159

SULAWESI (CELEBES)

SLOPES, PROFILES DE

SULASORONG taULT<?

PROFILES D ANDE
100

200 KILOMETERS
_I

APPROXIMATE

continentalshelfstrata. Itis anobviousinference(and one

made also by Gribi, 1973, and Hermes, 1974) that the
SulaBanggaiRidgeisasliverofcontinentalcrust,tornfrom
Vogelkopandtransportedwestwardabout1,000kmalonga
strand ofthe Sorongfault system.
It is inferred elsewhere in this report that the
MalayaSumatraTin Islands subcontinent was rifted in
early Mesozoic timefrom Australia and NewGuinea.The
upperPaleozoicgraniticandvolcanicrocksthatliealongthe
Pacificsidesofbothofthesesubcontinentsareofaboutthe
sameageasapparentlyaretheSulabasementrocks,sothe
Sulaterrainmightoncehavebeenwithinthesamemagmatic
belt. Ifso, itscoursetoitspossibleintermediatepositionin
Vogelkop is notapparent.
The straight southside ofthe westtrendingridge ofthe
Sulaand BanggaiIslandsis presumablyamajorleftlateral
fault. Trendingsouthwardfromtheeastendofthisridgeis
narrow Sulabesi Island, which was examined by D. E.
Wolcott (oral commun., 1972) and his Indonesian
associates.Mostoftheislandconsistsofshaleandquartzose

turbidite, which in part appear coherent and in part are

sheared apart so that lenses and contorted fragments of
sandstonelie in sheared shale. Onthetectonicmap(pi. 1),
thismaterialis suggested to besubductionmelange. Young
coral reefs unconformably overlying this material are
upliftedashighas400minthesouthpartoftheislandbut
have beensubmerged belowsea levelinthe northpart.
SULAWESI (CELEBES)
GENERAL

The four diverging arms ofSulawesi record a complex

geologic history whose analysis casts light on the tectonic
processes of active plate boundaries. (The four arms of
Sulawesiarenamed,inorderclockwisefromthesouthwest,
theSouth,North,East,andSoutheastArms.)Inthewestern
arc of the islandthe South and North Arms and the
western part of central SulawesiCretaceous subduction
complexesareoverlainbysedimentsperhapsdepositedinan
outerarcbasin.AbovetheseareupperPaleogenecontinen

160

TECTONICS OF THE INDONESIAN REGION

118

120

Neogene
tation]?)

124

'"SULAWESI

126

7000m

CELEBES SEA

TRENCH

UnaUna volcano ofNorth Sulawesisystem

GULF OF TOMINI
penedbyNeogen
riftingandrotating

Subductipnimbricated
JurassicMiocene strata
ofmicrocontinent

0^

x,^_______

SULABESl

BANGGAISULA MINICONTINENT

Brought fromNewGuinea by
strikeslip faultinmiddle Tertiary

Eastern zone: Miocenesubduction

complexes,imbricatedsediments,
largemassesofoceaniccrustand
mantle

Buton: imbricated Triassic to

Mioceneshallowwaterandother
strata andophiolitefragments
NEOGENE''
OROCLINE ' ^

Westernzone (North
andSouthArms):
Cretaceoussubduction
complexbasement
middleTertiaryplatform
strata,upper Tertiary
volcanicandgranitic
rocks

Centralzone: Upper Cretaceous or

i^ Paleogenepolymictsubduction
melangeandglaucophane schist

100

200

BUTON MINICONTINENT
From NewGuinea?

300 KILOMETERS

FIGURE81.SomemajorstructuralelementsofSulawesi.Grayarrowsillustratelocalrelativemotionsofseveralofthecomponents.Upper
Neogene depositsareomitted. Onlythe 1,000m bathymetric contour is shown.

SULAWESI (CELEBES)

talshelf strata. These in turn are overlain by Neogene

sedimentary and volcanic rocks and are intruded by
Neogene granitic rocks (fig. 81). Theeasternarcthe East
and Southeast Arms and the eastern part of central
Sulawesiconsists of fragments of ophiolites and ofsub
duction complexes, the latter likely becoming in general
younger eastward to a limiting age of approximately late
Miocene. This broad successionin the western andeastern
arcs is interpreted to record the eastward migration of a
subduction system during Cenozoic time and of the
magmatic arc (and perhaps also of the outerarc basin)
related to it, by tectonic accretion of material through
subduction processes. Apparently superimposed on this
broad patternaretheeffects oftheriftingofSulawesiaway
from Borneo, oftheseparationanddistortionofthearms,
and oftheprogressive lengtheningoftheyoungsubduction
zone along the north side ofthe North Arm.
The distribution of rock assemblages shown on the
tectonicmapforwestcentralSulawesiandtheSouthArmis
taken primarily from Sukamto's (1975a) 1:1,000,000scale
compilation of published geologic mapping and ofrecon
naissance mostly by geologists ofthe Geological Surveyof
Indonesia.ThedelineationofunitsintheEastandSoutheast
Armsisadaptedfrommanypublishedreportsandalsofrom
an unpublished 1971 photogeologic map provided by
InternationalNickelIndonesia.Myinterpretationofunitsin
both eastern and western arcs of the island diverges
markedly from these sources in various instances.

161

K. B. Ketner, oral commun., 1972). The small mass of

melange faulted up along the Sadang fault farther west
consists ofbroken feldspathic sandstone and siltstone, red
chertandlimestone,andultramaficrocks(K.B.Ketner,oral
commun., 1972). Abendanon (191618, v. 2, p. 875881)
reported serpentinite, harzburgite, and radiolariterocks
likelytohavecomefrommelangetobeminorcomponents
of gravels in streams entering the central part ofthe Palu
Valley, at the base ofthe North Arm.
The schist in the Bantimala area is overlain by red,
radiolarian chert (fig. 82/1) interbedded with lenses of
schistpebbleconglomerate,andthechertisoverlainconcor
dantlybysiliceous shale. Radiolariainthechertandlowin
the shale are of late Albian (latest Early Cretaceous) age

WESTERN ARC:
CRKTACLOt S SfBDl'CrnON COMPLEX

Thetwosmallwindowserodedintothebasementcomplex
of the southwest part of the South Arm both expose
ultramafic and metamorphic rocks ('t Hoen and Ziegler,
1917 von Steiger, 1915 Sukamto, 1973b, 1975a, b) D. E.
Wolcott, written comuns., 1971, 1973). The larger (Ban
timala) of the two exposures is the better known. Its
metamorphic rocks strike northwestward and include
glaucophane schist and eclogite but are dominantly
greenschist, hornblendemica schist, and chloritic phyllite
quartzite is present locally. The KArage ofmuscovite ina
garnet schist is 111 m.y., Early Cretaceous (J. D.
Obradovich,writtencommun., 1974). The ultramaficrocks
and highpressure metamorphic rocks are inferredtoshow
that the basement complex formed in an environment of
subduction.
Themelangeofthetwoareasofexposureinthenortheast
part ofthe South Arm consists ofchaotically intercalated
and broken feldspathic sandstone and siltstone, sheared
shale,redchertandredlimestone,ultramaficrocks,variably
altered gabbro, amphibolite, glaucophanelawsonite schist,
greenschist, and othermaterials(Abendanon, 191618,v. 1,
p. 3334, 62134 Djuriand Sudjatmiko, 1974Gisolf, 1917

FIGURE 82.Sheared Cretaceoussedimentaryrocksinthe southwestpart

of theSouthArmofSulawesi,nearBantimala,about50kmnortheast
ofUjungPandang(Makassar).A,Shearedradiolarianchert.B.Lenses
of limestone in sheared shale. Photographs by Don E. Wolcott.

162

TECTONICS OF THE INDONESIAN REGION

according to Emile A. Pessagno, Jr. 1 'These rocks are

unmetamorphosed butarelocallymuchsheared(fig. 82^4).
As theirstratigraphicage is only slightly youngerthanthe
KAr age ofthe underlyingschist,thesedimentsmayhave
been deposited on top ofthe growing middle Cretaceous
melange wedge and may have been deformed by its
continuinginternal imbrication.
A thick section ofmostlyclasticrocksshale,turbiditic
siltstoneandgraywacke,andminorlimestoneoverliesthe
chert and shale, but detailed relationships are unknown.
Some ofthese rocks also are sheared (fig. 82fi). A pillow
basaltin thissectionhasa KArage of58.5 m.y., probably
Paleocene (J. D. Obradovich, written commun., 1974
Sukamto, 1975b).
PALEOGENE SHELF STRATA

OverlyingtheturbiditicfaciesofthelowerPaleogeneisan
upperPaleogeneandlowerMioceneshelfsection,deformed
onlymoderately,whichwas depositedasaregionalsheetin
theSouthArmandwestcentralSulawesi(Sukamto,1975a).
InthesouthernpartoftheSouthArm,quartzosesandstone,
shale, and coal are overlain by upper Eocene to lower
Miocene shallowwaterplatformlimestone(fig. 83'tHoen
andZiegler, 1917 vonSteiger, 1915 D. E.Wolcott,written
commun., 1971, 1973). Offshoretothewestofthesouthern
part of the South Arm, lower Eocene redbeds, quartz
sandstone, conglomerate, and coal are overlain by middle
Eoceneandyoungermarinestrata.SouthoftheSouthArm,
the middle Eocene through Miocene is bathyal shale and
subordinatelimestone.InthenorthcentralpartoftheSouth
Arm, red marine Eocene shale, marly shale, and quartz
sandstone underlie thick Oligocene and lower Miocene
limestone (Djuri and Sudjatmiko, 1974 Waterschoot van
der Gracht, 1915 K. B. Ketner, oral commun., 1972).
Eocene andOligocenelimestoneistheoldestrockexposed
in the westcoast basin(LariangBasin) ofcentral Sulawesi
(Beltz, 1944). Oil geologists have told me that the upper
Oligocene and lower Miocene section ofthis basin much
resembles that beneath the Mahakam Delta of east
Borneothetwoareaswouldhavebeenclosetogetherbefore
later Miocene opening of Makassar Strait. Widespread
slate,phyllite,graywacke,andlimestoneinthesouthpartof
theNorthArm,fromtheequatorto 1 S.,areofEoceneage
in the four localities in which they are dated by fossils
(Sukamto, 1973a D. E. Wolcott,writtencommun., 1971).
The shallowwater continentalshelf strata ofthe lower
PaleogenecontinueintotheoffshoreregionabouttheSouth
11 Pessagno(writtencommun., 1976) identifiedanddatedradiolaria intwosamplescollected by
Willis H. Nelson and Don E. Wolcott near lat 450' S., long 11945' E. Sample GG4, of
manganiferous,ferruginouschert, contains Pseudodictyomitrapentacolaensis Pessagno, Novixitus
n. sp.,Alievium sp.cf.A. antiguum Pessagno,Archaeodictyomitrasimplex Pessagno,Kozurium sp.,
and Archaeodictyomitra sp. aff. A. sliteri Pessagno. Thisassemblage, consideredindependently, is
likelylateAlbianbutcouldbeofearlyCenomanian(earliestLateCretaceous)agetheformeroption
is, however,requiredbyitspositionbeneaththeothersample.SampleGG2,ofsiliceousshaleabout
50 m directly above the chert sample, contains Pseudodictyomitra pentacolaensis Pessagno,
Pseudodiclyomitra sp., Xitits plenus Pessagno, and Zifondium lassenensis Pessagno,a late Albian
assemblage. Dating is primarily by correlation with welldated assemblages in California.

