Structural and stratigraphic aspects of the Lebowa Granite Suite (the granites) and Rustenburg Layered Suite (the basic rocks) are examined and compared in various compartments of the Bushveld Complex, South Africa. The coeval Molopo Farms Complex--located largely in Botswana--is included in this examination. Structural features are evaluated in terms of relationships to major structural features of the Kaapvaal Craton, such as the Thabazimbi-Murchison lineament, and its extension in Botswana, the Kgomodikae lineament, the Melinda, Abbotspoort, Rustenburg and Steelpoort faults, and the Barberton lineament in the south. Histories of structural development in the eastern and western compartments indicate a pre-Bushveld age of some structural features and models are proposed of recurring movements along pre-existing fundamental lines of weakness. It is concluded that features such as the Thabazimbi-Murchison lineament are lithospheric in extent and that they played an active role controlling the emplacement of the Bushveld and Molopo Farms complexes.
Journal articles from the Grassland Society of Southern Africa (GSSA) African Journal of Range and Forage Science as well as related articles and reports from throughout the southern African region.