000; Fig. 12c).
In the case of Pacific-type metamorphic belts such as the
Sambagawa, the method to define top and bottom boundaries had
already been proposed by Isozaki and Itaya (1990). The precise ages
were measured from radiolarian microfossils and K–Ar dating of fine-
grained white mica separated from low-grade metamorphic rocks
along the outcrop scale. Later, Nishimura (1990) used the crystalli-
zation index of carbonaceous material in the outcrop scale to precisely
fix the boundary in meter scale. The importance of defining top and
bottom boundaries had been pointed out in earlier studies with the
boundary defined either top or bottom, or both for forty examples of
regional metamorphic belts from different regions of the world
(Maruyama et al., 1996).
8. Chaotic state arising from the concept of nappe tectonics
The Penninic nappe of the Alpine metamorphic belt is the best
example where the top and bottom boundaries are well defined with
the intermediate zone enclosed within overlying and underlying
unmetamorphosed units (Fig. 12a). However, the origin of UHP–HP
unit has not been well understood largely due to the confusion arising
from the concept of nappe tectonics (Fig. 13). In the following section
we briefly address this problem.
In this metamorphic belt, there are three tectonic slices demarcated
by horizontal faults (Coward and Dietrich, 1989; Maruyama et al., 1996).
The structurally lowest unit, the Helvetic nappe which constitutes the
basement of Europe has been classified as an allochthon that has never
moved after its formation. The overlying unit (Penninic nappe UHP–HP
unit), which was metamorphosed in the Eocene to Miocene, moved
from south to north and was thrust over the allochthon. Thereafter, the
topmost unit, the Austro-Alpine unit or nappe which is considered as a
basement of Africa, was again thrust over on the top. Although this has
been the prevailing view, it is more reasonable to consider that the
structurally intermediate unit, the Penninic nappe, was tectonically
inserted into the overlying and underlying units because this structural
intermediate unit is the only unit that was subjected to the Eocene–
Miocene HP–UHP conditions of metamorphism. In the prevailing
concept, the reconstructed three units are assumed to have possessed
a horizontal relationship as shown in Fig. 13. However, a prominent gap
is evident between units H and P in Fig. 13, a marked discontinuity in
terms of lithology, stratigraphy and geochronology. These three are not
continuous each other and lithostratigraphically different before nape-
stacking (Fig. 13).
Underneath the Kokchetav HP–UHP unit, a well-developed contact
metamorphic aureole has been defined with andalusite–sillimanite
type facies series (Terabayashi et al., 2002), clearly demonstrating
that the exhumation of regional metamorphic belts was not buoyant
uplift as proposed by England and Thompson (1984) but a high
temperature intrusion into shallow crustal level as discussed in the
previous section. Moreover, the emplacement depths were shallower
than 12 km (4 kbar) and the highest temperature recorded from the
margin of metamorphic belts is 600–650 °C. This indicates that the
innermost domain of the metamorphic belts must have witnessed
much higher temperatures, albeit lower than 1000 °C, when these
rocks were at nearly 200 km depth. Due to this reason, when the
metamorphic belt was emplaced, large volume of fluids must have
infiltrated with the local development of migmatite.
From the structural analysis of the interior of the Kokchetav
metamorphic belt, the root zone was estimated to the south, with a
northward movement as a sub-horizontal tectonic slice during exhu-
mation. The average exhumation speed was extremely slow, 5 mm/year,
as estimated by Katayama et al. (2001). There was no mountain building
on the surface until the metamorphic unit was emplaced at depths
shallower than 12 km. The major period of formation of sedimentary
basin was after the doming stage, and developed by high angle normal
faults after extensive hydration, equivalent to the post-orogenic
mountain building stage. Post-collision orogenic granites intruded into
the metamorphic belt (Katayama et al., 2001). Traditionally, the main
stage of orogeny was regarded as the exhumation or uplifting of regional
metamorphic belt, which was also regarded to be the major mountain
building stage. However, we consider that this concept is incorrect, as
exhumation of regional metamorphic belt to the mid-crustal level occurs
much earlier and without mountain building. The mountain building
stage is a post metamorphic event through doming as first proposed
Maruyama (1990) and Maruyama et al. (1996) based on wedge
extrusion model. A similar scenario was also recently proposed by
Santosh et al. (2009a) to explain the metamorphic belts in the Cambrian
collisional orogen of Gondwana in southern India.
9. A new model of exhumation
9.1. “Intrusion” of regional metamorphic belts
The model proposed by England and Thompson (1984) marks the
pioneering tectonic synthesis to explain the formation of continent
collisional type orogenic belts and their exhumation employing
metamorphic petrology as a powerful tool. If the double crustal model
they envisaged is valid, the structural bottom of the regional meta-
morphic belts must continue to higher-grade metamorphic rocks up to
the Moho depths, and underlain by mantle peridotites. On the contrary,
the units underlying the regional metamorphic belts are composed of
weakly metamorphosed or unmetamorphosed rocks. Moreover, the
thermobaric structure of the interior of the regional metamorphic belts
does not support the model, which predicts unidirectional continuous
pressure temperature increase to the bottom. As mentioned in previous
sections, the well-examined metamorphic belts such as Kokchetav
always show structural intermediate position for the highest-grade
units as well as the Himalaya and Alps. The three-dimensional structure
indicates marked thermal and baric gradients within the thin (2–3 km)
 S. Maruyama et al. / Gondwana Research 18 (2010) 106–137 119

Fig. 12. Cross section of representative orogenic belts. (a) Alps (Maruyama et al., 1996); (b) Himalayas (Kaneko, 1997); (c) Kokchetav (Kaneko et al., 2000); (d) Sanbagawa (Masago
et al., 2004). Note the presence of sandwiched structure of all regional metamorphic belts enveloped by low-grade or weakly metamorphosed units above and below. Also note the
large vertical exaggeration to show the internal structure of HP–UHP belts. If there is not vertical exaggeration, the UHP–HP belt will appear as an extremely thin line with aspect
ratio of 1:100.

high-grade unit without any fault boundaries inside, suggesting that morphosed or unmetamorphosed geological units. The average exhu-
ductile deformation prevailed after the peak metamorphic conditions mation speed was extremely slow from mantle depths of 200 to 100 km
and the high-grade metamorphic unit ‘intruded’ into the weakly meta- to the mid-crustal levels of 10 to 15 km, at about 4 mm/year (Katayama
120 S. Maruyama et al. / Gondwana Research 18 (2010) 106–137