Arm, whereas the upper Paleogene ofthe two settings is

different. ApparentlytheSouthArmwas distinctbyabout
late Eocenetime. Asisdiscussedsubsequently,itisthought
thatdeepwater MakassarStraitopened byTertiaryrifting
ofwhat was inearlyEocenetimeasinglecontinentalmass
that included Borneo, the South Arm, and westcentral
Sulawesi,andthatthequartzoselower Paleogene strata of
Sulawesi were derived from Borneo.
NEOCENE IGNEOUS AND SEDIMENTARY ROCKS

The stableplatform conditions of Eocene to early

Miocene time in the SouthArmandwestcentral Sulawesi
cametoanabruptend,androcksoflateearlyMioceneand
younger age mostly record magmatism and volcaniclastic
sedimentation, in what is now the onshore region, and
deepwater sedimentation offshore. The Neogene
magmatism appears to be paired to westward subduction
that is recorded in the geology of the East and Southeast
Arms.
ThehighlowerMiocenetoQuaternarystratifiedrocksof
theSouthArmaremostlyweldedtuffs,waterlaidtuffs,lava
flows,volcaniclasticsediments,turbidites,andmarls(Aben
danon, 191618, v. 1 Djuriand Sudjatmiko, 1974 'tHoen
and Ziegler, 1917 von Steiger, 1915 Sukamto, 1973b,
1975a, b K. B. Ketner and D. E. Wolcott, written
communs., 1971). The volcanic rocksare basalt, andesite,
dacite,rhyolite,andabundantalkalicrocks,includingmany
bearingleucite.Ageochronologicalreconnaissancestudyof
South Arm volcanic rocks by J. D. Obradovich (in U.S.
Geological Survey, 1975, p. 163) indicates that volcanism
began with basaltic lavas about 18 m.y. ago and that
andesitic magmatism began about 9 m.y. ago dacite was
erupted4to5 m.y.ago.AlargeconeofQuaternaryandesite
standsatthesouthendoftheSouthArm,andlittledeform
ed butconsiderablyeroded rhyoliteweldedtufflies uncon
formably upon deformed older Neogene alkalic and
calcalkalicvolcanicandsedimentaryrocksinthenorthwest
partofthearm.Theyoungestmagmatismapparentlywasof
calcalkalic,notalkalic,character,butavailabledatadonot
permit further specification of the age of the alkalic
volcanism.
Severalterrainsofcalcalkalicandalkalicvolcanicrocks
in the South Arm have been assigned to the Paleogene
(Sukamto, 1975a) or Oligocene (Djuri and Sudjatmiko,
1974). So far as I am aware, these are not dated exceptas
olderthanmiddle Miocene,andinacaseortwoasyounger
thanEocene. AsnearbyfossiliferousEoceneandOligocene
strataareplatformclasticandcarbonaterocks,Iamdubious
ofthe old age assignments forthese volcanic rocks.
Westcentral Sulawesi and the south part ofthe North
Arm contain batholiths and stocks that intrude variously
Neogene(andolder?)volcanicrocks,littlemetamorphosed
Paleogene shelf strata, and undated low, middle, and
highgrade metamorphicrocks (Abendanon, 191618, v. 1,
v. 2 Brouwer, 1934 Egeler, 1947 Nikko Explorationand

SULAWESI (CELEBES)

163

FIGURE 83.Tertiary terrain ofsouthwestern Sulawesi. A, Middle Tertiary limestone (bluffs, middle distance) is overlain by Neogene
volcaniclastic rocks (peak). View southward from a point about 70 km northeast of Ujung Pandang. B, Westdipping section of
Paleogene strata. Sparsely woodedforeground areais formed ofshaleandturbiditicsiltstonewooded ridge inmiddledistanceis of
shale andquartzosesandstone,withcoal beds andtheturretedskyline ridgeis oflimestone. Viewsouthwestwardfromabout50km
northeast of Ujung Pandang. C, Tower karst developed from flatlying middle Tertiary limestone southwest of Bantimala. D,
Caveriddled karst towers, middle Tertiarylimestone, west ofBantimala. Photographs A and Bby D. E. Wolcott.

DevelopmentCo.,Ltd., 1971,1972Sukamto, 1973a, 1975a

D. E. Wolcott, written commun., 1971). Fresh biotite or
hornblendebiotite granodiorite and quartz monzonite are
thedominantgraniticrocks,quartzdioriteiscommon,and
smallintrusionsofvariablyalteredandmoremaficrocksare
presentalso. Themetamorphicrocksincludeslate,phyllite,
chlorite schist, biotite schist and gneiss, amphibolite, and
graniticgneisswhetherpreTertiaryrocksarepresentisnot
known,andthePaleogenedesignationonthetectonicmapis
uncertain. The Neogene volcanic rocks are the extrusive
equivalentsofthegraniticrocksandpresumablyinpartalso
form their roofs.

Twentythreesamplesofintermediateandsilicicvolcanic,
hypabyssal, and plutonic rocks and metamorphic rocks
from the South Arm, westcentral Sulawesi, andthesouth
end oftheNorthArmhavebeendatedbytheKArmethod
(J. D.ObradovichinU.S.GeologicalSurvey, 1975,p. 163J.
D. Obradovich,writtencommun., 1974N. D.Coggleshall,
GulfResearch and Development Corp., writtencommun.,
1972 NikkoExplorationandDevelopmentCo.,Ltd., 1971
Sukamto, 1975a, b). Thesedates scatteronlyfrom 1.6to31
m.y., and most ofthem, includingthe reliable ages on the
granitic and metamorphic rocks, are within the range 514

164

TECTONICS OF THE INDONESIAN REGION

m.y. The magmatism thus occured at least mostly within alkalic volcanic and intrusive rocks, plus raised reef
middle and late Miocene time.
limestone (Hetzel, 1930a). I have seen an oilcompany
The rest oftheNorth Armis formedmostlyofvolcanic, reflectionprofileshowingthatthickstrataeastofSalayartip
volcaniclastic, and graniticrocks(Ahlburg, 1913 Bucking, westwardtowardthedeep,narrowtroughatthebaseofthat
1904a Koperberg, 1929 Ratman, 1976). Constructional long,straightisland. Presumablythistroughisatrenchthat
volcanicformsarepreservedintheeastpartofthearm,near wasrecentlyinactivated.ThevolcanicrocksofSalayarand
the stillactive northeasttip: the activezone apparentlyhas the ridge to the southeast ofit, and alsothelarge,inactive
shortenednortheastwardwithtime.(Inanothersection,this volcano in the southeast corner of the South Arm of
is ascribed to the oroclinal folding of the North Arm as Sulawesi, are inferred to belongtotheinactive subduction
subductionfromtheeast, ontheSangihesystem, gave way system.
progressively to subduction from the north, on the North
SUBDUCTION COMPLEXES OF THE EASTERN ARC
Sulawesi system.) Otherwise, dated sedimentary rocks
intercalated in volcanic sections are Miocene or younger.
Therocksand structures ofeastcentralSulawesiandof
The northeasternmost reported Paleogene fossils are in theEastandSoutheastArmsdefineabroad,asymmetricarc
sedimentaryrockssouthoftheequator,nearthebaseofthe of ophiolite, melange, and imbricated sedimentary and
NorthArm(Ahlburg, 1913 Brouwer, 1934, p. 59,206).The metamorphic rocks(fig. 81), interpretedasthe productsof
volcanic rocks are mostly andesite and dacite, although westdipping subduction during Late Cretaceous(?),
leuciticrockshavebeenfound,andthewidespreadgranitic Paleogene(?), and Neogene time. Several quasiconcentric
rocks of the western part of the arm are typically arcuatebeltscanbebroadlydelineatedwithinthesesubduc
hornblendebiotite granodiorite and quartz monzonite tionproducedcomplexes.Thewesternbelt,presumablythe
(Bucking, 1904a Koperberg, 1929). Two clusters of oldest, is characterizedbyglaucophaneschistandpolymict
porphyrycopperquartzdioriteplutonsoflate Mioceneage melange. Nexttothisis adiscontinuousbeltdominatedby
are intrusive into older Miocene intermediate and silicic sedimentaryandlowgrademetasedimentaryrocks.Nextis
volcanic rocks farther east in the NorthArm(Dow, 1976). aterrainoflargemassesofophioliteandsubordinateonesof
The nonvolcaniclastic sedimentsinthevolcanicsections of sedimentary rocks. Last, on the east, occur increasingly
most of the arm are pelagic carbonates, clays, and abundant sedimentary rocks, intercalatedtectonicallywith
radiolarites, variablytuffaceous(Koperberg, 1929, pt. 1, p. ophioliteinthewestbutlappingontooneortwocontinental
2130, 249), and an islandarcsettingis inferred, similarto fragmentsintheeast. ThestructuralgrainoftheSoutheast
that ofthe present Sangihe Arc.
Arm is eastsoutheasterly, oblique to the general
Active volcanoes on Sulawesi are now confined to the southsoutheast trend of the arm (figs. 81, 84). This
northeast tip of the North Arm, where many vents on eastsoutheasterly grain is recorded by boththe structures
numerouscones haveeruptedwithinhistorictime(Effendi, withinthebedrockterrainsandbytheyounguplifts,basins,
1976 Koperberg, 1929 Neumann van Padang, 1951, p. and faults by which they are deformed.
227244). (The active volcanicisland ofUnaUna,between
WESTERN BLUESCHISTANDMELANGE BELT
Northand East Arms, is described inanothersection.)The
rocks are dominantly andesitic. The volcanic chain here
Glaucophane schistisabundantinthewesternpartofthe
represents the south end of the Sangihe Island Arc. A eastern arc in central Sulawesi, the southwestern and
Benioff seismic zone dips westward deep into the mantle southernpartsoftheSoutheastArm,andinKabaenaIsland
beneath the Celebes (Sulawesi) Sea, but, as discussed in a (fig. 85 Abendanon, 191618, v. 2 Bothe, 1927 Brouwer,
subsequent section, the overriding Sangihe plate here has 1934, 1947 Dieckmann and Julius, 1925 Hetzel, 1927 de
collided with the westwardadvancing Halmaheraplate as Roever, 1947, 1950, 1953, 1956 Willems, 1937 Wunderlin,
the intervening Molucca Sea plate has been subducted at 1914). The blueschistfacies rocks contain glaucophane,
both sides. Alkalic volcanic rockstrachyandesite and crossite, lawsonite, jadeite, and aegerine. Rocks of lower
trachyteoccuratthewestsideofthevolcanicterrainatthe grade, but likely still indicative ofrelatively high ratios of
northeast tip of the North Arm (Effendi, 1976), as is pressure totemperature,containsuch minerals asprehnite
appropriate to formationaboveawestdippingsubduction and pumpellyite. Thesehighpressurerocksarejuxtaposed
system.
chaoticallywith metamorphicrocksofquitedifferentfacies
(amphibolite, epidote amphibolite, greenschist, phyllite),
INACTIVE ISLAND ARC: BETWEEN THE SOUTH ARM AND
with unmetamorphosed to metamorphosed pelagic chert
FLORES
and limestone, and with ophiolite masses. As de Roever
Salayar(Selayar) andtheisletsjustsouthofitconsistof (1953)emphasized,theseconjunctionsofrocksrepresenting
volcanicrocksandofNeogenesedimentaryrocks(Verbeek, such different pressuretemperature fields require large
1908a, b). The small islands farther southeast (Kayuadi, offsets on the bounding faults. Tectonic intercalation of
Tanahjampea, Kalao, and Bonerate, 120170 km north of contrasted types occurs on both large (Hetzel, 1927 de
Flores) consist of undated andesite, basalt, and highly Roever, 1953) and small scales, and descriptions in the

165

SULAWESI (CELEBES)
12200'

FIGURE 84.Landsat image of the Southeast Arm of Sulawesi. The overall trend of the peninsula is
southsoutheastward, but the dominant structural grain is eastsoutheast. See figure 85 for geologic map.
NASAERTS pictures 109601340 and 01343, October 1972.

