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Cretaceous erosion in Central South Africa:

Evidence from upper-crustal xenoliths in
kimberlite diatremes

Article in South African Journal of Geology · December 2009

DOI: 10.2113/gssajg.112.2.125

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 E.K. HANSON, J.M. MOORE, E.M. BORDY, J.S. MARSH, G. HOWAR TH AND J.V.A. ROBEY 125

CRETACEOUS EROSION IN CENTRAL SOUTH AFRICA: EVIDENCE

FROM UPPER-CRUSTAL XENOLITHS IN KIMBERLITE DIATREMES

E.K. HANSON, J.M. MOORE, E.M. BORDY, J.S. MARSH, G. HOWARTH

Geology Department, Rhodes University, P.O. Box 94, Grahamstown, South Africa
email: emilykhanson@gmail.com; j.moore@ru.ac.za; e.bordy@ru.ac.za; goonie.marsh@ru.ac.za;
g04h0067@campus.ru.ac.za

J.V.A. ROBEY
De Beers Group Services, P.O. Box 47, Kimberley, South Africa
email: jock.robey@debeersgroup.com
© 2009 June Geological Society of South Africa

ABSTRACT
Twelve Group II and fourteen Group I kimberlite diatremes in central South Africa were examined for upper crustal xenoliths in
order to estimate the extent of various lithological units of the Karoo Supergroup in the main Karoo basin at times of kimberlite
eruption, the Cretaceous erosional history of the area, and the approximate vertical extent of the kimberlite diatremes prior to
erosion. Sandstone and amygdaloidal basaltic lava xenoliths from the Karoo Supergroup were specifically selected as their modal
mineralogies and geochemical compositions respectively can be attributed to specific stratigraphic positions within the Karoo
Supergroup. Results indicated that, at the time of Group II kimberlite eruption (~120 Ma), basaltic lavas of the Drakensberg Group
covered the entire area, but by the time of Group I kimberlite eruption (~85 Ma), they were restricted to the south-eastern half of
the study area. At the latter time, an escarpment is proposed to have existed at the basalt outcrop limit, some 180 km west of its
current position. Sandstones of the Stormberg Group had a restricted original distribution in the north and east of the study area,
whereas sandstones from all other Karoo groups occurred throughout the entire area. In the Kimberley area, approximately
500 m of erosion is estimated to have occurred from 120 to 85 Ma and 850 meters from 85 Ma to the present day at average rates
of approximately 15 m/Ma and 10 m/Ma respectively. Both Group I and II kimberlite diatremes had vertical extents of
approximately 1350 m at eruption. An inland scarp-retreat model is proposed for the Cretaceous erosion cycle in central
South Africa.

Introduction which kimberlites of different ages are eroded (crater-,

Kimberlite diatremes contain a wealth of information
concerning the composition of the mantle and lower
crust, in the form of xenoliths and xenocrysts (including
diamonds), that have received extensive attention over
the years (Dawson, 1980; Nixon, 1987, Gurney, 1989).
Due to the nature of diatreme formation – explosive
eruption, followed by fall-back of debris into the cavity
created – they also contain a suite of xenoliths from
upper-crustal lithologies penetrated by the diatreme.
Although these upper-crustal xenoliths dominate over
their deeper counterparts, they have received less
attention in much of the kimberlite literature.
Upper-crustal xenoliths provide a record of the host-
rock sequences into which the kimberlite diatremes
were emplaced, which may no longer occur in the
vicinity of the diatremes as a result of post-emplacement
erosion. The diatreme xenoliths are useful in estimating,
for example, the original distribution of certain
stratigraphic units within a sedimentary basin or the
palaeogeographic extent of volcanic units such as lava
flows. When kimberlite diatremes of varying ages occur
in the same broad area, it may be possible to reconstruct
the erosional history of the region. Certain xenoliths that
occur in older diatremes may be absent in younger ones,
due to an intervening period of erosion. The levels to
diatreme-, and/or root-facies) may vary. As a result,
estimates of rates of erosion with time, as well as the
palaeo-geomorphological evolution of an area, may also
be revealed, assuming that kimberlite pipe morphology
is generally consistent.
The central part of South Africa (Figure 1) provides
an ideal region to undertake such a study. This region
contains several Group II kimberlites (approximate ages
of 140 to 114 Ma) as well as younger Group I kimberlites
(approximate ages of 100 to 75 Ma). These Cretaceous
kimberlites were emplaced during a period of active
erosion in central South Africa, about which little is
known as there is virtually no preserved onshore
sedimentary record. In addition, they straddle the
western outcrop margin of the main Karoo Basin and
may provide evidence of the former distribution of
stratigraphic units within the Karoo Supergroup. In an
attempt to improve our understanding of Cretaceous
erosion in southern Africa, we have examined upper-
crustal xenoliths from some 26 Group I and II kimberlite
pipes in central South Africa (Figure 1, Table 2).
Because these kimberlites were emplaced within the
main Karoo Basin, this study has focused primarily on
Karoo-age sandstone and basalt xenoliths. The results
allow for estimations of erosion rates in central South

S O U T H A F R I C A N J O U R NA L O F G E O L O G Y, 2 0 0 9 , VO L U M E 1 1 2 PAG E S 1 2 5 - 1 4 0
doi:10.2113/gssajg.112.2.125
126 CRETACEOUS EROSION IN CENTRAL SOUTH AFRICA