Fig. 13. Schematic diagram to show nappe tectonics in the Alpine orogeny. The
basement allochthon by H (Helvetic nappe) was overthrust by P (Penninic nappe)
which in turn is overthrust by A (Austro-Alpine unit).
et al., 2001). The present day ongoing uplift rate measured in Himalayas,
Taiwan and outer Indonesian non-volcanic arc shows only a few cm/
year. The exhumation rate of HP–UHP units up to the mid-crustal depth
is one order of magnitude slower.
9.2. Mountain building
The mountain building stage is the second step triggered by
doming which occurred after the emplacement of regional metamor-
phic belts into the mid-crustal level and the development of high
angle normal faults surrounding the dome generating large sedimen-
tary basins. The best-documented example is the Himalayan moun-
tain building caused by Indian collision against Eurasia (Fig. 14). The
initiation of collision of India against Eurasia started at 50 Ma and UHP
metamorphism occurred at 48 Ma (Kaneko et al., 2003). The UHP–HP
unit was emplaced from mantle depth to the mid-crustal level at
25 Ma but the mountain building stage has not yet begun. At 8 Ma, the
Himalayan metamorphic belt uplifted by doming and extensive
development of secondary normal faults together with corresponding
formation of Indus–Bengal submarine fan deposit (Fig. 14). Thus, the
formation of large folded mountain belts occurs as the final stage of
exhumation and is unrelated to the main stage of exhumation of the
metamorphic belts from mantle depths to the mid-crustal level. The
Himalayan mountain belt was reactivated since the last 1 million year
possibly in response to the southward jump of plate boundary and
buoyant continental crust was underplated beneath the higher
Himalayas to push up the Himalayan mountain chain (Sakai, 2002).
9.3. Dynamics of extrusion
The aspect ratio of regional metamorphic belts shows ca. 1:100 in the
case of the Himalayan metamorphic belt, the thickness in only a few km
whereas the belt continues over 1000s of km along the strike with 200–
300 km width. Thus, regional metamorphic belts are thin and platy
which are cut by paired faults: normal fault on the top and reverse fault
on the bottom, and the belt is extruded above the Benioff thrust on the
consuming plate boundary. The exhumation velocity is one order of
magnitude smaller than the plate movement, which has been proposed
by Maruyama (1990) and Maruyama et al. (1994, 1996). These features
can be attributed to the following three processes. (1) Subduction angle
changes from deep to shallow through time. The subducted wedge-
shaped continental material at depths was extruded by shallowing of
the subduction angle. (2) The rheology shows marked contrast in the

Fig. 14. (a) Map view of Indian collision and formation of Indus and Bengal fans, which were derived from the mountain building associated with Himalayan orogeny. Total volume of
both fans, which have maximum thickness about 5000 m, is similar to the mountain belts in the Himalayas above sea level. (b) Modal change of clay minerals and Sr-isotope values
through time since 20 Ma for the drill core sediments at ODP site 717–719 shown on (a) (Derry and France-Lanord, 1996). The figure clearly shows that 8 Ma is the turning point for
the rapid increase of detrital material in the fan, indicating uplift of the Himalayan mountain belt. (c) Elevation of Himalayan mountain belt as a function of time back to 50 Ma. HP to
UHP metamorphism started ca. 50 Ma followed by retrogressive hydration around 25 Ma. Extensive mountain building started around 8 Ma and gradually dropped with recent
reactivation probably 1 Ma ago.
 S. Maruyama et al. / Gondwana Research 18 (2010) 106–137
units above and below the regional metamorphic belts. The regional
metamorphic belt is composed of quartzofeldspathic material which
turns ductile at temperatures above 350 °C, whereas the overlying
wedge mantle is composed dominantly of olivine and the underlying
unit is eclogitic oceanic crust and peridotites which behave as brittle
below 1000 °C. (3) Rheological change during exhumation of quartzo-
feldspathic regional metamorphic belts. The regional metamorphic belt
moves along the Benioff thrust up to mid-crustal level and becomes
stagnant at depths of 10 to 15 km because the quartzofeldspathic
materials transform from ductile to brittle by the temperature decrease
at this stage, becoming harder. The 350 °C temperature divide corre-
sponds to the brittle–ductile transition for the quartzofeldspathic
material at mid-crustal depths of 10 to 15 km. Thus, regional meta-
morphic belts, which behave ductile fluid, are inserted between the
overlying rigid mantle wedge and the underlying rigid slab. When the
subduction angle turns to shallower, then the stress field changes to
trigger the wedge to extrude into mid-crustal level. This is the most
essential dynamic process controlling the exhumation of regional meta-
morphic belts.
9.4. Regional metamorphic belts brought up by buoyancy uplift?
The density of quartzofeldspathic rocks is about 2.8 g/cc which is
lower than that of peridotites (3.2 to 3.3 g/cc for depths up to 50 to
60 km at which stage amphibolite transforms to eclogite with a
density 3.3 to 3.4 g/cc) (Komiya et al., 2002; 2004). These values
continue to a depth of 250 km with a maximum of 5% variation. Below
250 km depth, K-hollandite (density 4.7 g/cc) and stishovite (density
4.3 g/cc) become stable. Above 90 kbar, the density of a quartzofelds-
pathic rock is larger than the mantle material (Irifune et al., 1994) and
therefore buoyancy does not aid in the exhumation of regional
metamorphic belts from depth. On the other hand, it turns to become
a strong slab-pull force.
Between 0 and 70 kbar, a quartzofeldspathic rock is buoyant than
mantle peridotites or eclogites. However, the small density difference
would not help the uplift of regional metamorphic belts as a plume
within overlying mantle wedge (Fig. 15). More difficulties for the
buoyancy uplift mechanism include the size of regional metamorphic
belts and three-dimensional shape which is extremely different from
the mushroom shape predicted in buoyancy-driven models. Moreover,
as discussed in a previous section, the aspect ratio of the metamorphic
belt is around 1:100, and is quite different from the plume shape, and
platy. If size is too small, even though density difference is large enough,
buoyancy uplift is not effective. Thickness of about 1 to 3 km is
extremely small compared to the whole crust in space. Simple
calculation never supports that it can penetrate into mantle wedge
below 1000 °C. Mode of occurrence of regional metamorphic belts in the
field clearly refutes the idea of plume because of the shape.
9.5. The wedge extrusion model
The wedge extrusion model proposes a wedge-shaped viscous
fluid (regional metamorphic belt), sandwiched by the underlying slab
and overlying mantle wedge on both sides, that extrudes through the
shallowing of the subduction angle (Maruyama et al., 1996). The
wedge region A or B on the corner of the triangle (Fig. 15) is assumed
to be filled by a non-compressive fluid. The rigid wall OA moves
around the center of point O and extrude the fluid AOB. With regard to
boundary conditions, OA and OB behave as either as a free slip or
frictional boundary surface. In a typical case of angle AOB shown in
Fig. 15, the initial conditions are alpha equals 30°, beta equals 5°, and
depth of the wedge is 200 km. If the angle of the wedge beta turns to
0.5°, it would lead to extrusion of material from 60 km depth to the
surface either along a free slip boundary or frictional boundary.
To move material from a depth of 120 km to the surface, around 80%
deformation is required at the wedge triangular region. The average
121
exhumation speed would depend on the deformation speed in the
wedge region. Deformation speed within the wedge is assumed to be
constant. Exhumation speed must be faster at the deeper regions and
tends to be slower near the surface. In the above example, the
exhumation speed at 120 km depth reduces to one third near the
surface and the material during the exhumation is stretched five times
(free slip) to 20 times (frictional slip) along the exhumation direction. In
the laboratory experimental studies performed by Chemenda et al.
(2000) to understand the exhumation mechanism of Himalayan
regional metamorphic belts, paired faults were clearly reproduced and
the model of wedge extrusion well illustrated.
9.6. Second stage uplift and mountain building
Wedge extrusion mechanism can exhume the regional metamorphic
belts along Benioff thrust from mantle depths to the mid-crustal level.
However, another mechanism is necessary from there to move the
material to the surface. This is the second stage process of doming and
mountain building by domal uplift of the unit, which is sandwiched as
the core of the regional metamorphic belt. The typical example is the
Himalayan mountain building, which started since 8 Ma triggered by
the southward jump of plate boundary. Along the new plate boundary,
continental crust began to subduct underneath the Himalayas and
jacked up part of higher Himalayas (Takada and Matsuura, 2002)
(Fig. 16).
9.7. Modern analogue of regional metamorphic belts and exhumation
mechanism
It is interesting to examine why regional metamorphic belts were
generated episodically and exhumed to the surface to through time.
During the last 500 million years along the circum Pacific region such
as Japan and California, glaucophane-bearing regional metamorphic
belts were formed and exhumed to the surface every 100 My on an
average (Maruyama et al., 1996). New orogenic belts were formed
underneath and/or oceanward through time episodically. In the case
of continent collision-type regional metamorphic belts, although the
occurrence and timing vary among different cases, our synthesis
shows that about 30 collision-type orogenic belts were formed on the
Phanerozoic earth by continent collision (Fig. 4).
In the case of continent collision, the formation and exhumation of
regional metamorphic belts appear to be related to the size of
continent. For example, the size of continents to form UHP units
shows a wide range from India, North China, and Western Europe to
small continents such as Madagascar and Java Island in Indonesia
(Liou et al., 2000, 2002; Parkinson et al., 2002). In the case of the
continents smaller than the size of Madagascar or arc, we do not
normally see any example of UHP metamorphic belts. We examine
this aspect in more detail below.
Whether the subducted continental crust is accreted to the
hanging wall without subduction into deep mantle, or returned
back to the surface depends on a number of factors including size
(buoyancy) of the continent and the degree of coupling between the
subducting slab and the overlying continental crust. The descending
Pacific plate immediately before the trench outer wall of the Japan
Trench in NE Japan is bent to generate horst and graben structures.
The grabens have a maximum depth of 500 m and are a few km wide,
which are then filled by quartzofeldspathic trench turbidites. These
sediments are being subducted into the deep mantle together with
Pacific MORB crust (Miura et al., 2003). Buoyancy derived from graben
filled sediments would not be effective because of the relatively small
size or volume. However, in the case of intraoceanic arc subduction,
such as the Kyushu–Palau paleo-arc and Amami plateau (paleo-arc)
with thickness less than 20 km, subduction proceeds into deep mantle
without any accretion (Kodaira et al., 2000; Yamamoto et al., 2009). In
the case of Izu Mariana arc with a thickness of continental crust of
122 S. Maruyama et al. / Gondwana Research 18 (2010) 106–137