166

TECTONICS OF THE INDONESIAN REGION

Metamorphicrocks,
includingabundant
glaucophaneschist
121

/Triassic,Jurassic, Cretaceous,and
Paleogenel?) sedimentaryrocks

Quaternary
+alluvium \ "*

Quaternary
alluvium

122

123

BANGGAI
ISLANDS
PLATFORM

ImbricatedJurassictolowerMiocene
sedimentaryrocksandsubordinate
ultramaficandothercrystallinerocks

SOROAKA
NICKEL
, DEPOSIT,
Ultramaficand
muchsubordinat
maficrockssmall
slicesofpelagiti
sedimentaryrocks

'Shadedareas t>
hereto Lake
Matano: Pal'
andCretaceo
landolder?)
sedimentaryrock
mostlylimeston
gentlyto sev
deformed

TriassicandJurassiclandpresumablyalso
CretaceousandPaleogene)sedimentary
andlow tomiddlegrade
'
metasedimentaryrocks

POMALA

^
^DEPOSIT

Imbricated
continentalshelf
andcontinental
slope Triassicto
Miocenestrata

UpperNeogene
I strata I
Metavolcanic!and
meiasedirrlentary
rocks
Possible axisofantiforrrr^~

UpperNeogene
carbonateand
clasticstrata,
moderately
deformed
100 KILOMETERS

SULAWESI (CELEBES)

literature indicate that polymict melange is probably very

widespread.ThusBrouwer(1934)referred(Itranslatefreely)
to"stronglysqueezedschistsofabrecciousaspect"(p.69),a
"tectonicmixedzone"(p. 92), "phylliticconglomerate"and
"very strong***folding and scale formation" (p. 93), and
"stronglymylonitized conglomeraticphyllite"(p. 107). The
blueschistandmelangeterrain hasyielded nodatedfossils,
although radiolaria are widely present in thecherts,andis
dated directly only as older than the middle or upper
Miocene and younger strata that overlie it north ofLake
Poso (van der Vlerk and Dozy, 1934, p. 195197).
Topographydeveloped on thisterrainincentralSulawesiis
stronglylineated(figs. 86,91),andsevereimbricationwithin
it is obvious. The oldestdatedstrataoftheshallowmarine
andcontinentalsectionthatlocallyoverliesthesecomplexes
areofmiddleorlateMioceneageinthesoutheastpartofthe
South Arm, butthestratacontainreworked lateOligocene
or early Miocene shallowwater foraminifers that likely
came from other beds overlying the highly deformed and
metamorphosedcomplex(P. BaumannandJ.Sigal,written
commun., 1971).
BELTOF SEDIMENTARY AND METASEDIMENTARY ROCKS

167

The sedimentary rocks represent both pelagic and terrig

enousclastic sedimentation: red andgraychert,limestone,
andshalequartzoseandmicaceoussandstones.Triassicand
JurassiccephalopodsandclamsandCretaceous,orpossibly
Tertiary, pelagic foraminifers have been found in a few
places. Also abundant are lowgrade metasedimentary
rocks, including schist, phyllite, slate, and quartzite and
piedmontitebearingmetachert. Blueschistis unknown,but
rocks bearingpumpellyiteandprehnitehavebeenreported.
Nothingisknownaboutthestratigraphyoftherocks,which
are highly deformed, much sheared, and intercalated tec
tonically with ophiolite fragments and with metamorphic
rocks including amphibolite. The juxtaposition of such
unrelated rock types indicates that polymict melange
probablyiswidespread.Silver,Joyodiwirya,andMcCaffrey
(1978) described melange, which they inferred from a
reconnaissancegravitysurveytobeveryvoluminousdespite
its minimalexposures. A largeirregularareaoftowerkarst
in the Southeast Arm, centered at about lat 320' S., long
12115' E. (unpub. International Nickel Indonesia photo
geologic map), shows the presence ofalargemass oflime
stone, but whether this is within or atop the complex is
unknown.

This next belt forms a broad but poorly known band

OPHIOIJI E AND SEDIMENTARY ROCKS
trendingnorthwestwardacross theSoutheastArm(fig. 85),
andanarroweranddiscontinuousbandtrendingirregularly
Most of the East Arm and of the northeast part ofthe
northward across the east part of central Sulawesi to the Southeast Arm consists of a broad expanse of ophiolite
Gulf of Tomini (Bothe, 1927 Brouwer, 1934, p. 87102 interspersed with smaller masses ofMesozoicandTertiary
1947 DieckmannandJulius, 1925 de Roever, 1947, 1950). sedimentary rocks (figs. 81, 85). Ultramafic rocks are
dominant and are mostly peridotite (harzburgiteand Iher
EXPLANATION
zolite),plusalittleduniteandpyroxenite,andtheirvariably
crushed, brecciated, sheared, and serpentinized derivatives
Western beltCharacterized by abundant
glaucophane schist
(Abendanon, 191618, v. 2, p. 536537 Kundig, 1956 de
Roever, 1947 Soeria Atmadja and others, 1974). The
Eastern belt
compositions ofthe primary minerals indicate crystalliza
Mostly nonmetamorphosed to variably
metamorphosed, but nonglaucophanitic,
tion of much of the peridotite under uppermantle con
Mesozoic and Paleogene rocks
ditions rather than near the surface (International Nickel
Ultramafic and muchsubordinate mafic
Indonesia, 1972). Someoftheultramaficrockshoweverare
rocks
highlevelcumulatesatSoroaka(onthesouthsideofLake
Matano), I was shown by International Nickel geologists
Contact
pegmatitic pyroxenite and olivineilmenite rock, types
known from the upper cumulate parts of the ultramafic
Strikeslip faultArrows show relative
movement
phases of ophiolites elsewhere. Gabbro, diabase, basalt,
spilite, amphibolite, and greenschist are widely associated
Thrust faultTeeth on upper plate
with the ultramafic rocks and are ofmajor volume in the
Anticlinal axis

FIGURE 85.Geologic map ofthe Southeast ArmofSulawesiand neighboringislands. Awestern belt(darkshading)ischaracterized by

abundant glaucophane schist, and an eastern belt consists mostly of nonmetamorphosed to variably metamorphosed, but
nonglaucophanitic,MesozoicandPaleogenesedimentaryrocks(lightshading)andultramaficandmuchsubordinatemaficrocks(cross
pattern). Thecontactbetweenthebelts definescurves in the northwesternandsoutheasternpartsoftheareawhichmaybeoroclines.
Modified freelyfrompublished reports(mostlyin the pre1940 Dutchliterature)andfroma 1971 photogeologicmapbygeologistsof
InternationalNickel Indonesiamostofthe region is verypoorlyknown. Reconnaissancebathymetriccontours,interval 1,000m,are
from a 1968 compilation by Robert L. Fisher ofthe Scripps Institution ofOceanography.

168

TECTONICS OF THE INDONESIAN REGION

mm
oi'RK 86. Vertical aerial photograph of strongly lineated terrain ofglaucophane schist and Mesozoic sedimentary rocks, Pompangeo
Mountains,(eastnortheast of Lake Poso, which is showninfig. 79),centralSulawesi. Severeimbricationis madeobviousbytheoblique
truncations ofthe ridges eroded alongbeddingandfoliation. Neogene sedimentary rockscover thedeformedcomplex in the southwest
(upperright).Thecenteroftheareaillustratedisnearlat l45'S.,long12055'E.PhotographprovidedbyInternationalNickelIndonesia.

SULAWESI (CELEBES)

East Arm but ofgenerally minor volume in the Southeast

Arm. Presumably these ultramafic and mafic complexes
representlargemassesofoceanicmantleandcrust,although
their size and the relative scarcity of mafic rocks in the
Southeast Arm pose problems.
Abundant small masses of Mesozoic and Tertiary
sedimentary rocks are intercalated tectonically with the
ultramafic and mafic rocks (Abendanon, 191618, v. 2
Brouwer, 1934, 1947 Dieckmann and Julius, 1925 von
Loczy, 1934 vanderVlerkand Dozy, 1934). The sedimen
taryrocks have inmanylocalitiesyieldedTriassic,Jurassic,
Cretaceous, and lower or middle Miocene fossils. Dated
Mesozoic rocks are limestones, whereas some Miocene
rocks contain detrital quartz there is much undated
sandstoneandshale. Muchofthelimestone,marl,chert,and
siliceous shale is red and radiolarian, and abyssal pelagic
deposition can be inferred. Described contacts between
sedimentary and crystalline rocks are faulted. I examined
several ofthe contacts between ultramaficrocksandsmall
slices of gray limestone, red radiolarian chert, and red
siliceousshaleexposedincutsalongtheroadbetweenMalili
and Soroaka they showed much shearing.
Large massesofMesozoicandTertiarysedimentaryrocks
alsooccurwithintheophiolitedominatedterrain.Thelarge
mass of limestone and subordinate chert at the southwest
side ofLake Matano(fig.85)ismoderatelytosteeplyfolded,
considerablycontortedonasmallscale,andlocallysheared
(Koolhoven, 1932). The rocks likely are abyssal pelagic
sediments. The lower part of the section consists of
interbedded gray limestone, brownishred limestone con
tainingradiolaria, marl,andmanganiferousredradiolarian
chertalittleredclayispresentatthebase.Theupperpartof
the section consists of gray and brownishgray limestone.
The limestone mass is bounded againsttheperidotitetothe
east bya westdipping zone of highlyshearedserpentinite.
Within the southern part of the mass are zones, dipping
mostlysouth,ofmylonitizedserpentinitemelangeenclosing
clasts of amphibolite, garnet amphibolite, quartzite, and
piedmontite quartzite presumablythe peridotite and other
rocks to the south are thrust over the mass, although this
geometry has not been demonstrated. As Koolhoven con
cluded, the surroundingultramaficrocksmayrepresentthe
oceanic basement upon which the sectionwasdepositedat
abyssal depths, although the expected oceanic crustal
section of basalt, diabase, and gabbro has not been
recognizedaroundthemassandhencehasbeenremovedby
faulting. The only fossils dated from the strata are pelagic
Upper Cretaceous foraminifers (van Bemmelen, 1949, p.
414).
The mass ofsedimentaryrockssoutheastofLakeTowuti
(fig. 85) consists of Mesozoic and Tertiary limestone and
calcareousshaleandsandstone(fig. 87/4, DBrouwer, 1934,
p. 7276 van der Vlerk and Dozy, 1934, p. 185). The
stratigraphyofthemassisunknown,butTriassicorJurassic