Figure 1. Locality map of the various Group I and II kimberlites sampled in this study (1-Melton Wold, 2-Lace, 3-Voorspoed, 4-Roberts Victor,
5-New Elands, 6-Phoenix/Star, 7-West End, 8-Wimbledon, 9-Finsch, 10-Markt, 11-Frank Smith, 12-Pampoenpoort, 13-Uintjiesberg,
14-Koffiefontein, 15-Monastery, 16-Kimberley, 17-Jagersfontein, 18-Kaal Vallei, 19-De Beers, 20-Bultfontein, 21-Kamfersdam,
22-Leicester/Balmoral, 23-Lushof, 24-Britstown, 25-Hebron, 26-Lovedale). Section A-B represents the profile in Figure 6. The positions are
shown of projected palaeo-escarpments at 85 Ma and 120 Ma.

Africa through the Cretaceous and constitute evidence
for an interior scarp-retreat model for the region.
In addition, modifications to the classic Hawthorne and
Clement models for southern African kimberlite pipes
are proposed (Hawthorne, 1975, Clement, 1982).
Regional Geology
At the time of intrusion of the Cretaceous kimberlites,
the upper-crustal geology of the central South African
region was dominated by rocks of the Karoo
Supergroup. The kimberlites sampled in this study are
situated in the north-western part of the main Karoo
Basin which is considered to have formed part of a
retro-arc foreland system, generated by subduction
of the palaeo-Pacific plate under the southern margin of
Gondwana in the Late Paleozoic-Early Mesozoic
(Veevers et al., 1994, Catuneanu et al., 1998). The Karoo
Supergroup is represented by a variety of clastic
sedimentary rocks which originated under varying
climatic and depositional settings (Table 1). During
deposition of the Dwyka and Ecca Groups, climates
were glacial to cold, and deposition was dominated by
glacial diamictites and mudrocks respectively. Uplift in
source regions to the south and warming conditions led
to the subsequent progradation of deltaic and fluvial
sediments into the basin, containing increasing
proportions of sandstone, during deposition of the
Beaufort Group. The Stormberg Group (Molteno, Elliot
and Clarens Formations) contains fluvial and aeolian
sandstones associated with warmer, more arid climates.
The entire sequence represents a transition from cold-
climate marine to warm-climate terrestrial deposits
(Catuneanu et al., 1998, Johnson et al., 2006).
The progressive changes across the depositional
history of the Karoo Supergroup are reflected in
mineralogical variations of the sandstones of the main
Karoo Basin. Sandstones from the basal portions of the
sequence (Dwyka, Ecca, lower Beaufort Groups)
contain significant lithic and feldspar components
whereas those from the upper portions (upper Beaufort
and Stormberg Groups) are dominated by mono-
crystalline quartz (this study; Johnson et al., 2006).
This mineralogical variation has been used to identify
the stratigraphic sources of sandstone xenoliths
recovered from the kimberlite diatremes.
The Karoo sedimentary sequence in the study area
has been extensively intruded by dolerite dykes and
sills of the Karoo Igneous Province. Extrusive
equivalents of these dolerites, the Drakensberg Group,
are present as an erosional remnant of continental flood
basalt to the immediate east of the study area (the
Lesotho Remnant). The presence of basalt xenoliths
from the Drakensberg Group in many of the kimberlite
diatremes in the study area clearly indicates a greater
former extent to the flood basalts, covering much of
central South Africa.
Using geochemistry, particularly the ratios between
immobile incompatible elements, Marsh et al. (1997)

SOUTH AFRICAN JOURNAL OF GEOLOGY

 E.K. HANSON, J.M. MOORE, E.M. BORDY, J.S. MARSH, G. HOWAR TH AND J.V.A. ROBEY 127

Table 1. Lithostratigraphy of the Karoo Supergroup in the northwestern part of the main Karoo basin. Thickness data and estimations from
this study, Winter and Venter (1970)*, Hawthorne (1975)**, Beukes (1970)***.

Lithostratigraphy Main rock types Age Climate/ Average unit thickness

depositional Monastery Kimberley Melton
setting area area Wold area
Drakensberg Group Basalt Early Jurassic Humid/ 1500 m 1445 m ?
(183 Ma) continental
‘Stormberg’ Group Sandstones, Late Triassic- Increasingly arid/fluvio- ~260 m*** (350 m)** 0m
mudstones Early Jurassic lacustrine to aeolian
Beaufort Group Sandstones, Late Permian- Semi-arid ~700 m* 550 m** >1850 m*
mudstones Early Triassic fluvio-lacustrine
Ecca Group Mudstones, Early to Post-glacial/ ~480 m* 300 m** ~1100 m*
sandstones, coal Middle Permian fluvio-deltaic
Dwyka Group Diamictites, Late Glacio-fluvial ~40 m* <60 m** ~380 m*
varved shales, Carboniferous
conglomerates,
sandstones