Fig. 15. Dynamic process of exhumation of regional metamorphic belt. (a) Buoyancy-driven plume model. It seems to be unrealistic that plume-like metamorphic unit penetrates the
rigid mantle wedge and reach finally to the surface. (b) Wedge extrusion model driven by narrowing of the wedge angle between the subducting slab and mantle wedge. (c) Wedge
extrusion model proposed by Maruyama (1990) and Maruyama et al. (1996) that a ductile metamorphic unit intrudes into shallow-level brittle units through two-steps.

about 30 km, at least some of the intraoceanic arc tends to be accreted
which indicates adequate buoyancy to overcome the coupling force
exerted by descending slab. Note that buoyancy depends on the
volume, hence if the collision of arc is not vertical or tangential to the
Fig. 16. Jack-up model with ramping of the subducted continental crust, which explains
the second stage uplift of the Himalayan orogen (Takada and Matsuura, 2002). HFT —
Himalayan Frontal Thrust, MBT — Main Boundary Thrust; MCT — Main Central Thrust.
Note the large vertical vector around MCT for the uplift of MCT by the ramping of
buoyant continental crust underneath, shown by a broken line.
trench, but parallel to the trench, even 20 km thick arc crust can be
accreted to the hanging wall, a process that was presumably common
in the Archean.
We now consider the stress system that promotes the exhumation
of UHP–HP metamorphic belts using modern analogues. Regions of
our interest are shown in Fig. 17 which is a world map to show the
distribution of plate boundary. The ongoing exhumation area of
regional metamorphic belt must be along the active consuming plate
boundary. In the case of collision-type regional metamorphic belts,
the best modern analogue is the non-volcanic outer arc in Timor–
Tanimbar region of Indonesia (Fig. 18). Along the non-volcanic arc
from Timor through Tanimbar to Salem, a U-shaped non-volcanic
outer arc continues over 2000 km. Miocene glaucophane-bearing
regional metamorphic belts are exposed in southwestern part of this
region for about 700 km long and in the northwestern part for over
another 600 km, although not in the central part (Ishikawa et al.,
2007; Kaneko et al., 2007). To the west of the N–S trending non-
volcanic arc, a forearc basin (Weber Deep) is developed with a depth
of up to 7000 m. The region itself is underlain by strong extensional
state (Charlton et al., 1991). On the contrary, the domains to the north
and south are underlain by strong N–S compressional state (Fig. 18).
The metamorphic belts towards the SW part, particularly the
southwestern end, correspond to the late stage of collision orogeny
 S. Maruyama et al. / Gondwana Research 18 (2010) 106–137
Fig. 17. World map showing ongoing orogeny along the active consuming plate boundaries of the Earth. Six examples are marked, the details of which are explained in later figures.
and the island itself is uplifted as a dome showing the development of
a number of normal faults on the island to uplift Quaternary reef
limestone above 1300 m. The top of the folded mountain in the Timor
reaches 2960 m and shows the highest elevation speed over the world,
0.4 to 0.6 cm/year for the last 0.5 million years on an average. To the east
of the outer arc, the elevation rate tends to be small. In the case of
Laibobar Island, 700 km away from Timor, the top boundary of
glaucophane-bearing metamorphic belt is exposed above the sea level
(which is a normal fault) and the Quaternary reef has not been uplifted
for the last 1 million year. The difference in terms of uplift clearly shows
the time difference in the stage of orogenic evolution, and confirms that
domal uplift has not been initiated to the east. On Laibobar Island, minor
normal faults were identified which indicate that the domal stage may
have started very recently. However, the Timor Island has already been
uplifted vertically over 1300 m. Under the Tanimbar Island, which is the
easternmost portion of the non-volcanic arc, domal uplift has not yet
begun and the leading edge of the subducted Australian continental
plate is being broken off from the foregoing descending oceanic
lithosphere (Osada and Abe, 1981) (Fig. 18b). The boundary of break-
off between continental lithosphere and oceanic lithosphere is
characterized by high seismicity, vertical to the seismicity in the Benioff
plane (Osada and Abe, 1981). The seismological characteristics suggest
slab break-off and that the buoyant continental lithosphere cannot
subduct deeper than the present, a constraint posed by the more dense
older oceanic lithosphere which exerted a higher slab-pull force leading
to the slab break-off. To the west under the Timor Island, the continental
lithosphere is already released from oceanic slab and hence the free
buoyant subducted continental slab promotes exhumation of regional
metamorphic belts as shown in Fig. 18.
Thus, the process of exhumation is related to slab break-off and
resultant change in the subduction angle from deep to shallow
thereby promoting the subducted wedge to remove to arc–trench gap
(Fig. 18b) (Maruyama et al., 1996). Tanimbar illustrates the stage just
after slab break-off and complete release of slab. On the other hand,
the case of Timor shows a further advanced stage of second domal
uplift. On the contrary, 100 km north of Timor, the volcanic arc has
already shut down its magmatic factory to the north of volcanic arc,
and a south dipping back thrust is developed (Hamilton, 1979; Harris,
2006; Nugroho et al., 2009). The active back thrust disappears to the
northeastern end of Timor indicating that the entire region from the
123
north of the volcanic arc to the trench is underlain by the strong N–S
compressional state (Fig. 18).
On the other hand, to the west of Timor, the Indo-Australian plate
is completely separated from the descending oceanic slab, which is
sinking down into deep mantle. The subduction angle of the
Australian continental lithosphere has turned shallower thereby
pushing up the entire Timor Island. The continued uplift of Timor
Island starting from 0.5 Ma has resulted in the present day peak of the
mountains reaching over 2960 m.
We now consider ongoing example from the Pacific-type orogenic
belts. Whether continent collision-type or Pacific-type regional
metamorphic belts fundamentally record the same structural pattern;
that is, a sandwich structure and two-step exhumation process
followed by extensive mountain building at the latest stage. This
suggests that a similar mechanism operates to exhume the regional
metamorphic belts regardless of their category as collision or Pacific-
type. As mentioned in an earlier section, the fundamental control is
exerted by the change in subduction angle to shallow values. In the
case of Pacific-type, the shallowing subduction angle and the
approach of mid-oceanic ridge to the trench are well-studied. It is
considered that in the circum Pacific orogenic belts, mid-oceanic ridge
subduction has occurred once every one hundred million years on an
average (Engebretson et al., 1985).
Some of the youngest Pacific-type orogenic belts occur in the
Olympic Peninsula, southwest of Seattle near Vancouver (Fig. 19a)
(Maruyama et al., 1996). This is the region of Quaternary uplift cut to
the east by active normal fault, and to the west by active reverse fault.
These two faults seem to be paired and sandwich the thin ‘platy’
geologic unit 20 km × 100 km in space. The core of this wedge-shaped
unit contains low-grade lawsonite-bearing schists formed at about
11 km depth (Brandon and Calderwood, 1990). The wedge extrusion
here started in the Miocene to expose the deep-seated portion of an
accretionary complex. Apatite fission track age shows 7 to 11 Ma
(Brandon et al., 1988; Brandon and Calderwood, 1990).
The Juan de Fuca plate subducting underneath the Mt. Olympus is
very young, ca. 5 Ma (Engebretson et al., 1985). To the west, the N–S
trending active Juan de Fuca ridge is present which moves eastward at
the rate of 3 cm/year and which will finally subduct after few million
years. Considering the last 20 million year movement of the mid-
oceanic ridge, the age of subducting slab underneath is gradually
124 S. Maruyama et al. / Gondwana Research 18 (2010) 106–137