169

belemniteshavebeenfoundinredmanganiferouslimestone,
UpperCretaceousforaminifersinchertypinklimestone,and
Tertiary foraminifers in quartzsandy limestone. Perhaps
the Mesozoic part ofthesectionconsists ofabyssal pelagic
sediments and resembles the section at Lake Matano,
whereas the Tertiary part is a continentalrise section
deposited over the pelagic strata. The limestone of the
northernpartofthemassdipsgentlysouthwardabovemafic
and, dominantly, ultramafic rocks(fig. 87/4 unpub., 1971,
photogeologic map by InternationalNickel Indonesia[IN
CO]). Elsewhere aroundthemass,tectonicintercalationsof
sedimentary and ultramafic rocks (including "breccious
serpentine*** mylonites") and subordinate maficrocksare
present,dipsaremostlymoderate,andsmallscaledeforma
tion is conspicuous (Brouwer, 1934, p. 72).
The much larger mass of sedimentary rocks, extending
inland from the east coast southeast of Lake Towuti,
includesmuch limestone, for broadareasoftowerkarstare
present (unpub. INCO photogeologic mapping).
IMBRICATED SEDIMENTARY TERRAIN

The proportion of sedimentary rock intersliced with

ultramafic and mafic rocks increases toward the Gulf of
ToloinboththeEastandSoutheastArms,andsedimentary
rock dominates the imbricated terrain ofthe easternmost
exposed belt ofSulawesi. Much ofthe sedimentaryrockis
ofshallowwater origin.
Inthecoastalregionofbotharmsnearthewestendofthe
GulfofTolo,Triassicto Miocenerocksareimbricatedwith
each otherand with crystalline rocks (Brouwer, 1934 von
Ldczy, 1934 van der Vlerk and Dozy, 1934). Pelagic
sediments dominate the western part ofthis belt: red and
gray limestone, marl, and chert, mostly undated but
including Triassic to Upper Cretaceous fossils.
Shallowwater coralline Triassic limestone is also known.
The Tertiary includes Eocene clastic sediments and
Oligocene to lower or middle Miocene carbonate strata,
both types including many redeposited shallowwater
fossils.
FIGURE 87 (overleaf)Aerial views ofgeologic features ofnorth part of
SoutheastArmofSulawesi.A,Contact,possiblythrustfault,between
Mesozoic or Tertiary limestone (TMzl) and dominantly ultramafic
rocks(um)vieweast,15kmeastofcentralLakeTowuti.B,Ultramafic
rocks (um) thrust over Mesozoic or Tertiary clastic and carbonate
strata(TMzl)viewnorth,20kmwestofCapeLosoni.InAandB,note
differences in topographic texture and vegetation between the
sedimentary and ultramafic rocks. C, Intersliced ultramafic and
sedimentary rocks form lineated topography in foreground, and
imbricated Mesozoic and Miocene strataform the distant upfaulted
ridge. The Matano fault zone trends through the valley but is not
apparent in the picture. View north to Cape Losoni. D, Karst
developed on MesozoicorTertiarylimestone, 10 kmeastofsouthern
Lake Towuti distant ridges mostly ultramafic rocks view south.
Geologic interpretations by geologists of International Nickel In
donesiaphotographsbyHamilton.Placesnamedarelocated in figure
85.

170

TECTONICS OF THE INDONESIAN REGION

SULAWESI (CELEBES)

171

172

TECTONICS OF THE INDONESIAN REGION

Theeast partoftheEast Arm consists oflarge massesof

ophiolite, with subordinate tectonic intercalations of
Mesozoic sedimentary rocks, on the northwest, and ofa
northwestdipping imbricated complex of Mesozoic,
Paleogene,andMiocenestrata,onthesoutheast(figs.88,89
Koolhoven, 1930 unpub. 1941 report by R. H. Hopperas
cited by van Bemmelen, 1949, p. 6667, 149150, 394395
and,particularly,thesophisticatedreportbyKundig, 1956).
Thecomponentsoftheimbricatedcomplextendtobecome
youngerand to represent shallower waterenvironmentsof
sedimentation, toward the south coast, a short distance
beyond which is Peleng Island andthe otherislands ofthe
Banggai and Sula groups, with their Paleozoiccrystalline
basementand MesozoicandCenozoicplatformcover. The
southeastern partofthe imbricatedterrainisdominatedby
Eocene, Oligocene, and lower Miocene shallowwater
limestone and quartz sandstone. Correlative strata in the
medialpartoftheimbricatecomplexaredeeperwatermarls
and clastic rocks. The northwestern part ofthe imbricated
terrain is a more complicated hash of Mesozoic and
12200'

Cenozoicdeepandshallowwatersedimentaryrocksandof
ophiolite fragments. The deformationoccurred progressively,
beginning in middle or late Miocene time: lower Miocene
strata are fullyinvolved in the imbrication, upper Miocene
clasticsedimentsderivedfromthethrustbeltarefoldedand
locallybrokenbythrustfaults,andPlioceneclasticrocksare
moderatelydeformed. PostdeformationQuaternary(?)reef
limestones are uplifted as high as 400 m above sea level.
The island of Buton (Boeton, Butung), offthe southeast
end of the Southeast Arm, displays a similar imbricated
terrainthatincludesshallowwaterstrataandophioliteslices
(fig. 85 van Bemmelen, 1949, p. 4214221 Bothd, 1927
Hetzel, 1937 unpub. 1971 INCO photogeologicmap). The
crystalline rocks are variably crushed amphibolite,
greenschist,serpentinite,harzburgite,andgabbro.Sedimen
tary rocks include fossiliferous Triassic strata
(shallowwater shale, marl, limestone, quartzose and
micaceous sandstones, and conglomerate), Jurassic marl
andlimestonecontainingammonitesandbelemnites,cherty
Cretaceous limestone containingpelagic foraminifers, and
12230'

FIGURE 88.LandsatimageofnortheastpartofEastArmofSulawesi. Seefigure89forgeologicmap.Thegeologyis interpretedtorecord

thecollisioninlate MioceneandPliocenetimeoftheBanggaiIslandsminicontinentalfragmentwiththenorthwestdippingsubduction
system of Sulawesi. Picture NASAERTS 109601334, October 1972.

173

SULAWESI (CELEBES)
12200'

12230'

ImbricatedEocenetolowerMiocene
continentalshelflimestone and
quartzsandstone^

GULF
OF

TOM/TV/
Quaternary
alluvium

100'

UpperNeogene
. clasticstrata.

+ Ultramaficrocks and
+ subordinate gabbro,
+ metagabbro, and
+ greenschistsomeslicesof
Mesozoic sedimentary +
rocks

RaisedQuaternary
coralreefs

UpperPaleozoic
granite

UpperMioceneandPliocene
forelandbasin clastic sediments,
derivedfrom northwest
Imbricatedcomplex ofophiolite
fragmentsandMesozoic and
Paleogene deepandshallow
watersedimentary rocks
EXPLANATION
Contact

Thrust faultTeeth on upper plate

Axis ofanticline

FIGURE 89.Geologicmapofareaillustratedbyfigure88. ModifiedfromKundig(1956, 1:500,000scalegeologicmap)minormodifications

from an unpublished 1971 photogeologicmap by International Nickel Indonesia andfrom the imagery offigure 88.

upperOligoceneorlowerMioceneshallowwaterlimestone.
Middle(?) and upper Miocene carbonates and mudstones
overlietheimbricatecomplexunconformablywestofButon
butthickeneastward,withincreasingdeformationbyfolds
thatgrewconcurrentlywithsedimentation,toButon,where
they are imbricated, witheastdirected structures, withthe
olderrocks. DelormationofMesozoicand Cenozoicstrata
decreases offshore, east ofButon. Pliocene or Quaternary
coral reefs are raised as high as 700 m above sea level on
Buton and 400 m on the island ofMuna to the west (van
Bemmelen, 1949, p. 421 Bothd, 1927).

beneaththemand ofthecollision ofoneortwocontinental

fragments with that subduction system in Miocene time.
Thewestern belt ofthiseastern,Sulawesi terrainconsists
ofimbricatedsheetsandmelangeandincludesglaucophane
schist, abyssal pelagic sediments, and ophiolite fragments.
The subduction recorded here cannot be dated from
evidenceyetavailablewithinthebelt,butLateCretaceousor
Paleogene age can be inferred from the position of the
terrain between dated Cretaceous and middle Tertiary
subduction complexes. The next belt east, of imbricated
sedimentary and metasedimentary rocks, includes both
pelagicandterrigenoussedimentaryrocksthatareatleastas
INTERPRETATION
young as Cretaceous a subductionmixed assemblage of
TheEastandSoutheastArmsofSulawesiareregardedas openoceanand oftrenchorouterarcbasinsedimentsmay
displaying the products of Tertiary subduction westward be represented.