demonstrated that the Karoo basalt sequence in the
Lesotho Remnant could be subdivided into a number of
chemostratigraphic units (Figure 2). In the lower part of
the sequence, the Barkly East Formation comprises
basaltic units which are geochemically diverse, have
small volumes and have limited areal extent. In places,
particularly in the south, these units are interbedded
with fluvial sandstone and/or volcaniclastic deposits.
The upper part of the sequence consists of the Lesotho
Formation characterised by large-volume basaltic units
with a more limited geochemical range and which
extend right across the Lesotho Remnant. The distinctive
compositional signatures of the various basalt units
have been used to identify both a Karoo provenance
and the specific stratigraphic source within the
Figure 2. Schematic summary of geochemical stratigraphy in the
Drakensberg Group of Lesotho (from Marsh et al., 1997 and
unpublished data). Available data suggest that the different units of
the Barkly East Formation wedge out against an arch trending
roughly eastwest at about 30oS. The single palaeomagnetic reversal
within the basalt sequence (van Zijl et al., 1962) is consistently
located in the lower part of the Mafika Lisiu unit (Marsh et al.,
1997).
Drakensberg Group for the basalt xenoliths sampled in
this study. In doing so, care has been taken to eliminate
samples that may be contaminated by kimberlite
and emphasis has been placed on characteristic
immobile incompatible element ratios which are least
likely to be changed by low-temperature alteration
processes.
Central South Africa has been the focal point of
Cretaceous kimberlite magmatism, both within the
Karoo Basin and along its western margin.
The magmatism takes the form of narrow intrusive
dykes, rare sills and subvolcanic-to-volcanic pipes.
Kimberlite pipes are typically subdivided into crater,
diatreme and root zones (Clement, 1982) depending on
morphology and the textural nature of the associated
kimberlite. In the study area, kimberlite pipes are small
(mostly <12 ha) and have a tendency to occur in clusters
containing several pipes/dykes. Due to extensive
erosion, crater-zone kimberlites are not preserved.
The kimberlites are divided into older Group II (~140 to
114 Ma) and younger Group I (~100 to 75 Ma)
occurrences (Table 1). Group II kimberlites are
identified by their phlogopitic nature, enrichments in
K, Rb, Ba, Pb and depletions in Cr compared to Group
I kimberlites and by their enriched Sr and Nd isotopic
signatures. Group II kimberlites examined in this study
include diatreme-zone pipes (Finsch, West End, Lace,
Voorspoed) and root-zone dyke/small-pipe associations
(Phoenix/Star, Roberts Victor, New Elands, Wimbledon,
Melton Wold). Group I kimberlites sampled are
diatreme-zone pipes (Kimberley cluster, Koffiefontein,
Jagersfontein, Kaal Vallei, Uintjiesberg) with Monastery
virtually the sole root-zone dyke/small-pipe association.
The Kimberley cluster contains the Kimberley, De Beers,
Bultfontein, Dutoitspan, Wesselton and Kamfersdam
pipes.
Subsequent to the eruption of the Karoo flood
basalts around 183 Ma (Duncan et al., 1997), the
geological history of southern Africa has been
dominated by the break-up of Gondwana and an