Fig. 18. Ongoing exhumation of continent collision type metamorphic belt in Timor–Tanimbar region of Indonesia (partly modified from Maruyama et al., 1996). (a) An outline of
tectonic environment of the Indonesian region. Note the contrasting stress field between the west (compressional) and the east (extensional). (b) Cross section along A–B in the
extensional environment. Forearc region is underlain by the compressional stress field whereas the back arc side is dominated by extension to form the 7000 m deep Weber Basin.
Beneath the arc, slab break-off is ongoing. (c) Western side N–S cross section of the Timor Island. Note the location shown on (a). The entire region is underlain by strong N–S
compressional stress field and the back thrust is developed on the back arc side. Oceanic slab has been disconnected with the resultant buoyancy of continental lithosphere. The
regional metamorphic belt exposed on the surface is in the second stage of exhumation by doming associated with a number of high angle normal faults.

younging through time. The subducted oceanic slab bends rather
suddenly at 40 km depth of the Benioff plane, which would
considerably promote the wedge to extrude upward as shown in a
present day cross section in Fig. 19.
History of plate subduction in this region supports an approaching
ridge through time to remove the wedge to the surface. In the case of
the well-studied Pacific-type blueschist belts of Sambagawa belt in
Japan, the emplacement of deep-seated eclogite blueschist belt to the
mid-crustal level occurred at 70 to 80 Ma which is almost identical to
the ridge subduction of the Kula-Pacific. The transport to the surface
occurred afterwards, at about 50 Ma. The example of the Sambagawa
indicates that the transport to shallow surface level was after the
event of ridge subduction. The Juan de Fuca plate has only a 20 to
30 km thick lithosphere because of the very young age. Therefore at
depths of 25 to 50 km, a number of small earthquakes occur within
the slab mantle. These earthquakes are derived by dehydration
reaction, similar to the well-studied case in Japan (Hasegawa et al.,
2009; Maruyama et al., 2009; Omori et al., 2009). The regional
metamorphic belts emplaced at mid-crustal level under the forearc
region could have been infiltrated by abundant dehydrated fluid —
both deep subducted sediments and from the downgoing slab.
We now examine the case of SW Japan. The age of the Philippine
Sea Plate subducting underneath SW Japan arc is highly variable
depending on the place (Fig. 20). For example, under Kyushu, a very
old portion of the oceanic plate (older than 100 Ma) together with 4
remnant island arcs are being subducted (Seno and Maruyama, 1984;
Maruyama et al., 2009). On the other hand, in the central Honshu and
Kanto regions, the oceanic lithospheric is older than 48 Ma as deduced
from the age of boninite in the Ogasawara for arc (Seno and
Maruyama, 1984). The Philippine Sea plate subducts at the interme-
diate region from Kanto to Kyushu and the Shikoku Palece–Vera Basin
has an age of 8 to 30 Ma. The youngest part is the region marked by
Kinan Sea Mount chain, which is being subducted just under the Kii
Peninsula. Kii Peninsula is the region where most remarkable uplift is
ongoing since the Quaternary. Therefore, the central part of the Kii
Peninsula has been severely eroded exposing the structural bottom
under the Sambagawa belt. Thus, the Shimanto belt is in direct contact
with the Median Tectonic Line to the north, with the Sambagawa belt
missing in the Central Kii Peninsula. An evaluation of the uplift rate in
SW Japan shows that the eastern and western parts were less eroded
and the central part of the Kii has been most uplifted. Therefore,
apparently, the age of subducting plate is critical; if it is young, the
hanging wall seems to be selectively uplifted and eroded.
In the case of NE Japan, the Cretaceous Pacific plate is being
subducted under the arc. The E–W cross section of NE Japan arc at
Sendai brings out subducted sediments from high-resolution of
seismic tomography made by Hasegawa et al. (2009). The subducted
sediments are present below the Benioff plane at 40–80 km depth,
 S. Maruyama et al. / Gondwana Research 18 (2010) 106–137 125

Fig. 19. Ongoing Pacific-type orogeny in the Cascade region in the western North America (partly modified by Brandon and Calderwood, 1990). (a) Tectonic environment of the
Cascade region showing the distribution of subduction zones and subducting young Juan de Fuca plate. Note the location of the youngest lawsonite-bearing schist at Mt. Olympus. (b)
E–W cross section showing the uplift of Mt. Olympus which is cut on the top by normal fault and on the bottom by reverse fault. Extensive hydration could be present underneath
shown by the nest of frequent seismicity from the underlying Juan de Fuca plate.