174

TECTONICS OF THE INDONESIAN REGION

The next broad belt is of ophiolite and subordinate

sedimentary rocks, the latter likely representing primarily
deepwaterpelagicsedimentation.Presumablyweseeherea
broadly raised region ofoceanic lithosphere, crumpled by
deformationrelatedto thesubductionprocess. Ananalogy
with better known structural relationships ofthe Solomon
Islands and the oceanic Ontong Java Plateau to the
northeast of them (as described briefly in a subsequent
section) can be suggested. There, oceanic crust, carryinga
thickblanketofpelagicCretaceousandCenozoicsediments,
has been imbricatedand raisedbysubductiontoformlarge
faultblocksandanticlinesbothaboveandbelowsealevelin
thenortheasternpartoftheSolomonIslands. Inthecaseof
Sulawesi, similar imbricationwas followed by much more
subduction, which ended when a continental fragment
collided with the resulting complexes.
The sedimentdominatedeasternimbricatecomplexes of
Sulawesi appear to again record westward subduction, in
this case directly beneath the ophiolitedominated terrain.
The simplest case to interpretis that oftheeast partofthe
East Arm, where theshelffacies MesozoicandTertiarylie
atopthePaleozoicbasementofthecontinentalBanggaiand
SulaIslandsandareimbricatedwithnorthwestdipsbeneath
the ophiolitic terrain: a BanggaiSulacontinentalfragment
collided with the Sulawesisubductionsystem.Thecollision
occurred within Miocenetime,forlowerMiocenestrataare
fullyinvolvedintheimbrication,andupperMioceneclastic
rocks were derived from the thrust belt butarethemselves
considerably deformed. The deeperwater terrigenous
Mesozoic and Paleogene stratafartherwestand northwest
in the imbricate belt represent the sedimentary apron
flanking the continental fragment, now rumpled together
with openocean sediments and ophiolite slices. The inter
pretationismadeelsewherethattheBanggaiSulafragment
was torn from northwestern New Guinea and carried
westwardalongastrandoftheSorongleftlateralstrikeslip
fault system.
Butonalsodisplaysshallowwaterstrata,includingquart
/ose and micaceous sandstones of presumed continental
derivation, in its imbricate complex so this complex also
mayrecord the collision ofa continentalfragmentwiththe
Sulawesi subduction system. No old continental basement
rocks areexposed on Buton, buttheymaybepresentinthe
subsurface. Buton andthesubmarinebankssoutheastofit
(fig. 85) may comprise a continental fragment, carried
westwardtoSulawesifromNewGuineaonastrikeslipfault
older than that bounding the BanggaiSula mass farther
north.
Other sedimentary rocks oftheeasternmostexposedarc
ofSulawesiaroundthewestendoftheGulfofToloprovide
amixtureofdeepwaterandshallowwater,andpelagicand
terrigenous, Mesozoicand Miocenematerials.Thesecanbe
accounted for in a subduction model as representing
variouslyopenoceansediments,trenchorbasindepositson

the Sulawesi side, and continentflanking deposits on the

east side.
NICKEL ORE

Theresidualmaterialsproducedbytropicalweatheringof
ultramaficrocksare potentialnickeloredepositsoverhuge
areas incentral Sulawesiandits EastandSoutheastArms.
Two large deposits are now under development, one by
International Nickel Indonesia(INCO)at Soroaka on the
south side of Lake Matano, the other by an Indonesian
government operation at Pomala on the west coast ofthe
Southeast Arm (fig. 85 information supplied by INCO
geologists Waheed Ahmad and B. Vishnu Pada). Un
weatheredultramaficrockscontainonetoseveraltenthsofa
percent ofnickel, andthis is concentrated byweatheringto
values thataverage as high as 2percentnickelassilicatesin
enormous volumes ofmaterial. Theweathered materialon
the ultramafic rocks typically consists of an upper yellow
laterite, a lower maroon laterite, and a basal zone of
interspersed fresh rock and residual material that carries
most ofthe nickel (fig. 90). Grades are similar in deposits
formed from fresh peridotite (as at Soroaka) and from
serpentinite(asat Pomala),buttheperidotiteismuchmore
economicaltoprocessbecausethenickelbearingweathered
materialcan beremovedbytumblingwithserpentinite,the
unweatheredrockitselfcrumbleswhenthisisattempted,so
muchmorematerialmustbeprocessedfurthertoobtainthe

FIGURE 90.Nickel ore produced by weathering of peridotite (harz

burgite), Soroaka, central Sulawesi. A. Yellow lateriteandsoilvery
lownickelcontent. B, Darkmaroonlateritecontainsabout 1 percent
nickelandveryhighironcanbeconcentratedasferronickelalloy,but
processingnotpresentlyeconomic.C,Mineablezoneofblocksoffresh
harzburgitewithyellowrindsandinterstitialsaprolitecontainsabout
2percentnickel,mostlyintheweatheredmaterial,whichisremovedby
tumbling the blocks and is processed to metal containing75 percent
nickel. Cut is 8 m high.

SULAWESI (CELEBES)

nickel. The Soroaka deposit is jexpected to supply about

45,000 metric tons of nickel per year, all or most ofit to
Japan, by 1980.
BOUNDARY BETWEEN EASTERN AND WESTERN ARCS

The blueschistandmelange Late Cretaceous or

PaleogeneterrainoftheeasternarcofSulawesiisincontact
with the Neogene graniticandvolcanic terrain of the
western arc along an irregular line trending generally
northward across central Sulawesi near the meridian of
12920'E. (fig. 81). Graniticrocks,andmetamorphicrocks
bearingeitherbiotite orpotassicfeldspar, occurwestofthe
zone, whereas blueschists occur east ofit (Brouwer, 1934,
1947 Egeler, 1947). Brouwer(1947)interpreted partofthe
boundary as a mylonite zone, but his descriptions suggest
thathe mayinstead have seeneasternarcmelangedipsare
steep to the west. In the northeast part ofthe SouthArm,
west of the projection southward ofthe central Sulawesi
boundary, postOligocenegraniticrocksintrudeprelate(?)
Eocene melange.
STRIKESLIP FAULTS

WESTERN SULAWESI

175

displacement appears required. In another part, the most

activestrandismarkedbytwoleftlateralshutterridges,one
2 km long and the other 4 km. At the latitude of this
shutterridge sector, another, older strand, higher up the
valleywalland3 kmtotheeast,hasoffsetamajorcanyonby
3 kmandmidwaybetweenthesestrands,anotherfaulthas
produced stream offsets of about 300 m. Each of these
strands in the fault zone is marked by a straight, narrow
trough that cuts directlyacross erosional topography.The
faultsystemisobviouslymovingathighvelocitynow,andits
totaloffsetis likelymuchgreaterthantheminimumof7km
indicated bytopographicdisplacementsintheshutterridge
sector, Geologic mappingalongthe faultzone is notgood
enough to permit suggestions regarding offsets ofbedrock
geologic units.
Northofaboutlat 140'S.,theriftvalleyofthePalufault
broadens and becomes a flatfloored trough bounded on
both sides by faultblocks. Lateraloffsetsare notgenerally
conspicuous on aerial photographs in this sector. At least
one strand ofthefaultatthesouthend ofthebraod valley
underwentsurfaceoffsetduringasevereearthquakein 1909
(Abendanon, 191618, v. 2, p. 888891).
The continental slope at the north edge ofSulawesi is
bounded by the North Sulawesi Trench (discussed subse
quently), which extends westward to the edge of the
continental slope of northeast Borneo. The Palu fault is
suggested on the tectonic map and on figure 81 to project
northnorthwestward along strike from its rift valley on
Sulawesiandtoconnectwiththewestendofthistrench.The
trench may mark the boundary ofa small Sulawesi plate
whichisoverridingtheflooroftheCelebesSea,andthePalu
faultmayboundthisplate,onthewestside,againstBorneo
and southwest Sulawesi.
A possible major straight fault zone (Sadang) trends
northnorthwestward farther west, obliquely across the
South Arm (fig. 81). Faults ofthis zone bound mountain
massesinthesouthpartofthearmandproducethestraight
valley ofthe Sadangand MasupuRiversinthe northpart.
The fault zone may now be active, for landslides dam the
rivers along its course in the valley (K. B. Ketner, oral
commun., 1972). Ifthisisindeedathroughgoingfaultzone,
then presumably it is a leftslip structure. Faults trending
northward inthe southernpart ofthe South Armperhaps
alsoare dominantly ofstrikeslip character.
The mountains ofthenortheastcorneroftheSouthArm
are cut by two straight, southtrending systems ofalined
valleys(figs. 93,94/4),subparalleltotheSadangfaulttothe
westandthePalufaulttothenortheast.Thestraightnessof
thesevalleysystemssuggestsacontrolbystrikeslipfaulting.

The active leftlateral Palu faulttrends northnorthwest

across westcentral Sulawesi (fig. 81) andapparentlyisthe
west boundary ofa lithosphere plate that is overridingthe
Celebes(Sulawesi)Seafloortothenorth.TheSadangfault,
paralleltoandwestofthePalu,maybeanotherofthesame
family.
The Palufaultismarkedbyacontinuousriftvalley,which
has a flat floor 5 km or so wide in its northern Palu
ValleyGulfofPalusector(forwhichthefaultisnamed)but
which is narrow throughout the rest ofits length (fig. 91).
The valley walls rise 1,5002,500 m above the floor. Katili
(1970a) recognized the leftlateral character of the fault,
whichhetermedthePaluKorofault.Abendanon(191618,
v. 2, p.916917)termedthestructuretheFossaSarasinaand
puzzled overtheoddjuxtapositionsit producedthatcould
notbe explainedbyverticaloffsets.TjiaandZakaria(1974)
noted physiographicevidenceforleftlateralfaultingalong
the northern part ofthe fault.
1 studied aerialphotographsofthefaultnorthwardfrom
lat 2 S. to the northwest coast. Leftlateral offsets onold
andyoungstrandsofthefaultarespectacularlyshownovera
zone several kilometers wide between 140' and 200' S.
Most ofthis sector is illustrated by fig. 92. At present the
mostactivestrandisnearthevalleyfloor,anditcrossesata
low angle from one side to the other. In one part, all side
drainage have been displaced 5001,000 m in leftlateral
EASTERN SULAWESI
fashion. (Katili, 1970a, referred to some of these offsets.)
The active leftlateral Matano fault trends
About4 km totheeastofthislocality, anolderstrand has
disarranged topography on a large scale offset drainage westnorthwestward across central Sulawesi and passes
cannot be neatly matched, but a number ofkilometers of through Lake Matano (fig. 85). The apparent offset of

176

TECTONICS OF THE INDONESIAN REGION

12000'

i?roo'

ovoo

0200'
Ficu'Ri 91.Landsat image of northcentral Sulawesi. The highlands west of about long 12030' E. consist of granitic rocks,
hightemperature metamorphic rocks, and deformed sedimentary rocks, all ofTertiary age. The highlands to the east are formed
mostly of subductionimbricated complexes the strongly lineated terrain east and northeast of Lake Poso (see also fig. 86) is
characterized by glaucophane schist. Picture NASAERTS 109701392, October 1972.

contacts between major geologic units is about'15 km, as

illustratedbyfigure85butsomeoftherelevantcontactsare
veryuncertainlylocatedonthismap.Thefaultismarkedby
aconspicuousriftwhereitcrosseshillyterrain(fig.95).This
rift disrupts drainage patterns,andit is apparentin several
sectors, on vertical aerial photographs shown me by
geologists of International Nickel Indonesia (INCO), that
streamcoursesare offset in a leftslipsense. The riftswings
northwestward to the west of Lake Matano, which lies

within the rift zone and is almost 600 m deep. Waheed

AhmadofINCO(writtencommun., 1975)believesthattwo
geologiccontactsnearthelakeareeach offset20kmbythe
fault.
The Matano fault "zone is more active seismically than
appears to be the case on the earthquake map of the
Indonesian region(Hamilton, 1974b), because sevenearth
quakes along or near the fault were inadvertently omitted
from the map. These events compose an array trending

FIGURE92.AerialphotographsalongthePalufaultintheKoro Rivervalley,westcentralSulawesi.Theactivestrandofthefault,marked
by arrows, offsets gulliesand canyons in a leftlateralsense and produces shutterridges. Thetwopanelsoverlapslightly. Scaleand
coordinates are approximate only. Photographs taken by Lockwood Survey Corp. for Kokusai Aerial Surveys Co., October 1970.
1970.

