The study of the exotic blocks of the Hawasina Nappes (Sultanate of Oman) leads to give apposit data that allow us to propose a new paleogeo.graphic e~~lut~on of the Oman margin in time and space. A revised ~lasSlfl~al1o.n of exotic blocks into different paleogeographical UnIts IS presented. Two newly introduced stratigraphic groups, the Ramaq Group (Ordovician to Triassic) and the AI Buda'ah Group (upper Permian to Jurassic) are interpreted as tilted blocks related to the Oman continental margin. The Kawr Group (middle Triassic to Cretaceous) is redefined and interpreted as an atoll-type seamount. The paleogeography and paleoenvironments of these units are integrated into a new scheme of the Neotethyan rifting history. Brecciae and olistoliths of the Hawasina series are interpreted to have originated from tectonic movements affecting the Oman margin and the Neotethyan ocean floor. The breccias of late Permian age were generated by the extension processes affecting the margin, a.nd by the creation of the Neotethyan oceanic floor. The breCCIas of mid-late Triassic age coincide in time with the collision of the Cimmerian continents with Eurasia. In constrast, the breccias of late Jurassic and Cretaceous age are interpreted as resulting to the creation of a new oceanic crust (Semail) off the Oman margin.

The study of the exotic blocks of the Hawasina Nappes (Sultanate of Oman) leads to give apposit data that allow us to propose a new paleogeo.graphic e~~lut~on of the Oman margin in time and space. A revised ~lasSlfl~al1o.n of exotic blocks into different paleogeographical UnIts IS presented. Two new...