together with hanging wall of already-accreted sediments. The
hanging wall of metamorphosed unit under BS–EC conditions may
be promoted to uplift along the Benioff plane carrying fragments of
mantle wedge by anticlockwise convection in the wedge corner
triangle (Fig. 21). If this process is ongoing, the exhumation of UHP–
HP belt may occur in the case of old-slab subduction.
In the area where younger plates are being subducted in SW Japan,
local differences of uplift are also observed. For example, along the
strike of orogenic belts, topographic depression appears periodically
from east to the west. The Ise Bay, Kii Strait and Bungo Strait were
tectonically subsided whereas the intermediate region in Kii Penin-
sula and Shikoku were elevated.
Recently, microearthquakes termed as tremors have been precisely
recorded by the recently established seismic network in Japan. This has
helped to carefully monitor the fluid derived from Moho depths and to
trace the ‘day-to-day’ movement of fluids (Obara, 2002; 2009). The
results show two regions where no tremors were observed beneath
the Kii Strait and the Ise Bay (Fig. 22a). In spite of the fact that
subduction-related dehydration occurs commonly underneath shown
by slab-seismicity, the fluid has not come out above the Moho depth.
The following is a speculation to explain this enigma. Above the Benioff
plane in these two regions, high-pressure–low-temperature regional
metamorphic belts are being extruded and emplaced at mid-crustal
level. These units absorb the dehydrated fluid released from
underneath to produce hydrous minerals. On the contrary, in the
intermediate regions such as Kii Peninsula and the central part of
Shikoku, hydration completed to extract excess fluids above the depth,
with the second stage of doming to form high angle secondary normal
faults. In future, the youngest blueschist belt may appear in both Kii
and Shikoku if this interpretation is correct. We compare two cross
sections across eastern Shikoku with no tremors, and central Kii
Peninsula with frequent tremors (Fig. 22b). Along the eastern Shikoku
section, a topographic anomaly is seen in the forearc called Tosabae.
The origin of this topographic anomaly (high) close to the sea level, has
been speculated to be due to the presence of subducted seamount
underneath (Kodaira et al., 2000). An alternate interpretation is that
the subducted accretionary complex was tectonically extruded after
blueschist facies metamorphism up to mid-crustal level to push up the
foregoing portion, which is now close to the sea level (Fig. 22). The Kii
Peninsula and Central Shikoku are now underlain by second stage of
doming as supported by the tectonic uplift above 350 m for the last
0.17 Ma at Muroto cape (Yoshikawa et al., 1964). Average uplift rate is
2 mm/year. The sharp V-shaped notch at the south of Muroto
Peninsula probably was formed by high angle normal fault along the
126 S. Maruyama et al. / Gondwana Research 18 (2010) 106–137

Fig. 20. (a) Index map showing the age variation of Philippine Sea plate. Western Philippine Sea on the north is as old as 100–40 Ma. The eastern margin, which subducts under the
Kanto region, is older than 48 Ma. The central part of Philippine Sea that subducts underneath SW Japan is as young as 30–17 Ma. (b) Cross section along A–A’ (modified after Park
et al., 2002). Regional metamorphic belt seems to be exhumed along the splay faults, which may explain the recent remarkable uplift in the Kii Peninsula. Also shown is the top
boundary of subducting Philippine Sea plate. The presence of cold seep indicates low-temperature springs enriched in nutrients. Cold seep is the surface expression of splay fault, and
the abundant nutrients feed biological communities.
 S. Maruyama et al. / Gondwana Research 18 (2010) 106–137 127

Fig. 21. A schematic illustration of 3 domains of metamorphic–metasomatic factory (MMF), subduction zone magma factory (SZMF) and big mantle wedge (BMW) under NE Japan
across Sendai (Maruyama et al., 2009, based on seismic tomography work by Hasegawa et al., 2009). The double seismic planes (hatched) cause a large pulse of dehydrated fluid from
the descending Pacific-slab leading to viscosity contrast among MMF, SZMF and BMW. Counter-flow convection in the mantle wedge begins immediately above 200 km depth and
moves toward a volcanic front obliquely to release an arc magma under the volcanic front. The boundary between MMF and SZMF corresponds to the culmination point of frequent
seismicity at 60 km depth. The enlarged figure shows a contrasting convection flow for MMF and SZMF, the former promoting exhumation of subducted sediments as shown by
yellow color including fragments of wedge mantle peridotites (Alpine peridotites).

coastal lines, supporting the idea of domal uplift. Such domal uplift cut
by high angle normal faults suggests the underplating of a buoyant
mass of accretionary complex below to push up the above. The
buoyant mass could be younger spreading ridge, or rising large volume
of quartzofeldspathic accretionary complex. A similar process seems to
be ongoing under the Kii Peninsula. Thus, SW Japan might expose the
youngest blueschist belt in future.
10. Relationship to orogeny
Regional metamorphic belts occupy the orogenic core and are
hence the most important element of an orogen. The process to
produce regional metamorphic belts is complex including generation
of the metamorphic belt, subsequent exhumation, emplacement at
mid-crustal levels, and finally mountain building which exposes the
regional metamorphic units to the surface. Large-scale orogenic belts
regionally affect the already existing continental crust causing
widespread sedimentation in the surrounding regions, accompanied
by arc magmatism to increase the volume of continental crust. Thus,
regional metamorphism is one of the most important processes in
orogeny.
Orogeny is not an instantaneous phenomenon, but a process that
lasts over a long time of the order of a hundred million years. In the
case of Himalayas, the subduction started at 50 Ma. The beginning of
UHP to HP metamorphism started at 48 Ma (Kaneko et al., 2003),
which is very close to the timing of subduction initiation, and it took
23 million years from UHP metamorphism at mantle depths to the
mid-crustal level exhumation at 25 Ma where extensive hydration–
recrystallization occurred. Furthermore, dome like uplift and moun-
tain building started only after 8 Ma with a large time gap reaching
15 million years. From the time of initiation of metamorphism to
mountain building, it took a total of 40 million years. Subsequently
the plate boundary shifted leading to the rise of the Himalayan
mountains since 1 Ma ago. Mountain building is still going on at
present (Fig. 23).
In the case of Pacific, taking the Sambagawa belt as an example,
subduction and underplating of accretionary complex from trench up
to 60–70 km depth took only 1 million year, based on the computa-
tions of relative plate motion during the Cretaceous time (Engebretson
et al., 1985; Maruyama and Seno, 1986). Regional metamorphism has
its peak at 120 to 125 Ma as demonstrated by zircon SHRIMP age
(Okamoto et al., 2004). Exhumation and emplacement at mid-crustal
level occurred between 80 and 60 Ma, where extensive hydration
occurred. Therefore, it took 40 to 45 million years from mantle depths
to the mid-crustal level. Thereafter, dome-like second step mountain
building began to expose the high-grade regional metamorphic rocks
to the surface by 50 Ma (Isozaki and Maruyama, 1990). From the
second stage mountain building, the uplift rate is estimated as 4 mm/
year, converting 10 to 12 km uplift during 20 to 30 million years. Thus,
the Sambagawa orogeny has taken 70 million years from its beginning
to the surface exposure of regional metamorphic rocks.
Pacific-type orogeny in the Sambagawa metamorphic belt during
the Cretaceous is yet another process. In this case, the formation of the
folded belts may have occurred not only at late stage but also at the
initial stage. To record the earliest Cretaceous event, information from
Asian continents is critical. In the Japanese Islands, information is
limited to the presence of large batholith belts. The northern limit of
the batholith belt is missing which is now observed in China. As will be
discussed later, in S. America and N. America the initial stage of
Cretaceous orogeny is marked by a series of thrust belts developed on
128 S. Maruyama et al. / Gondwana Research 18 (2010) 106–137
 S. Maruyama et al. / Gondwana Research 18 (2010) 106–137 129

Fig. 23. Tectonic evolution of the Himalayan region from 60 Ma to the present (modified after Kaneko, 1997). Before the Indian collision, Pacific-type orogeny prevailed to form paired belts,
Cretaceous huge batholith belt on the north associated with contemporaneous BS belt on the south. The Indian continent subducted underneath the southern margin of Eurasia at 50 Ma, the
regional metamorphism started from 48 Ma and proceeded to progressive HP–UHP metamorphism, followed by slab break-off to trigger the exhumation of UHP–HP belt into mid-crustal depth
by 25 Ma by wedge extrusion process. Asthenospheric upwelling by delaminated slab heated the bottom of thickened continental crust under Tibet, caused eclogite melting at the Moho depth
and erupted adakite lava-flows. Also shown is the top boundary of the UHP–HP unit called STDF (South Tibetan Detachment Fault). The bottom boundary is MCT (Main Central Thrust). An
extensive hydration occurred at 25 Ma at mid-crustal level. Second stage doming started around 8 Ma to cause mountain building to transport huge amounts of sediments to the Indian Ocean.

the northernmost foothill of the mountain belts consisting a major may have had two stages of mountain building at the initial stage and
portion of the batholith belts. If this is the case, Pacific-type orogeny at the final stage.