SULAWESI (CELEBES)

12QQ4

ta

177

178

TECTONICS OF THE INDONESIAN REGION

FIGURE 93 Straight valleys along possible strikeslip faults in mountains in northeastcornerofSouthArm ofSulawesi. A, Northwest
from above the town of Palopo, across southtrending valley the same valley lies behind the foreground ridge offigure 94A, and
the pictured areasoverlap. B, Northwest over part oflongitudinal riftvalley,70 km long,trendingN. 10W..fromaboutlat331'S.,
long 12011'E. The peaks on the left are more than 3,000 m high.

SULAWESI (CELEBES)

179

FIGURE 94.Neogene structures ofcentral Sulawesi. A, Viewwestnorthwestward over faultblocksatthe northeast cornerofthe South
Arm.ThetownofPalopoisonthecoastjusttotheleftoftheareashown.B,ViewnorthwardacrossLakePoso.Theflankingmountains
are of metamorphic rocks, amongwhichglaucophaneschistis common. The moderateslopestowardthe lakesuggestthatsynclinal
downfoldinghas been more important than normal faultingin formingthe basin. The lake is at least440 m deep.

westnorthwestward,extendingfromaboutlong 12220'E.
to 12135' E., across the east coast ofSulawesi.
Conspicuousstraightvalleystrendnorthwestwardacross
the central part ofthe Southeast Arm and are thought by
INCO geologists to belong to a leftlateral fault zone, the

Lawanopo fault system (fig. 85 named for the Lawanopo

Plain,crossedbythefaults).Thestraightvalleysdonotform
acontinuouslineasviewedoneitherLandsatimages(fig.84)
or aerial photographs, and as they are parallel to the
structuralgrainoftheregion,nooffsetofgeologicunitscan

180

TECTONICS OF THE INDONESIAN REGION

FIGURE95.AerialviewsacrosstheMatanofault, markedbyarrows.Thefaultisanactiveleftlateralstructure. A,Viewnortheastward,

about 25 km west of Lake Matano. fi. View northward, about 2 km east of Lake Matano.

SULAWESI (CELEBES)

be demonstrated from the meager data available. The

Lawanopo zone might be produced by strikeslip faults
(presumablyleft lateral), orit mayrepresent valleyseroded
along the least resistant parts of the old terrain. Farther
south in the Southeast Arm, straight valleys trend
northwestward along the south flank of the Mendoke
Mountains.Thevalleysareparalleltotheregionalstructural
grain and do not define an obvious continuous line across
thepeninsulaleftlateralfaultingisapossiblecauseandhas
been inferred by INCO geologists. The Lawanopo fault(?)
system projects northwestward to the head ofthe Gulfof
Bone, and the Mendoke valley system projects along the
straightnorthwesttrendingpartofthecoastthatboundsthe
wideanddeep southernpartofthegulf. Leftlateraloffsets
onthesetwopossiblefaultsystemswould haveoperatedto
openthegulf.Assuchopeningis inferredonothergrounds,
it is possible that the systems are indeed important
leftlateral fault zones of Neogene age, now inactive in
contrast to the active Matano fault.
NORTH SULAWESI TRENCH

Atrenchliesalongthebaseofthecontinentalslopealong
the north side of Sulawesi (fig. 79) and is shown by
LamontDoherty reflection profiles (figs. 91A, B, 98/4,5).
ThethickturbiditesflooringtheCelebesSeaturndownward
atthe northside ofthis trenchandreceiveaveneerofother
sediments before disappearing southward beneath the
acoustic basement of the continental slope. A small out
erarc basin is developed behind a low outerarc ridge
midway up the continental slope (figs. 97/4, 985).
ISLANDS IN GILFOF TOMINI

181

ROTATING PLATE: THE NORTH SULAWESI TRENCH, PALU

FAULT, AND NORTHEAST SULAWESI OROCLINE

Northeastern Sulawesi appears to be rotatingclockwise

past southwestern Sulawesi and Borneo, as a small plate
bounded on the southwest by an arcuate system of
leftlateralfaults,andoverridingtheCelebesSeafloorinthe
northbysubductionattheNorthSulawesiTrench.ThePalu
and Matanofaultsarebothactiveleftlateralstructures,and
it is assumed on the tectonic map (pi. 1) that they curve
together and are partofa single fault system, althoughthe
connection is notyet proved. It was noted in priorsections
that otheractive orinactivestrikeslipstructuresmaytrend
southward in the northeast part of the South Arm, and
eastsoutheastwardacrosstheSoutheastArm,andbepartof
the same broadlysplayingsystem. Inadequateseismic data
suggest thataBenioffseismiczonedipssouthwardfromthe
North Sulawesi Trench, and active UnaUna volcano,
betweenNorthandEastArmsofSulawesi,maybeaproduct
ofthis subduction system.
The North Sulawesi Trench ends at the east where the
northeasttip oftheNorth Arm ofSulawesiswingsfroman
easterly trend to a northerly one. Active Sangihe Arc
volcanism extends southward to this same bend, but
volcanoesthat becameextinctinQuaternarytimecontinue
westward some distance from this bend. Presumablythese
recently extinct volcanoes, like the currently active ones,
formed abovethe Sangihe Benioffzone,buttherightangle
bend of the North Arm here makes subduction with the
presentgeometrydifficult tovisualize.Thesharpbendnear
the northeastendoftheNorthArmmaybeanoroclinethat
has progressed eastward withtime.This,ifcorrect,requires
thattheNorthSulawesiTrenchhasprogressivelylengthened
eastward,andwithittheeasttrendingsegmentoftheNorth
Arm,whileatthesametimetheSangiheTrench,andwithit
the northtrending segment at the end of the North Arm,
shortened northward. As the oroclinial axis progressed
eastward along the arm, subduction west of the orocline
flipped from westward beneath the east side to southward
beneath the north side. Collision with the HalmaheraArc,
discussed subsequently, greatly complicates the pattern.

TheTogianislands lie in the GulfofTominibetweenthe

North and East Arms of Sulawesi (fig. 81). UnaUna, the
northwesternisland ofthegroup,isanactivevolcanowhose
lavas include andesite(?) and mafic rhyodacite (Neumann
van Padang, 1951, p. 225227). The otherislands consist of
Neogenesedimentaryrocksand"youngvolcanicrocks"(van
Bemmelen, 1949, p. 394). The one chemical analysis
availableofan UnaUna rock(62percent SiC>2, 3.2percent COLLISIONOFCONTINENTALFRAGMENTSWITHSULAWESI
K 2O: Neumann van Padang, 1951, p. 226) suggests forma
SULA AND BANGGAI ISLANDS
tion above a deep part of a Benioff zone. Whether the
Benioff zone dips southward from the North Sulawesi
TheSulaand Banggai Islandsstandonanarrowridgeof
Trench or is a dying zone dipping northwestward from
continentalcrust, apparently torn from northwestern New
eastern Sulawesi is uncertain. (Compare pi. 1, Hamilton,
Guineaandcarriedwestwardalongaleftlateralfaultofthe
1974b, and Sukamto, 1975b.)
Sorongsystem(figs. 77, 53, 81). NorthwesternNewGuinea
shareswiththeSulaandBanggaiIslandsasimilarcontinen
SULAWESI AND REGIONAL TECTONICS
tal basement. The shallowwater Triassic, Jurassic, and
Sulawesi holds many vital clues to the evolution ofthe Cretaceous strata ofthe two terrainsare lithologicallyand
eastern Indonesian region. The subject matter presented paleontologically quite similar (van Bemmelen, 1949, p.
thus far on Sulawesi, Borneo, and the JavaBanda Arc 6667). The collision between the SulaBanggai fragment
system makes it appropriate to discuss here some of the and Sulawesiisrecordedinthegeologyoftheeasternpartof
broadrelationshipsofSulawesiwithothertectonicelements the East Arm (fig. 89). The northwestdipping imbricate
complexthere involvesshallowwater Paleogene and lower
ofIndonesia.

182

TECTONICS OF THE INDONESIAN REGION

NW
0j. ..,,..

CELEBES SEA

SE W

wsw

mmmfssfi
SANGIHE ARC

100

200 KILOMETERS

TYPICAL SCALE (VARIES WITH SHIP SPEED)

FIGURE 96.Seismic reflection profiles in the Celebes SeaMolucca Sea region. Notice the roughnessand lackofsedimentarycoveron
acousticbasementyoungmelangeoftheTalaudRidge.A,TheSangiheArcformedaboveasubductionzonedippingwestfromitseast
side, butthetraceofthiszonewas overriddenbymelangespreadingabovethecollisionzonebetweenSangiheandHalmaheraArcs.
SubductionrecentlyflippedtotheWestSangiheTrenchinthenorth,reversingtheoriginalpolarityoftheSangiheArc.TheCotabato
TrenchiscontinuouswiththeWestSangiheTrench.ThebasementofthenorthernCelebesSea,neartheCotabatoTrench,ismantledby
acoustically transparent pelagic sediments, but layered turbiditestaketheir placecloserto the SangiheArc. B,Theeastbase ofthe
SangiheArcsystemis herealsobeingoverriddenbytheTalaudwedgeofcollisionmelange,butinthissectortherehasnotyetbeena
flippingofsubductiontothewestsideoftheSangiheArc.TheridgesnorthofHalmaheramayhaveformedaspartoftheHalmahera
systembuthave beencapturedbythePhilippinesubductionsystemafterarcreversal theseridgesaremantled bypelagicsediments.
Locationofprofilesshown infigure79.ProfilesfromLamontDohertyGeologicalObservatory,R.V. Vemacruises24(B)and28(A).