S O U T H A F R I C A N J O U R NA L O F G E O L O G Y
128 CRETACEOUS EROSION IN CENTRAL SOUTH AFRICA
extensive period of erosion (>100 Ma) – the African
cycle (Partridge and Maud, 1987). Due to significant
uplift and erosion during subsequent post-African
Miocene/ Pliocene cycles in central South Africa and
development of the modern Orange and Vaal drainages,
virtually no evidence remains of the African cycle in the
study area aside from certain etched surface remnants.
Offshore sedimentation rates indicate Cretaceous peaks
at 130 to 115 Ma and 86 to 78 Ma (Dingle et al., 1983)
on the west coast and at 136 to 120 Ma and 93 to 67 Ma
on the south coast (Tinker et al., 2008b) that are related
to increased rates of erosion, but in general, there has
been a decline in rates of sediment accumulation and
thus erosion through the duration of the African and
post-African cycles. The two periods of increased
sedimentation have been linked to uplift associated with
the intrusion of the Group II and I kimberlites
respectively (Scrutton and Dingle, 1976; Tinker et al.,
2008a).
Previous studies of upper-crustal xenoliths
Xenoliths correlating with Karoo-Supergroup
sedimentary units
The earliest descriptions of upper-crustal xenoliths in
kimberlite diatremes (Matthews 1887; Du Toit 1906;
Rogers and Du Toit 1909; Harger 1913; Wagner 1914;
Williams 1932) used lithological criteria (e.g. colour,
grain size) and fossils to correlate xenoliths with
different units within the Karoo Supergroup. On this
basis, the presence of Beaufort Group xenoliths has
been reported from Melton Wold (Mambali, 1998),
Voorspoed, Roberts Victor, Koffiefontein, Monastery,
Jagersfontein, the Kimberley kimberlite cluster (Wagner,
1914; Williams, 1932), and Finsch (Visser, 1972; Clement,
1982). Geochemical characteristics of sandstone
xenoliths from the Kimberley pipes (Rambula, 2005)
suggest that they were mostly derived from the Ecca
Group and lower Beaufort Group.
Xenoliths correlating with Karoo-Supergroup
basalts
Petrographic descriptions of basaltic xenoliths from
Melton Wold, Voorspoed, West End, Makganyene, Frank
Smith, Uintjiesberg, Koffiefontein, Monastery and
Jagersfontein pipes led Du Toit (1906), Rogers
and Du Toit (1909), Harger (1913), Wagner (1914) and
Williams (1932) to conclude that they are Karoo basalt.
Vesicular basalt of presumed Karoo provenance is
described by Robey (1981) from the Lovedale No.1 pipe
(not sampled in this study). Some of these observations
have subsequently been confirmed by geochemical
comparisons between basalt xenoliths and Drakensberg
Group basalts (Roberts, 1997; Letsale, 1998; Mambali,
1998).
A review of descriptions of igneous and volcanic
xenoliths found during early mining operations at
Kimberley reveal that the original descriptions of these
xenoliths do not provide any unequivocal indication that
they are Karoo basalts. While Matthews (1887), Becker
SOUTH AFRICAN JOURNAL OF GEOLOGY
(1904), Lindgren (1905) and Wagner (1914) describe
basalt, diabase, whinestone and melaphyre boulders and
fragments in the pipes, none of these descriptions imply
that they correlate with basalts of the Drakensberg
Group. Instead, the descriptions are more consistent
with mafic lavas of the Ventersdorp Supergroup and/or
Karoo-age intrusive dolerites. Some authors describe
these ‘igneous’ inclusions as being identical to the
country rock of the kimberlite at depth, i.e. Ventersdorp
lava (Harger, 1909). These conclusions are in contrast to
Williams (1932) who is of the opinion that the lava
xenoliths are identifiable by their colour and the
presence of zeolite and calcite pipe amygdales as being
of Karoo origin. Samples collected during our survey
that had a visual similarity to Karoo basalts, all had bulk
compositions indicating that they were lavas of the
Ventersdorp Supergroup (Figure 4a).
Previous erosion estimates
Previous estimates for post-Gondwana erosion in central
South Africa derive from geomorphological, geological
and fission-track studies. Based on assumptions of
pre-break-up Gondwana topography and subsequent
post-African uplift estimates, Partridge and Maud (1987)
calculated about 1200 m of erosion in the Kimberley
area during the African cycle. Brown et al. (1998)
estimated 3.4 + 1.4 km of mid-to-late Cretaceous
denudation from fission-track results from the central
Kaapvaal Craton, to the north of the study area, with a
peak around 90 + 10 Ma. Tinker et al. (2008a) estimated
2.5 to 3.5 km of mid-to-late Cretaceous (100 to 80 Ma)
weathering to the south-west of the study area, together
with <1 km weathering since then (<80 Ma).
Geological studies have focused primarily on the
Group I kimberlite cluster at Kimberley where post-
emplacement (~85 Ma) erosion estimates range from
800 m (Rambula, 2005) to >1400 m (Hawthorne, 1975).
The most commonly cited estimate is that of Hawthorne
(1975), which provides a minimum constraint of 900 m,
based on the minimum permissible depth for formation
of kimberlite sills intruding sedimentary rocks of the
Karoo Supergroup, and a maximum constraint of 1900 m
from depth of burial, based on the degree of host-rock
diagenesis of the country-rock mudstones. The average
of these, 1400 m, was adopted as the value for the
thickness of strata eroded subsequent to emplacement
of the kimberlite pipes. This value requires the presence
of basalts of the Drakensberg Group in the Kimberley
area at the time of kimberlite emplacement, as it is
unlikely that the sedimentary units of the Karoo
Supergroup achieved such a thickness (Johnson, 1976;
1991). The model relies partially on observations in the
host rocks (diagenesis) that are unrelated to the timing
of kimberlite emplacement which took place some 50 to
100 Ma later. Hawthorne’s (1975) model further implies
that a maximum of 500 m of erosion occurred in the first
100 Ma subsequent to eruption of the Karoo flood
basalts (183 to 85 Ma), whereas 1400 m of erosion
occurred in the following 85 Ma (85 to 0 Ma).
 E.K. HANSON, J.M. MOORE, E.M. BORDY, J.S. MARSH, G. HOWAR TH AND J.V.A. ROBEY 129

Table 2. Kimberlites included in the present study; abbreviations used in subsequent tables and for sample numbering. Country-rock
information obtained from 1:250,000 geological maps, Council for Geoscience.

Kimberlite Pipes Age (Ma) Gp Surface Country Rock Xenoliths sampled

Sandstone Basalt
Melton Wold MW 143 ± 141 I/II Beaufort (basal) X
Lace LA 133.2 + 2.82 II Ecca (middle) X X
Voorspoed V 131.8 ± 1.72 II Ecca (middle) X X
Roberts Victor RV 127.33 II Ecca (lower) X X
New Elands NE 122.9 + 1.68 II Ecca (middle) X X
Phoenix/Star PH 1269 II Beaufort (lower) X X
West End WE 1184 II Transvaal Supergroup X
Wimbledon WI 1184 II Ecca (basal) X X
Finsch FN 118.4 ± 2.21 II Transvaal Supergroup X X
Markt MK 116.8 ± 15 II Ecca (basal) X
Frank Smith FS 113.6 ± 1.81 I/II Ecca (basal) X
Pampoenpoort PP 103.2 ± 0.75 I/II Ecca (upper) X X
Uintjiesberg UJ 100.7 ± 1.41 I Ecca (middle) X
Koffiefontein/Ebenhaezer KF 90.46 I Ecca (middle) X
Monastery M 88 ± 43 I Molteno (upper) X X
Kimberley/Big Hole* BH 87 ± 14 I Ecca/Dwyka contact X
Jagersfontein JG 85.6 ± 11 I Ecca (upper) X X
Kaal Vallei KV 84.9 ± 0.97 I Beaufort (lower) X
De Beers* DB 84.3 ± 33 I Ecca/Dwyka contact X
Bultfontein* BF 84 ± 0.97 I Ecca/Dwyka contact X
Kamfersdam* KD 86.96 I Ecca/Dwyka contact
Leicester/Balmoral LE 93.66 I Dwyka/Ventersdorp contact
Lushof LU 78.36 I Ecca (upper)
Britstown Cluster BC 74.4 ± 0.85 I Ecca (upper)
Hebron HE 744 I Beaufort (basal)
Lovedale LV 744 I Ecca (upper)
1 4 7
Smith et al., 1985 De Beers database (unpublished) Allsopp and Kramers, 197
2 5 8
Phillips et al., 1999 Smith et al., 1994 Allsopp et al., 1989
3 6 9
Allsopp and Barnett, 1975 Davis, 1977 MacIntyre and Dawson, 1976
*
Member of the Group I kimberlite cluster in Kimberley (KC)