Fig. 22. (a) Distribution of tremors at the Moho depths in SW Japan (Obara, 2002). Note the absence of tremor in Kii Strait and easternmost part of Shikoku and in the small region
near Ise Bay. Also shown is the isodepth contour of the top of the Philippine Sea plate. (b) Schematic cross section along A–B and C–D. A–B is the cross section for the tremor-absent
region whereas C–D is the tremor present region. Absence of tremor can be explained by the dehydrated fluids were all absorbed to hydrate the exhumed and water unsaturated
regional metamorphic unit. Tremor is observed after the saturation of exhumed regional metamorphic belt shown along C–D cross section.
130 S. Maruyama et al. / Gondwana Research 18 (2010) 106–137
11. Himalayas and Andes: a comparison
In the Himalayas, a 50 million years long history exists prior to the
final collision-type orogeny (Fig. 23). At present, within the Indian
Ocean near the spreading ridge, prominent seismicity records
compressional stress. Therefore, the plate boundary is delineated
not along Main Frontal Thrust in the Himalayas, but within the Indian
Ocean (Engdahl et al., 1998), which corresponds to the northern
boundary of the Indo-Australian plate. If the plate boundary shifts
completely from MFT to Indian Ocean, the Himalayan Mountain
Range would not be a mobile orogenic belt, which means the end of
collision orogeny.
On the other hand, in the central part of the Andean Mountain Belt,
mountain building has definitely begun since Miocene at about 25 Ma
(Ramos and Aleman, 2000). This was caused by continent subduction
of South America underneath the Andean mountain range known as A-
type subduction to jack-up the Andean mountain. This process
corresponds to the mountain building at the initial stage of Pacific-
type orogeny (Fig. 24). However, regional metamorphic belt has not
yet been emplaced into the core of the Andean mountain, and
extensive scale of felsic volcano-plutonism has not yet occurred.
Moreover, subduction zone volcanism itself is absent in about one
third of the entire Andean region (Gutscher et al., 1999). These
observations suggest that the Andean mountain range is underlain by a
mountain building stage, but has not yet reached the activated time
dominated by extensive volcano-plutonism and exhumation of
regional metamorphic belts in the forearc region. Presumably, the
Andean belt is still in the initial stage over the entire 70 million years
long Pacific-type orogeny. However, Andean mountain range is wide
enough so that a regional provincialism might be present. For example,
at the southern end of the Andean belt, mid-oceanic ridge began to
subduct underneath where TTG granite intruded near the trench only
50 km from the trench. Therefore, this local area may have been in the
stage of a peak Pacific-type orogeny (Fig. 24c). But the regional meta-
morphic belt has not yet been exposed on the surface. Comparing the
Sambagawa orogeny, the stage at the southern end of the Andean
belt is the stage before the doming uplift and after the exhumation of
regional metamorphic belts at mid-crustal level. Nevertheless, the
overall stage of the whole Andean belt has not yet reached the second
mountain building stage. In future, a few mid-oceanic ridges would
reach to the trench to promote the orogenic activity (Fig. 24c).
11.1. Mountain building is unrelated to the exhumation of HP–UHP belt
In collision orogeny, formation of huge mountain belt is restricted
to the final stage. On the other hand, the Pacific-type is marked by two
stages of mountain building — the first stage is characterized by the
tectonic uplift of volcanic front with simultaneous HP–UHP meta-
morphism by A-subduction from the backside down to 60 to 100 km
depth. The second mountain building occurs at the end of orogeny as
discussed before.
Regardless of collision-type or Pacific-type, the mountain building
is unrelated to exhumation of regional metamorphic belts. Mountain
building to expose the orogenic core occurs by the domal uplift of the
sandwiched units with the core of regional metamorphic belts at the
end of orogeny. However, at this period, tectonically eroded portion
reaches only 10 km. Formation of folded mountain accompanied by
active erosion generates the remarkable topography of mountain
belts, but corresponding to only about 3 kbar change in metamorphic
pressure. It is important to note the extremely large pressure gradient
from 25–70 kbar down to 3–5 kbar recorded in regional metamorphic
rocks, are absent in terms of vertical movement on the surface. This is
due to extremely slow exhumation of regional metamorphic rocks
from mantle depths to mid-crustal level and because of the very thin
sheet-like solid intrusion of the metamorphic belt along Benioff
thrust. Therefore, there is no manifestation on the surface in terms of
vertical movements.
There is an essential difference between collision-type and Pacific-
type orogens (Fig. 25). In the case of collision reflecting the different
mechanism of uplift, only the pressure drops at near-constant
temperature at temperature after the metamorphic pressure reaches
the peak. On the other hand, both pressure and temperature decrease
together in the case of Pacific-type. This may be due to the fact that
oceanic plate subduction was simultaneously ongoing when the HP–
UHP units are being removed tectonically to the mid-crust, although
need to verify in future (Fig. 25).
12. Concept of paired metamorphic belts
In 1961, Miyashiro proposed metamorphic facies series and paired
metamorphism based on the geology of Japan. These two concepts
helped the establishment of plate tectonics in 1968. However, the
concept of paired metamorphic belts has been considerably modified
since then (Santosh and Kusky, 2010; see also Brown, 2010-this
issue). For example, collision-type regional metamorphic belts are not
paired at all. No counterpart of low P high T metamorphic belt is
present. Also, granitic batholith belt is absent in general. In the case of
Alps and Himalayas, minor post-orogenic granites intruded at the end
of the orogeny. It should be noted that oceanic plate subduction is a
necessary phenomenon prior to the final collision of continents in the
case of collision-type orogeny. Therefore, Pacific-type accretionary
complex must have been formed to the north of collision type orogeny
in the case of Himalayas. In this case, proportional to the total length
of subducted oceanic plate, size of accretionary complex and size of
batholith belts must vary. To the north of the Himalayan Mountain
Range, a huge batholith belt and small glaucophane-bearing meta-
morphic belts are observed both of which are ca. 100 Ma old and
formed prior to the Himalayan collision (Maruyama et al., 1996).
These paired rocks would belong to Pacific-type orogen, and not to the
collision type. On the other hand, there is no batholith belt in the Alps.
In the case of collision type orogen, there is no heat source to produce
high-T low-P type metamorphic belts.
In the case of Pacific-type orogenic belts, the presence of low-P and
high-T regional metamorphic belts is rather exceptional. If present,
both belts were not exhumed to the surface at the same period. For
example, in the Sambagawa–Ryoke paired metamorphic belt,
regarded as the world standard, the Ryoke belt runs side by side
with the Median Tectonic Line (MTL) on the map view, with Ryoke in
the north and Sambagawa in the south, in general. But in the three
dimensions, the Ryoke belt rests above the Sambagawa with a sub-
horizontal fault called as paleo-MTL (Isozaki and Maruyama, 1991).
The boundary fault was formed at 15 Ma when Japan Sea opened and
the upper Ryoke belt was thrust over the Shimanto–Sambagawa and
Jurassic accretionary complex from north to southward. Thereafter, in
Kii Peninsula and Shikoku, particularly the regions towards the
eastern part were preferentially uplifted to erode out the upper Ryoke
belt. As a result, the apparent distribution of the Sambagawa to the
south and Ryoke to the north appear to give an impression of paired
belts. Yet, on the western margin of Shikoku, whole Kyushu and Kanto
plain, top and bottom relationship of the Ryoke and Sambagawa are
preserved very well. The apparent arrangement of paired belt is also
recognized in New Zealand and Celebes. Hida, Sangun and Hidaka are
also exceptional examples of paired belts over the world. In the case of
Pacific-type orogenic belts, huge TTG belts on the continent side are
paired with low-temperature high-pressure type regional metamor-
phic belts oceanward. In this case, batholith belt is paired with high-
pressure low-temperature regional metamorphic belts, and not with
low-pressure high-temperature metamorphic belts. Finally we con-
clude that Miyashiro's concept of paired metamorphism is correct, but
incorrect for the simultaneous uplift to expose paired belts.
 S. Maruyama et al. / Gondwana Research 18 (2010) 106–137 131