183

SULAWESI (CELEBES)
HALMAHERA SEl

MOLUCCA SEA

SANGIHE ARC

TALAUD RIDGE
la

1000

Melangewedge

6000

PHILIPPINE SEA ENE

MOLUCCA SEA
TALAUD RIDGE
Melangewedge

rO

'

' '

Ridges north
ofHalmahera

Miocene limestone near the coast and deeperwater

Paleogene marl northwest across the strike. These lower
Tertiarystrataareinferredtorepresenttheshallowanddeep
portions, respectively, ofthecontinentalshelfdevelopedon
the minicontinent. The imbrication of shelf materials is
thoughttorepresenttherampingofthefrontoftheSulawesi
melange wedge onto the SulaBanggai fragment as that
fragment hit the northwestdipping subduction system in
late Miocene time. Clastic sediments were then shed
southeastwardfromtherisingthrustbelt,formingaforeland
basin whose fill lapped onto the SulaBanggai continental
basement(fig. 89). Theearly partofthefill wasbrokenby

~ ' "
0

1000

thrustsandfolds,showingthatitformedsynchronouslywith
theadvanceofthewedgeofmelangeandimbricatedstrata.
ThiscollisiongeologyisverysimilartothatofmedialNew
Guinea, discussed subsequently in this report.
SOUTHEAST SULAWESI

The middle Tertiary(?) melange of the east part ofthe

SoutheastArmandadjacentButoncontainsshallowwater
Triassic, Jurassic, Cretaceous, and, probably, Oligocene
sediments, and some of the Mesozoic clastic rocks are
quartzose and micaceous. A continentalshelf origin for
thesematerialswouldaccountfortheircharacter,andaNew

184

TECTONICS OF THE INDONESIAN REGION

NORTH SULAWESI TRENCH SYSTEM

I
100

200KILOMETERS

TYPICAL SCALE (VARIES WITH SHIP SPEED)

FIGURE 97.Seismicreflectionprofiles intheCelebes SeaMoluccaSea region. A,ThecompleteprofileoftheSangiheArcappearstobe

present,withouterarcridge,outerarcbasin,andvolcanicseamounts,formedaboveawestdippingBenioffzone.Melangeispresently
ridingwestwardontothearcattheEastSangiheTrench,however ThickturbiditesfloortheCelebesSea. B, Theroughbasementofthe
CelebesSeaismostlycoveredbythickturbidites,althoughvolcanicseamountswithveneersofpelagicsedimentsprojectthroughthem.
InthenorthnearZamboanga,theturbiditesaremoderatelydeformed,andinthesouththeydipbeneaththethinpondedstrataflooring
the North Sulawesi Trench. Location ofprofiles shown onfigure79. Profilesfrom LamontDohertyGeologicalObservatory, R. V.
Robert Conradcruise 14 (Qand R. V. Vema cruise 28 (D).

185

SULAWESI (CELEBES)
SANGIHE E

S
rO

N ARC

Melange wedge

MOLUCCA SEA

1000

3000 ^

4000

5000

6000

GuineasourceismorelikelythananorthwesternAustralian
one because of the warmwater nature of the Mesozoic
strata. A submerged platform extends about 200 km
eastsoutheastward fromButon. Itis 125 kmwideandrises
to shoals and reefs (Hetzel, 1930b), although much ofitis
deeperthan 1,000m. Thisplatformmightbeanothersmall
continentalfragment from New Guinea.

RIFTING OF MAKASSAR STRAIT

Eastern and southeastern sections of Borneo share

Cretaceous and early Paleogene features with Sulawesi
suggestivethatuntilmiddle Paleogenetime Sulawesiwasa
part of Borneo, oceanic Makassar Strait having opened
subsequently as Sulawesi drifted relatively southeastward
away from Borneo. Southeastern Borneo, the shelfto the
eastofit,andtheSouthArmofSulawesiallhavebasements

186

TECTONICS OF THE INDONESIAN REGION

NW
0,. BORNEO

pSULAWES^:.,.I1000
2000

3000

-4000

-5000 Hi

6000

1000

2000

3000 ^

4000

5000

6000

FIGURE 98. SeismicreflectionprofilesintheCelebesSeaMoluccaSearegion,AandB.TheturbiditesflooringtheCelebesSeaarecovered

bypondedtrenchturbidites before theyaresubductedattheNorthSulawesiTrench.C,Thedeepandsteepsided PhilippineTrenchmay
haveformed byreversalofpolarityofsubductiontowestwardbeneathHalmaheraaftercollisionofHalmaheraandSangiheArcs.Thepart
ol the MoluccaSeabasementnearthecenteroftheprofilehasamantleofsediments,whereasthatontheleftdoesnotandispresumably
younger. D, The Borneo continental slope is formed ofsediments brokenby normalfaultsandcutbycanyons. No basement is visible.
Locationofprofilesshowninfigure79. ProfilesfromLamontDohertyGeologicalObservatory,R. V. RobertConradcruise I4(fi)andR.
V. Vema cruises 20 (Oand 28 (A and D).

SULAWESI (CELEBES)

187
NNE
iO

SSW
Oi
y *

'

'" t ?*

MOLUCCA SEA

'
1000

2000

8000

NNW

SSE

BORNEO

5000

200 KILOMETERS
_I

100

TYPICAL SCALE (VARIES WITH SHIP SPEED)

of Cretaceous subduction complexes overlain by similar

lowerPaleogeneshelfstrata. InbothBorneoandSulawesi,
quartzose Eocene clastic strata and coal are overlain bya
thicksheetoflimestone,oflateEocene,Oligocene,andearly
Miocene age, which gives way northward tomostlyclastic
rocks. If Sulawesi has moved southeastward away from
Borneo,thewestwardbulge ofcentralSulawesihavingslid

alongthesoutheasttrendingedgeofthecontinentalshelfoff
southeasternBorneo,thenthelimestonesheetsandunderly
ing continental strata on both islands were initially con
tinuous. Rifting may have begun in Paleogene time the
eastwardthickeningofOligoceneandlowerMiocenestrata
onthecontinentalshelfofeastern Borneo mightrecordthe
tensional thinning of the continental crust as rifting

188

TECTONICS OF THE INDONESIAN REGION

progressed, before the complete sundering of the crust in

Miocene time. Clastic sediments ofapproximately middle
MioceneagebeneaththeouterpartoftheBorneocontinen
talshelfofftheMahakamDeltamaybeprogradedwestward
and if so presumably werederived fromSulawesi,whereas
allhigherstrataareprogradedeastwardandobviouslywere
derivedfromBorneo.ThesedimentsoftheBorneocontinen
talslope ofnorthern MakassarStraitdisplaymuchnormal
faulting, mostly downdropped on the deepwaterside (fig.
98D).TheoldsubductioncomplexesofSulawesiapparently
werecontinuouswiththoseoftheJavaSeaandJavabefore
the opening ofMakassar Strait.
SlBWClION AND MAGMATISM

The pairing of belts of subduction complexes and of

arctypemagmaticrocksindicatesthatwestwardsubduction
beneathSulawesioccurredprimarilyduringCretaceousand
Neogene timesand thatlittleifanyactivityoccurredduring
the Paleogene.
AGF. OF SUEDUCTION

The oldest rocks seen in southeastern Borneo and the

South, Southeast,and East Arms ofSulawesiall belongto
subduction complexes of Cretaceous age and possibly in
part ofveryearlyTertiaryage,insofarastheycanbedated.
The melange of the Meratus Mountains in southeastern
BorneoinvolvesmiddleCretaceoussedimentaryrocksandis
overlain unconformably by upper(?) Eocene strata. The
SouthArm subductioncomplexboth contains and isover
lain by middle Cretaceous rocks. The glaucop'haniticter
rainthe western beltof the East and SoutheastArmsof
Sulawesiis overlainbymiddleorupperMiocenestrata.The
medial belt oftheEastandSoutheastArms,ofsedimentary
and metasedimentary rocks, involves Cretaceous sedimen
taryrocks. Lowerormiddle Miocenestrataareintercalated
technically with other sedimentary rocks and ophiolite
slices in various areas in the eastern belt the major
deformationisprobablyolderthanlateMioceneinthesouth
and Pliocene in the north but may be entirely Neogene.
MAGMATIC BF.I.TS

The granitic and volcanic rocks of the basement ofthe

JavaSeaaremostlyofCretaceousage(fig.46)andsoarethe
dated igneous rocks ofsouthern Borneo west ofthe Barito
Basin. In the exposed crystalline terrain of southwestern
Borneo, the graniticrocksaresuggested by reconnaissance
datato be ingeneral more potassic inthesouththanin the
north, so if the contrasted rocks are ofsimilar age, then
formation above a Benioff zone dipping south from the
subduction complexes of northwestern Borneo is perhaps
indicated. This would leave the Barito Basin basement
granites and the Java Sea Cretaceous igneous rocks as
possiblypairedto Benioffzonesdippingnorthwestwardand
westward from the subduction complexes ofsoutheastern
Borneo and the western parts ofSulawesi.

From late Eocene into early Miocene time, the Java

Seasoutheastern Borneowestern Sulawesi region was
largelyashallowseaundergoingstableshelfsedimentation.
Presumably no major subduction operated beneath this
regionfromeasternSulawesiduringthisperiod.Ineastcen
tral Borneo silicic volcanic rocksandtuffs are interbedded
withOligoceneandlowerMiocenestratainthewesternpart
of the Kutei Basin and to the west of the Mangkalihat
Peninsula, but these volcanic rocks likely were erupted
aboveaBenioffzonedippingsoutheastwardfromnorthwest
Borneo.
The high lower Miocene through Pliocene rocks ofthe
South and North Arms of Sulawesi are dominantly
magmaticgranitic rocks, and calcalkalic and alkalic
volcanic and volcaniclastic rocks. These magmatic rocks
formabelt50200kmwide,coextensivewiththewesternarc
ofSulawesi.Aswestwarddippingsubductionwasunderway
in the east part of the eastern arc of Sulawesi in middle
Mioceneand,atleastinthe north,youngertime,pairingof
magmaticandsubduction belts is indicated. Changingdips
ofthe paleoBenioffzone, perhapsaccompanyingchanging
velocitiesofriftingofSulawesifromBorneo orofthearms
of Sulawesi from one another (following section), could
accountforthevaryingcompositionsofthemagmaticrocks.
Magmatism continued into Quaternary time in far
southwest Sulawesi, but there it appears related to the
recently inactivated trench along Salayar, rather than to
subduction from east ofthe East and Southeast Arms.
SEPARATION OKTHK ARMS OK SULAWESI

The subduction recorded by the geology of the eastern

part ofthe eastern arc ofSulawesi presumably was paired
genetically with the magmatism recorded by the Neogene
volcanic and granitic rocks ofthewesternarc. Theeastern
and western arcs are now joined by land across central
SulawesibutotherwiseareseparatedbytheGulfofBone,in
thesouth,andthe GulfofTomini, inthe north,whichmay
be products ofextension. Eachgulfis deeperthan2,000m
over much ofits extent, has a sedimentary fill more than
5,000 m thick (pi. 1 Hamilton, 1974a), and likely has an
oceanic basement in its deeper portion. A 3,000m well,
drilledontheshallowshelfneartheheadoftheGulfofBone,
bottomed in middle Miocene clastic strata, so the entire
sedimentaryfill in thegulf,and hencetheageofseparation
ofthe SoutheastandSouthArms,maybeNeogene. Partof
thisseparationmayhaveaccompaniedleftlateralmotionon
the faults that trend westnorthwestward across the
Southeast Arm.
Oceanwardmigrationoftheeasternarc,intheformofan
outerarcridge, awayfrom theinnerarcmagmaticridge,is
inferred. Several other island arcs in the western Pacific
display strong evidence for separation of ridges. (See
subsequent discussion of the Philippine SeaMariana Arc
complexes.) The preexistingcrustmelangewas thinned
tensionally near the head of each gulf, and wholly rifted

SULAWESI (CELEBES)