This threefold increase in erosion rate is counter to the
declining erosion-rate estimations from the offshore
sedimentary record (Dingle et al., 1983).
In addition, Hawthorne (1975) allocated a 350 m
thickness to the Stormberg Group, but sandstones of this
group have not been reported from the xenolith suite of
the Kimberley cluster (Rambula, 2005; this study) or the
surrounding Group II kimberlites, and the Stormberg
Group is not thought to have extended this far west.
Noting the absence of Stormberg Group sandstone and
Drakensberg Group basalt xenoliths in the Kimberley
pipes and removing these stratigraphic units from the
Hawthorne (1975) model, Rambula (2005) concluded
that 800 m of erosion has occurred since Group I
kimberlite emplacement at ~85 Ma. This is similar to an
early estimate of 900 m (Wagner, 1914), which is based
on the presence of sandstones and fossil-bearing
sedimentary rocks from the Beaufort Group in the
xenolith suite. Other studies based on upper-crustal
xenolith suites indicate approximately 1000 m of erosion
at Melton Wold (Mambali, 1998); as little as 300 m, but
more likely 1.5 to 2 km of erosion at Voorspoed
(Roberts, 1997); and 1200 to 1700 m at Finsch (Visser,
1972). Hawthorne (1975) estimated the total thickness of
the Karoo Supergroup in the Koffiefontein area to be
2200 m, based on country-rock diagenesis.
Field and Scott-Smith (1999) propose maximum
initiation depths for diatreme eruption of 1500 m for
southern African kimberlite pipes. It follows that
approximate post-emplacement erosion can be
estimated by subtracting the depth from present-day
surface to the base of the diatreme. The base of diatreme
zones of the Kimberley pipes has been shown to occur
at 400 to 600 m below the present land surface
(Hawthorne, 1975; Clement, 1982; Clement et al., 1986)
and this implies that a maximum of 1100 m of post-
eruption erosion has occurred in the Kimberley area.
Dawson (1971), however, indicates greater diatreme
initiation depths of 2.4 km.
Sample selection and methods of analysis
The 26 kimberlites selected for the present study extend
across the central portion of the main Karoo Basin from
Lesotho to Victoria West in South Africa (Figure 1).

S O U T H A F R I C A N J O U R NA L O F G E O L O G Y
130 CRETACEOUS EROSION IN CENTRAL SOUTH AFRICA

The complete analytical data-set may be obtained from
Hanson (2007) and Howarth (2007) (the former
available electronically at http://eprints.ru.ac.za/855/).
Table 2 presents details of the localities and the
nature of investigations carried out at each.
Xenoliths were obtained from dumps and old
weathering ‘floors’. The number of samples collected
depended on how common the xenoliths were and how
extensive the dumps were, and varied from a single
sample (Frank Smith) to suites of up to eight samples.
Their representivity is therefore uncertain although they
represent a cross-section of available material. Basalt
xenoliths were located and sampled at 16 of the pipes
visited and sandstone xenoliths suitable for point-count
examination were sampled at 15 pipes. In order to avoid
intrusive dyke and sill samples, only amygdaloidal
basalts were collected. It is, however, conceded that
certain shallow-level sills are known to have vescicular
margins and that other lavas were, as a result, excluded.
Sandstone samples range from very fine to very
coarse grained with dominant components being
monocrystalline quartz, feldspar, lithic fragments as well
as polycrystalline quartz and minor accessory minerals.
Modal proportions of these phases were determined by
the Gazzi-Dickinson point-counting method, as
described by Ingersoll et al. (1984). This method
overcomes the problem of grain-size differences,
enabling comparison between samples with different
grain-sizes. A 95% confidence level is achieved by
counting 300 grains per sample (Galehouse, 1971).
The results have been normalized to 100% free of
accessory minerals prior to plotting on the ternary
diagram (Figure 3) (see also Hanson, 2007; Howarth,
2007). The plots were compared to composition fields of
sandstones from the different stratigraphic groups of the
Karoo Supergroup compiled from previous studies
(Kingsley, 1977; Eriksson, 1984; Johnson, 1991; Haycock
et al., 1997; Fiedler and Adelmann, 1998; Hancox, 1998;
Bordy et al., 2005) (Table 3).
The composition of basalt xenoliths was determined
by x-ray fluorescence spectrometry (XRF) on sparsely
amygdaloidal samples. Major elements were determined
on fusion discs following the method of Norrish and
Hutton (1969). Trace elements (Zn, Cu, Ni, Co, Cr, V, Nb,
Zr, Y, Sr, Rb, Ce, Nd and La) were determined on
pressed powder pellets following the analytical
procedure of Duncan et al. (1984). The compositions of
the basalt xenoliths were compared (Figure 4) to those
of geochemically defined stratigraphic units of the
Drakensberg Group (Marsh et al., 1997; Marsh, 1998) as
well as to the Ventersdorp Supergroup (Bowen et al.,
1986).
Results
Sandstone xenoliths
There is considerable overlap in the fields of sandstones
from various subgroups/formations (Figure 3) and, as a
result, the stratigraphic positions of xenoliths can only
be broadly allocated to lower, middle and upper Karoo-
Supergroup sources. Results of the sandstone analyses
and correlations (Figure 3, Table 3) indicate that
xenoliths from the middle-Karoo Tarkastad Subgroup
of the Beaufort Group are most abundant, presumably
due to the significant thicknesses and widespread
distribution of these sandstones. These results are
consistent with visual observations of earlier workers
citing Beaufort Group xenoliths in the Voorspoed,
Roberts Victor, Finsch, Koffiefontein, Monastery,
Jagersfontein and Kimberley-cluster pipes (Williams,
1932; Visser, 1972; Clement, 1982). Xenoliths that may
correlate with the lower-Karoo Adelaide Subgroup of the
Beaufort Group and/or with the Ecca Group are also
common and widespread. Sandstone xenoliths that may
be correlated with the Dwyka Group are rare, having
only been identified at Lace, Jagersfontein and
Bultfontein pipes. This is to be expected as the Dwyka
Group in the study area consists primarily of very thin
ground-moraine and glacial-valley facies within which
sandstones are uncommon (Tables 2 and 3).
Sandstone xenoliths that may be correlated with the
upper-Karoo Stormberg Group are more restricted,
being confined to Voorspoed, Lace and Monastery pipes
(Table 3). The Monastery xenoliths are to be expected as
rocks of the Stormberg Group form the present-day
outcrop there. The Voorspoed and Lace xenoliths
coincide with an area of onlap to the east, of the

