Lode Gold Deposits and Archean Mantle Plume-Island Arc Interaction, Abitibi Subprovince, Canada

In combination with seismic interpretations and geochronological constraints, the association of juvenile arc-type low-Ti tholeiitic basalts with komatiites in the southeastern Abitibi subprovince, Canada, supports a history of subduction step back following Late Archean mantle plume-island arc interaction. The resulting paired collision zones preserved abundant komatiites and numerous massive sulphide deposits and established the critical metallogenic features to concentrate the majority of Canada's Precambrian gold resources in a small area of the southern Abitibi subprovince.