189

across the deeper parts, according to this interpretation. may record tensional thinning, but notcompleterifting, of
Islandarcsgenerallyareconvextowardthedirectionoftheir the preMiocene crust.
advance, whereas the eastern arc of Sulawesi is broadly
BANDA ARC
concave in this direction. The concavity, however, is
The modern Java Trench subduction system began
centered on the central Sulawesi sectorin whichtheridges
operating
at least as early as late Oligocene time, yet no
have remained locked together. Southward from thisjoin,
magmatic
evidence is apparent for subduction beneath
the Southeast Arm trends are toward the east.
Sulawesi during the Paleogene and early Miocene. As a
numberofislandarcselsewhereareknowntohavemigrated
EASTWARD MIGRATION OF Sl'BDl'CTION SYSTEM
duringtheirdevelopmentthisisdiscussedatlengthsubse
A subductionsystem appearstohavemigratedeastward, quently, particularly regarding the Mariana systemone
fromapositionalongthesoutheastmarginofaJavaJava explanationpossibleforthegapinmagmatismisthatthearc
SeaBorneo continent to that of the present Banda Arc, form migrated eastward away from Sulawesi, opening the
during Late Cretaceous and Cenozoic time.
BandaSea behindit, to becomewhatis nowtheBandaArc
(fig.
77).
JAVA, BORNEO, AND SULAWESI
No drill holes yet date the floor of the Banda Sea. The
The eastward migration of a subduction system during Banda Sea has locally thick turbidites (fig. 74/4), but its
Late Cretaceous and Cenozoic time is recorded by the pelagic sediments thin eastward away from Sulawesi (fig.
geology ofcentral Java, the southeastern part ofthe Java 76/4, C, E)andcouldbeentirelyNeogene.Formationbehind
Sea, southeastern Borneo, and Sulawesi. The migration is an eastwardmigratingarc is inferred. If, alternatively, the
shown by the eastward growth ofmelange terrains, bythe Banda Sea wasenclosed behindanewlyinaugurated Banda
position of the Neogene magmatic arc to the east of the Arc,thentheoceaniccrustsoenclosedwasnotapieceofthe
Cretaceous one, and by the rifting of the eastern arc of oldIndianOceanfloor,butbelongedtosomeyoungerplate.
SulawesifromthewesternarcandofSulawesifromBorneo. Further,noabyssalplainofsedimentsexiststhatcouldhave
Presumably both melange accretion and rifting resulted in been derived from Australia or New.Guinea beforeforma
intermittent abandonment ofdescending plates ofoceanic tion ofthe arc.
lithosphere as new hinges developed farther east. The
Melangeis nowbeingformedintheouterarcridgeofthe
distribution of magmatic rocks was inferred in a prior Banda Arc, and upper Neogene melange is exposed on the
section to indicate that subduction occurredlargelywithin islands. Much of the material composing the ridge may,
LateCretaceousandNeogenetime,withlittleifanyactivity nevertheless, have moved with the migratingridge from an
during the Paleogene.
initial site on the margin ofthe Asian continent as it once
existed
at Sulawesi. Paleogene strata bearing an Asian
SL'MBAWA AND FLORKS
anthracothere on Timor, discussed previously, provide a
Clockwise rotation of eastern Sumbawa and western notable example. Continuing imbrication in the wedge of
Flores some45 from Sulawesiandthecontinentalshelfof rocks above the subducting oceanic and, most recently,
the Java Sea is inferred from geologic and crustal continental Australian plates has mixed young and old
relationships. The islands of the presently active inner components.
magmaticarcextendingeast fromJavaexposerocksasold
Neogene subduction may have been rejuvenated beneath
as early and middle Miocene only as far east as central Sulawesi after the primary arc migrated away from it.
Flores, beyondwhichthevolcanicridgeisnarrowerandthe Subductioncontinuinginto Pliocenetimeisindicatedbythe
oldest rocks seen are late Miocene or Pliocene. The Flores voluminousmagmaticrocksofSulawesi. EvenastheBanda
Sea, betweenFloresandeasternSumbawaonthesouth,the Arc migrated away from Sulawesi, creatingthe Banda Sea
JavaSea shelfonthenorthwest,andSulawesionthenorth, behind it,thewestern part oftheBandaSeamayhavebeen
is very deep, hence oceanic in crustal structure, and bears subducted beneath Sulawesi. Thissituation is analogous to
little sediment (fig. 56C), hence likely is young. The broad that of the Philippine Sea, which is being created as the
Neogene magmatic terrain of the South Arm of Sulawesi MarianaArcmigrateseastward,yetsimultaneouslyis being
projectssouthwardtowardatruncationbythenorthedgeof consumed on the west at the Mindanao Trench.
the Flores Sea. Thesector ofthe magmatic arccontaining
easternSumbawaandwesternFloresmayhavebrokenaway PALEOGKNK HISTORY OF JAVA. BOKNFO. ANH SU1.AWKSJ
from the western arc of Sulawesi, with which it was
Inthevariouscomponents ofthearcsystem occurmany
continuous previously, in thelateMioceneandopenedthe
FloresSea(fig.77).Farthereast,thesubsequentvolcanicarc subduction melanges that could, in the lack ofdefinitive
was built upon oceanic crust, whereas in the JavaSum dating, be of early Tertiary age but only in central Java
bawawestern Flores sector the new magmatic arc was (where Eocene strata overlie a melange that contains
superimposedontheold.Thenarrowandrelativelyshallow probably Paleocene nannofossils) does it appear that a
Bali Basin, north ofBali, Lombok,andwesternSumbawa, Paleogene date canactually bespecified. Correspondingly,

190

TECTONICS OF THE INDONESIAN REGION

no tightly dated Paleogene magmatic rocks, of the types

likelyto haveformedaboveaBenioffzone, predatethelate
Oligocene. A few isolated early Tertiary K/Ar age deter
minations have come from the region: two of58 m.y. for
basementsamplesnorthofJava(fig.46),oneof31 m.y.fora
granodiorite at the base of the North Arm of Sulawesi.
Otherwise, the magmatic rocks appearto be ofCretaceous
andNeogeneages. Ifthelackorscarcityofsubductionand
arcmagmaticcomplexesrepresentingmostofthePaleogene
is real, and notmerely an illustration oflackofknowledge,
then little subduction may have occurred within the
JavaSulawesiBandasystemduringearlyTertiarytime.The
northernpartoftheIndianOceanis,nevertheless,shownby
the magnetic anomalies ofthe spreading oceanic ridges to
have been moving rapidly northward duringthis period.
VeryearlyinTertiarytime, subductionmayhaveslowed
orstopped ontheJavaSulawesiBandasystem,theplateto
thenorthofthatarcthenmovingnorthwardwiththeIndian
Ocean plate. Evidence for subduction southward beneath
northwestBorneoduringthePaleogenewasgiveninaprior
section, andthissubductionfillsthetimegapmissinginthe
southern system. During the early Tertiary, the major
consumptionofoceaniccrustbetweenconvergingAsianand
IndianOceanplates may have been accommodated, within
the longitudes of Borneo, by subduction southward under
Borneo. In the late Oligocene, the majorsubductionagain
becamenorthwardunderthesubcontinentfromitssouthern
side.
This rationalecan be fitted tothecomplexitiesofeastern
Indonesia, where small plates with rapidlychangingboun
daries and configurations have converged or swirled past
one another as Australia and New Guinea have moved
northward. Problems of a different sort complicate the
rationale to the west of Borneo. The Northwest Borneo
Paleogenesubductionsystemdoesnotcontinuearoundthe
southwestend ofthe South China Sea toemerge ineastern
IndochinanordoesitcontinueacrosstheMalayPeninsula,
Sumatra,ortheTinIslands.Itwasinferredforthesereasons
in a prior section that Borneo pivoted counterclockwise
during Paleogene time, the subduction ofthe SouthChina
SeabeneathitdecreasingtozeronearthewesttipofBorneo.
A complementary change in northdipping subduction
beneathSumatraandJavamayhaveaccompaniedthis,that
subduction rate being near zero in the east but increasing
westward to accommodate the full amountofconvergence
between Indian Ocean and Asian plates west of Borneo.
THE NORTHERN MOLUCCAS

The northern Moluccasthe Indonesian islands of

Halmahera, Obi, Waigeo, and their neighborsoccupy a
particularlychaotictectonicsetting.Theirregionisbounded
on the south by the strands of the Sorong fault system
trending westward from New Guinea to Sulawesi on the
west bythe northernMoluccaSea onthe northeast bythe
southendofthePhilippineTrenchandontheeastprobably

bya northwesttrendingmemberoftheSorongsystem. The

geology ofthe islands is very poorly known.
HALMAHERA

The fourarmed island of Halmahera resembles larger

Sulawesi in more than its irregular shape, for Halmahera
also has a western magmatic arc and an eastern terrain
dominated byapparentsubductionmelange.Themagmatic
arc forms most ofthe North Arm 12 ofHalmahera andthe
islands west of the South Arm (fig. 79). According to the
interpretation of trimetrogon aerial photography by
Verstappen(1960),thetwoeasternarmsaredeeplydissected
undulating uplands the North Arm contains young
volcanoeswithinacomplexgrabenandtheSouthArmisan
easttilted fault block.
MELANGE

The Northeast and Southeast Arms of Halmahera are

shown on the tectonic map (pi. 1) as consisting of a
subduction complex because of the imbrication of ap
propriate rock types. (My information on the structure
comes primarily from Rab Sukamto, oral commun., 1976,
who led a GeologicalSurveyofIndonesiafield partythere
published data, limited to rocktype information and local
attitudes, comesfromwidelyspacedlandingsandtraverses
reported by Brouwer, 1923c, and Wanner, 1913.) Ophiolite
(serpentinite, peridotite, gabbro, norite, basalt, red
radiolarian chert), pelagic sediments (marl, limestone, and
chert, bearing radiolaria, sponge spicules, and Cretaceous?
and Paleogene foraminifers), and shallowwater Miocene
strata are imbricated together. Melange is presumably
present, although Sukamto saw no outcrops of it. Young
coral reefs are raised high above sea level in some sectors.
The tiny islands about 30 km west of the north tip of
Halmahera are inferred on the tectonic map to consist of
Tertiary melange because ofthe brief, ambiguous descrip
tion by Gogarten (1918a, p. 275, 276 1918b, p. 277) ofa
complexofintersheared"crystallinebreccia,"limestoneand
other sediments, and "conglomerate"containing"iron ore
blocks" and volcanic clasts.
MAGMATIC ARC

TheNorth Arm, westcentralHalmahera,andtheislands

west ofthe South Arm consist ofTertiaryandQuaternary
basalt, andesite, and dacite (Brouwer, 1921c, 1923d Buck
ing, 1904bGogarten, 1918bNeumannvanPadang,1951,p.
251271 Verbeek, 1908a, b).Theactiveandrecentlyextinct
volcanoeswithinthisterrainformanarrowerbeltthattrends
southwestward across the North Arm, thence curves
southward through the offshore islands.
Batjan (or Bacan)the large island west of the South
Armcontainsalsograniticandquartzdioriticgneissesand
contactmetamorphic schists (Brouwer, 1923d Bucking,
l: The armsare termed, in orderclockwise fromthe northwest, the North, Northeast, Southeast,
and South Arms.