Table 3. Summary of stratigraphic positions of identified xenoliths within the examined kimberlites based on Figure 4c and Figure 3.

Kimberlite MW LA V RV NE PH WE WI FN MK FS PP UJ KF M JG KV KC
Drakensberg Evolved X
Group Basalts Oxbow X
Maloti/Senqu/Mothae X X X X X X X X X X
Mafika Lisiu X X X X X X X X X X X X X X
Barkly East X X X X X X X
Karoo Stormberg X X X
Supergroup Upper Beaufort X X X X X X X X X
Sediments L Beaufort/U Ecca X X X X
Lower Ecca X X X X X
Dwyka X X X
Ventersdorp X
Basalts

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 E.K. HANSON, J.M. MOORE, E.M. BORDY, J.S. MARSH, G. HOWAR TH AND J.V.A. ROBEY 131

Figure 3. Ternary diagram showing point-counting results (Qm-monocrystalline quartz; F-feldspar; Lt-total lithic fragments) and
classification of Karoo-Supergroup sandstone xenoliths. Sample numbers as for Figure 1. Classification fields based on: Dwyka Group
(Johnson, 1991); Ecca Group (Kingsley, 1977; Johnson, 1991; Fiedler and Adelmann, 1998); Adelaide Subgroup (Johnson, 1991; Haycock
et al., 1997); Tarkastad Subgroup (Johnson, 1991; Hancox, 1998); Molteno Formation (Eriksson, 1984; Johnson, 1991; Hancox, 1998); Elliot
Formation (Eriksson, 1984; Johnson, 1991; Bordy et al., 2004) and Clarens Formation (Eriksson, 1984; Johnson, 1991).

Stormberg Group over the Tarkastad Subgroup in the
northern part of the main Karoo Basin. These reported
xenoliths are encouraging as they have logical
explanations and point to the reliability of the
sandstone-identification procedure. Previous visual
observations indicating that Stormberg Group xenoliths
occur in the Jagersfontein and Kimberley-cluster pipes
(Wagner, 1914; Williams, 1932; Hawthorne, 1975) were
not supported by our study. In the case of Jagersfontein
this may be the result of our limited sample suite.
Some sandstone xenoliths from the Finsch pipe may
also correlate with the Molteno and/or Elliot Formations
of the Stormberg Group, but could equally be related to
the upper Beaufort Group (Figure 3). Stratigraphic
equivalents of the Molteno and Elliot Formations are
very thin to absent in the south-west portion of the
Kalahari basin (Johnson et al., 1996; Catuneanu et al.,
2005) to the west of the Finsch pipe. With the exception
of Voorspoed, Lace, Monastery and possibly Finsch
pipes, none of the kimberlites that contain Drakensberg
Group basalt xenoliths was found to contain Stormberg
Group sandstones. This further supports the observation
that the original western extent of the main Karoo
Basin during Stormberg times was more restricted (Cole,
1992) and confined to an area east of the Koffiefontein,
Roberts Victor and Phoenix/Star kimberlites. No samples
that could be unequivocally correlated with the Clarens
Formation were recorded.
Basalt xenoliths
Basalt xenoliths with Drakensberg Group affinity occur
in all Group II diatremes throughout the study area and
in the Group I kimberlites that lie closest to the current
outcrops of the Drakensberg Group in the Lesotho