Fig. 24. Tectonic map of Andean orogenic belt showing E–W cross section (A–B, C–D). Also shown is the distribution of thrust on the eastern foothill of the Andean mountain belts
(Ramos, 1999). Subducting mid-oceanic ridge is present only at the southern margin of the Andean mountain. As shown in A–B cross section (Ramos et al., 1996), a series of thrusts
push up the Andean belts by A-subduction of South American continent underneath the Andean belt. Regional metamorphic belts may have been formed along the southern margin
of Andean belt, but have not yet been exposed to the surface (shown along cross section C–D). Red triangles denote volcanoes.

13. Fluids and regional metamorphism
The major cause of regional metamorphism has long been con-
sidered as an effect of the increase of P and T. However, the evolution
and migration of fluids have been highlighted in recent studies and
perhaps played the most crucial role (e.g., Santosh et al., 2009b). The
zircon crystals formed during metamorphism include high-T low-P
minerals such as magmatic origin at the core e.g., quartz, albite which
are mantled by the newly grown zircon during the increased P–T
conditions. This in turn includes coesite, jadeite and diamond in the
132 S. Maruyama et al. / Gondwana Research 18 (2010) 106–137
Fig. 25. Schematic diagram to show the slightly different exhumation processes
between Pacific- and collision-types. The fundamental process of two-step exhumation
is identical for both, but P–T time path is systematically different. There is much deeper
subduction in the case of continent-collision compared to the Pacific-type. The nearly
isothermal decompression for the collision type is slightly different from the Pacific-
type. The difference may be explained by subduction and refrigeration in the case of
Pacific-type.
case of UHP rocks. The outermost margin includes low-P minerals
again such as plagioclase. This observation demonstrates that the
quartz and feldspar at the core were not converted to the high-
pressure and high-temperature minerals even though extremely
high-P and high-T conditions prevailed over geologic time. Moreover,
UHT and UHP minerals included within zircon crystal have not
changed to low-P and low-T minerals even after their transport to
shallow level. Shielding of those minerals within robust minerals like
zircons prevented their phase transformation in spite of the drastic
change of P–T conditions over geologic time.
On the other hand, matrix minerals in UHP rocks have almost all
completely transformed to low-pressure minerals. All of these
observations support the critical role of fluids in mineral phase
transformation. Absence of fluids was the major cause for the absence
of phase transformations of the inclusions within zircon crystals. A
similar phenomenon has also been observed in the case of mineral
inclusions in garnet and omphacite. These minerals appear to be
shielded and protected from the fluid flow along grain boundaries or
cleavages and cracks within UHP rocks.
We will now examine the outcrop scale of fluid infiltration in UHP
terranes. In the case of UHP rocks, which were taken down to depths of
100 to 200 km depths and witnessed temperatures of 1000 °C, some
igneous protoliths composed of anhydrous minerals preserve mag-
matic texture and minerals in spite of the UHP and UHT conditions
(Fig. 26). Some gabbroic rocks in HP–UHP belts in China and Alps
preserve olivine and plagioclase despite their conversion to eclogitic
assemblages, because of absence of fluids in gabbro.
Garnetite transforms from gabbro and is completely recrys-
tallized under UHP conditions. At mid-crustal levels of 10–15 km
depths and at temperature of 400–650 °C, these rocks recrystallize
to amphibolite through external fluid infiltration. If the garnetite
is large enough, the core of the unit would remain as garnetite
successively mantled by garnet amphibolite and amphibolite.
However, if fractures cut through, the central garnetite domain is
also is amphibolitized. Similar examples are also seen in the case
of quartzofeldspathic gneisses surrounding eclogite where ex-
treme ductile deformation and completely hydration obliterating
the UHP event can be seen. All of these observations clearly
indicate that fluids play a more critical role in controlling mineral
stability and ductility for quartzofeldspathic country rocks than P
and T increase.
14. Earthquake at subduction zones
The discovery of UHP metamorphic rocks and their petrologic and
tectonic characteristics have revolutionized the concepts of regional
metamorphism, particularly focusing on the evolution and migration
of fluids. The link between earthquakes and metamorphism in con-
suming plate boundaries became increasingly apparent. In these
zones, subducted hydrated slab dehydrates with increasing pressure
and temperature and the fluid liberated would remarkably influence
the rheological properties and stress fields (Peacock, 1993, Omori et
al., 2002, 2009; Hacker et al., 2003 etc.). In other words, the birth of
fluid and its transportation translates to triggering of earthquake,
based on the concept of dehydration embrittlement (e.g., Meade and
Jeanloz, 1991; Omori et al., 2009). Metamorphic petrologists can
study the fossil evidence for earthquake within regional metamorphic
belts and evaluate the dynamics of orogenic movement. Subduction
zones along which frequent earthquakes occur are in fact the location
of ongoing progressive metamorphic reactions (Maruyama et al.,
2004; Omori et al., 2009).
15. Fluid circulation characterizes the plate boundary
Distribution of earthquakes is confined only to the plate
boundary (Fig. 27a). Fluid circulation is restricted only to the
plate margin of consuming plate boundary from which fluid moves
deep into the earth's interior at least covering the whole upper
mantle down to 660 km depth. In the divergent boundary, fluids
come up from mid ocean ridge magma, which in turn originated at
410 km through a curtain-like mantle upwelling (Zhao, 2004).
Fluids may have been derived from the Earth's interior to the
surface through superplumes (see Maruyama et al., 2009; Santosh
et al., 2009b). This observation indicates that regional metamor-
phism occurs only along the plate boundary where earthquakes
occur. For the other regions such as under the continents and
within ocean plate, no free fluids are available except hotspots and
hence no recrystallization proceeds. Even under the continents in
the lower crust or below the Moho, even if temperature conditions
exceed 700 °C, no metamorphic recrystallization must prevail if
fluid is absent. A contrasting picture emerges in the distribution of
earthquakes between mid-oceanic ridge and continental rift. In the
former case, earthquakes are present down to 660 km depth, but in
the latter, only at depths shallower than 30 km along the transform
fault boundary, earthquakes are generated at depths shallower
than 15 km. These contrasting differences in depths correspond to
 S. Maruyama et al. / Gondwana Research 18 (2010) 106–137 133

Fig. 26. Partially eclogitized metagabbro, which preserves igneous mineralogy and textures which survived UHP metamorphism (after Mork, 1985). (a) Sketch of the domain in
which igneous mineralogy and texture are relatively well preserved. (b) Sketch of more advanced stage of metamorphic recrystallization. (c) Schematic diagram to show the gradual
change from gabbro to eclogite in mineralogy and texture with progressive metamorphism and eclogitization.

the depths of circulating fluids. The physical differences of fluid ages remain as before. If this is true, the orogenic peridotites may retain
circulation depend on the plate boundary. old mantle convection history even at CMB level, preserved in within
mineral inclusions of zircons.

