Geology and Minerals

Barberton Greenstone Belt

The Barberton Greenstone Belt is a geologic formation situated on the eastern edge of the Kaapvaal craton in South Africa. It is known for its gold mineralisation and for its komatiites, an unusual type of ultramafic volcanic rock named after the Komati River that flows through the belt. Some of the oldest exposed rocks on Earth (greater than 3.6 Ga) are located in the Barberton Greenstone Belt of the Eswatini–Barberton areas and these contain some of the oldest traces of life on Earth, second only to the Isua Greenstone Belt of Western Greenland. The Makhonjwa Mountains make up 40% of the Barberton belt. It is named after the town Barberton, Mpumalanga.

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See also

• ▸Chalk Group
• ▸Danish National Exhibition of 1909
• ▸Geography of Hong Kong

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