S O U T H A F R I C A N J O U R NA L O F G E O L O G Y
132 CRETACEOUS EROSION IN CENTRAL SOUTH AFRICA

Figure 4. Bivariate plots showing various geochemical discriminants for Drakensberg-Group basaltic xenoliths from Group I (black
diamond) and Group II (open diamond) kimberlites and Ventersdorp Supergroup xenoliths (star) from the Group I Kimberley cluster; (a)
Zr/Y vs P/Zr plot showing fields for general Drakensberg-Group basalts (Marsh et al., 1997) and Allanridge Formation of the Ventersdorp
Supergroup (Bowen et al., 1986); (b) Zr/Y vs P/Zr plot showing fields for various stratigraphic units from the Barkly East Formation
(Wonderkop, Moshesh’s Ford, Golden Gate, Roma) and Lesotho Formation of the Drakensberg Group (Marsh et al., 1997); (c) P/Zr vs FeO
plot showing similar fields (W-Wonderkop; MF-Moshesh’s Ford) as well as the field for evolved Oxbow dykes; (d) P/Zr vs Mg# plot showing
similar fields and the field of evolved basalts from the Markt pipe.

Remnant, namely Jagersfontein, Monastery and Kaal
Vallei. No Karoo basalt xenoliths were found in Group I
kimberlites at Koffiefontein/Ebenhaezer, the Kimberley
cluster or Leicester/Balmoral (Figure 1). Basalt or ‘lava’
fragments that may be correlated with the Drakensberg
Group have also been reported in diatremes
northwest of the study area, from Prieska and
Makganyene (Du Toit, 1954; Hawthorne, 1975).
Minor/trace element ratios were used to discriminate
between basalt samples derived from the Ventersdorp
Supergroup and Drakensberg Group (Figure 4a), as well
as samples showing probable kimberlite contamination.
A suite of samples from the Group I Kimberley cluster,
that bore superficial visual similarities to the
Drakensberg lavas, was in this way identified as coming
from the Ventersdorp Supergroup. Several samples

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 E.K. HANSON, J.M. MOORE, E.M. BORDY, J.S. MARSH, G. HOWAR TH AND J.V.A. ROBEY
Figure 5. Bivariate plot of Na2O vs K2O for Drakensberg-Group
basaltic xenoliths from Group I (black diamond) and Group II
(open diamond) kimberlite pipes with the general field for the
Drakensberg Group in the Lesotho Remnant (Marsh et al., 1997).
showed distinct enrichments in the alkali elements Na
and K over unaltered basalts (Figure 5). As amygdaloidal
lavas were selectively sampled, it is conceivable that
some alkali enrichment came from secondary vesicle-fill
minerals which are predominantly zeolites, quartz and
calcite (Dunlevey et al., 1993). However there was no
associated Ca enrichment to support this contention.
Samples that were strongly enriched in K came
exclusively from Group II kimberlites that are
themselves K-rich. Low-temperature post-magmatic and
near-surface ground-water-related alteration has
occurred in many kimberlites with the formation of Na-
and K-rich secondary minerals such as natrolite,
analcime, pectolite, apophyllite and vermiculite reported
associated with kimberlite xenoliths (Berg, 1968; Kruger,
1980, 1982).The nature of the Na and K enrichments has
not been clearly identified in this study, but is likely
related to the latter processes.
Analysis and correlation of the basalt xenoliths with
the Drakensberg Group, using FeO, Mg number (Mg#)
and immobile minor/trace elements P, Zr, Y (Figure 4),
indicate that the Lesotho Formation covered the entire
study area at the time of emplacement of the Group II
kimberlites (140 to 100 Ma) (Table 3). This is not
unexpected as the Lesotho Formation represents the
thicker and more widely spread of the two formations
within the Lesotho Remnant. Here the Drakensberg
Group attains measured thicknesses of 1500 m, with the
lower Barkly East Formation averaging less than 200 m
and the Lesotho Formation in excess of 1000 m (Marsh
et al., 1997). Most pipes contain basalt xenoliths
correlated with the lower Mafika Lisui unit of the
S O U T H A F R I C A N J O U R NA L O F G E O L O G Y
133
Lesotho Formation and/or with the upper Maloti, Senqu
and Mothae units that are difficult to separate
lithogeochemically (Table 3, Figure 4c). These findings
are in agreement with previous geochemical studies at
Voorspoed, Melton Wold and Uintjiesberg kimberlites
(Roberts, 1997; Letsale, 1998; Mambali, 1998). Xenolith
samples that could possibly be correlated with the
Barkly East Formation were collected at Jagersfontein
and Monastery Group I pipes and from Roberts Victor,
New Elands, West End and Melton Wold Group II pipes.
Basalt xenoliths from the Markt pipe, in the extreme
north-west part of the study area, have low Mg# (Figure
4d), are enriched in FeO and incompatible elements
such as Ti and Zr and appear to be evolved Karoo lavas,
possibly from the uppermost Lesotho Formation
(Oxbow unit) or from an upper unit not preserved in the
Lesotho Remnant.
At Koffiefontein, Karoo-correlated basalt xenoliths
were observed by Harger (1913) and Wagner (1914),
where confusion with Ventersdorp Supergroup lavas is
not possible, but were not noted by Naidoo et al. (2004)
or in the present study. No Karoo basalt xenoliths have
been observed in the Group I Kimberley mine dumps
over the last 25 years (JVA Robey, pers. observation) and
the only documentation of such xenoliths is presented
by Williams (1932). Furthermore, Karoo basalt xenoliths
were not directly described by Hawthorne (1975),
Clement (1982) or Clement et al. (1986), nor were they
found by Rambula (2005). Whilst it is conceivable that
basalt xenoliths were overlooked during the more recent
studies, these pipes do not host the abundance of basalt
xenoliths that is found at other Group I kimberlites, such
as Jagersfontein, Monastery and Kaal Vallei.
Discussion
Implications for kimberlite emplacement
On the assumption that xenoliths of lithologies sampled
during kimberlite emplacement are distributed uniformly
throughout the diatreme, lack of wallrock xenoliths from
certain stratigraphic units would indicate that those strata
were absent at the time of kimberlite emplacement.
However it is conceivable that variable processes within
the lower diatremes of certain kimberlites, such as less
explosive eruption, excessive host-rock fall-back or
multiple eruptive events, might result in a non-uniform
distribution of xenoliths with depth in the diatreme.
Thus the presence or absence of xenoliths found in any
one kimberlite might be a function of the present
erosion level or mined portion within that pipe.
Karoo-correlated basalt xenoliths were not observed
in certain Group I kimberlites that are eroded down to
their middle-to-lower diatreme zones. The Leicester-
Balmoral pipes outcrop at the Karoo Supergroup/
basement contact and are dominated by shale xenoliths
presumably from the Ecca and lower Beaufort Groups.
The Kimberley and Koffiefontein pipes outcrop in the
lower-to-middle Ecca Group and contain sandstone
xenoliths from the upper Beaufort Group.
The Jagersfontein, Kaal Vallei and Monastery pipes
134 CRETACEOUS EROSION IN CENTRAL SOUTH AFRICA

