Zimbabwe Craton

The Zimbabwe Craton is an area in Southern Africa of ancient continental crust, being a part of the ancient continent of Western Gondwana, with rocks dating back to the early Archean Eon, possibly as early as 3.46 billion years ago (Ga.).

The Limpopo belt formed contemporaneously with the Zimbabwe and Kaapvaal cratons, but remained geologically active until much later.

2.8-2.5 Ga., that the two cratons were stabilized together and that high-grade metamorphism ceased in the Limpopo Belt.

[2] The Zimbabwe Craton formed from the suture of two smaller blocks, the Tokwe Segment to the south and the much smaller Rhodesdale Segment (aka Rhodesdale gneiss), to the north.

[3][4] The synchroneity and extent of the Tokwe Segment is considered strong evidence supporting a predominantly intra-cratonic origin for the Late Archaean greenstone belts of Zimbabwe and refuting an arc accretion origin for the craton.