16. Metamorphic recrystallization in the whole mantle

If the circulating fluid is the only factor to cause regional meta-
morphism as documented clearly in UHP–HP metamorphic rocks and
zoned zircon which contains quartz, graphite, albite inclusions in the
core and rim, with mantle including diamond and coesite and/or
jadeite, the site of ongoing recrystallization in the whole mantle scale
could be envisaged as shown in Fig. 27. The cross section of the Earth
is schematically shown cross-cutting Pacific and African superplume
together with the western Pacific triangular zone with double-sided
subduction zones, to make it clear for circulating fluids to recrystallize
the mantle and related rocks. According to the double-sided
subduction, the upper mantle in the western Pacific triangular zone
is being recrystallized most predominantly among whole upper
mantle region, and by the same reason the lowermost mantle could
preserve the lowest temperature of ca. 2300 °C at CMB (core–mantle
boundary) (Maruyama et al., 2007).
In addition, the two sites of rising superplume could bring recrys-
tallization from the bottom to the top by the presence of fluids derived
from liquid outer core, because of the presence of light elements such
as C, H, O, and S, which occupy ca. 10% of the outer core, and are
oversaturated in the growing solid inner core (Maruyama, 1994;
Maruyama et al., 2007). Below the mid-oceanic ridge down to ca.30–
40 km depth, rising mantle flow would release magmatic melts to
cause the recrystallization to reset the isotope equilibration.
On the other hand, the fluid-absent zone such as the bottom of
cratonic continents would not be recrystallized even at T over 700 °C,
nor will there be any isotopic re-equilibration. Hence the radiometric
17. Subduction zone geotherm through geologic history and the
shrinking forbidden zone
The subduction zone geotherm must have changed through time,
according to the cooling Earth since its birth at 4.6 Ga in the planetary
space. This issue has long been considered by several authors based on
the P–T estimates of regional metamorphic belts over the world, either
Pacific-type or collision-type. Here we summarize the concept based
on the results presented in Maruyama et al. (1996) and Maruyama and
Liou (2005).
Since the pioneering work by de Roever (1957), several authors
have tried to confirm the geothermal gradients at subduction zone
through time, and all of them recognized a clear trend of secular
variation with time (Fig. 28). The maximum T limit for regional
metamorphism has been less than 900–1000 °C throughout Earth
history. However, the maximum-P condition increased from 2.0 GPa
before 1000 Ma to N6.0 GPa after 630 Ma. Most metamorphic terranes
older than 1000 Ma show maximum-P conditions less than 1.0 GPa,
indicating that Precambrian metamorphism occurred within crustal
depths and slab-melting to produce TTG (tonalite–trondhjemite–
granodiorite) rocks that dominate the continents (Martin, 1993). This
is because a wide P–T field of slab-melting lies above the wet solidus of
hydrated MORB (Fig. 28).
All recognized UHP belts are younger than 630 Ma, and the
subduction zone metamorphism to form UHP belt became possible
only after the temperatures became cold enough to inhibit slab-
melting (Fig. 28). It should be pointed out that the subduction zone
134 S. Maruyama et al. / Gondwana Research 18 (2010) 106–137

Fig. 27. a): Global distribution of earthquakes (shown by dots) and plate boundaries (modified after Seno, 1995). The distribution of earthquakes shows an excellent correlation with
the plate boundary such as mid-oceanic ridges, continental rifts and transform faults. The upper mantle beneath the western Pacific shown as shaded region is dominated by water
supplied by double-sided subduction zones from the east and from the south (see Maruyama et al., 2007). b): The cross section of the Earth along the solid curve in a), indicating
ongoing recrystallization of mantle by fluid circulation (blue color). Recrystallization, which corresponds to ongoing regional metamorphism, may be highly restricted as shown by
the cross section. Even in the deep mantle recrystallization may be possible only by fluid migration from the liquid outer core. See more details in the text.

geotherm is nearly parallel to the wet solidus of MORB (Maruyama
and Liou, 1998). This probably caused the sudden appearance of UHP–
HP belts after 630 Ma.
Following the secular change of subduction zone geotherm, as
recorded in regional metamorphic rocks shown in Fig. 28, the
forbidden zone in P–T space at low-T and high-P side has reduced
through time. The region was wide enough to cover a major part of P–T
space below MORB wet solidus before 1000 Ma, but got rapidly reduced
towards the low-T side after 630 Ma. This change allowed lawsonite
eclogite to appear first since 520 Ma along the eastern margin of
 S. Maruyama et al. / Gondwana Research 18 (2010) 106–137
Fig. 28. P–T diagram showing the decrease of subduction zone geotherm through
geologic time (modified after Maruyama and Liou, 2005). The summary of P–T
conditions are estimated from about 300 metamorphic belts over the world through
time back to the Archean (ca. 4.3 Ga) (summarized after Maruyama and Liou, 2005).
Subduction zone is the coldest region in the mantle at anytime in the geologic past. The
coldest region shown in the P–T space has reduced towards the lower-T side through
time, as shown by the shrinkage of the forbidden zone. The Archean-Proterozoic
forbidden zone was widest with an extensive slab-melting. The reference frames of P–T
grids such as coesite-quartz, diamond-graphite and jadeite + quartz = low-albite or
high-albite, MORB solidus under dry or wet condition, and metamorphic facies grids are
after Maruyama et al. (1996).
Australia (Watanabe et al., 1997). Another example is from Guatemala
(Tsujimori et al., 2006).
18. Postscript
It has already passed nearly 30 years since coesite-bearing UHP
rocks were first reported from collisional belts in Europe, but several
debates continue. The UHP belts constitute only a very minor
component among the various metamorphic belts of the world.
However, this trivial “noise” has radically revised many of the
concepts and framework of metamorphic petrology established over
the last 100 years and expanded the realm of metamorphic petrology
to include many subjects including deep Earth geophysics. One of the
major advancements in metamorphic petrology was the understand-
ing of the role fluids and the critical role they play in mineral
transformation. Indeed, crustal rocks subjected to extreme metamor-
phic conditions were the key for this paradigm shift, with newer
information on ongoing processes in active plate boundaries adding
more fuel to the debate.
Acknowledgments
Prof. A. Miyashiro was a pioneering worker who systematized
metamorphic petrology, combined with tectonic settings, back in late
1950s. He was born in Japan, and contributed to Earth Science in Japan.
135
Unfortunately the Japanese scientific community lost him from Japan in
1965 as he spent the latter half of his academic years in U.S.A, developing
his field to cover whole Earth, particularly ocean-floor petrology. We
Japanese would like to appreciate his highly intelligent and thoughtful
works written in Japanese first before the articles in English were
published. All of these contributions educated Japanese, and developed
understanding of the consuming plate boundary around Japan and the
whole Earth.
We would like to thank Prof. M. Santosh for his valuable help
during the preparation and revision of this manuscript. We also thank
an anonymous referee for thoughtful comments.
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