Figure 6. Cross-section through the study area (see Figure 1), showing projected surface profiles at 180 Ma, 120 Ma, 85 Ma and 65 Ma as
well as the present-day land surface. The surface profiles were partly constructed based on an assumed 1350 m depth profile for the
kimberlites. The 120 Ma and 85 Ma escarpments were based on projections from outside the cross-section.

outcrop in the upper Ecca and Beaufort Groups and
contain basalt xenoliths from the Drakensberg Group.
This may indicate a broad ‘stratification’ to the xenolith
suites in Group I kimberlite diatremes. The absence of
Karoo basalt xenoliths in the preserved portions of the
diatremes would therefore not necessarily imply that
the Drakensberg Group had eroded away prior to
eruption of the Group I kimberlites.
In contrast, xenoliths of basalt from the Drakensberg
Group and sandstones from the Beaufort Group are
common at many Group II kimberlites, several of which
are eroded to their root zones (e.g. Wimbledon,
Phoenix/Star, New Elands, Roberts Victor), indicating
that xenoliths from across the entire Karoo stratigraphy
are down-rafted to the very base of the diatreme in
Group II kimberlites. Large rafts of Drakensberg Group
basalt are reported from Voorspoed and Finsch pipes at
depths significantly below their projected stratigraphic
occurrence (Clement, 1982; Roberts, 1997). These
observations indicate that the processes of formation of
Group II kimberlite diatremes involved the evacuation
of the diatreme at some stage, with subsequent fall-back
of material containing a significant component of near-
surface material.
Drakensberg Group basalt xenoliths are numerous at
Jagersfontein and occur at Kaal Vallei, Uintjiesberg and
Monastery pipes, indicating that similar eruptive
processes to Group II kimberlites were probably active
at these Group I pipes. The present-day outcropping
Monastery pipe occurs near the diatreme/root zone
boundary (Whitelock, 1973) and contains significant
numbers of basalt xenoliths. The Lovedale No. 1 (Robey,
1981) and Uintjiesberg Group I pipes would also appear
to be eroded to levels close to the root zone and
contain amygdaloidal basalt xenoliths. If Group I and II
kimberlite diatremes form by similar mechanisms, then it
is likely that Group I diatremes were also evacuated
during their formation and that the absence of basalt
xenoliths of the Drakensberg Group indicates that Karoo
basalts were absent or very rare (i.e. eroded away) in the
Leicester, Kimberley and Koffiefontein areas at the time
of Group I kimberlite eruption. Diatremes of Group I
and II kimberlites have similar dimensions (length,
shape, wallrock-interface angle) and general rock types
(tuffisitic kimberlite breccia) indicating that similar
physical forces operated during their formation (Rice,
1999).
Physico-chemical models for kimberlite-diatreme
formation are highly contested and not well constrained
or quantified, with both magmatic (Clement and Reid,
1989; Skinner and Marsh, 2004; Sparks et al., 2006) and
phreatomagmatic (Lorenz, 1975; Lorenz and Kurszlaukis;
2003) processes advocated. In phreatomagmatic models
involving groundwater-magma interaction, the processes
are likely to be similar for Group I and II kimberlites and
commonly involve total initial evacuation of the
diatreme (Lorenz and Kurszlaukis, 2003). Magmatic
models generally involve the separation of a magmatic
vapour phase from the rising magma that causes
rupturing to surface once the lithostatic pressure is
exceeded by the vapour pressure. Again, the physical
processes of diatreme formation would seem to be
similar for both Group I and II kimberlites.

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 E.K. HANSON, J.M. MOORE, E.M. BORDY, J.S. MARSH, G. HOWAR TH AND J.V.A. ROBEY
Implications for Cretaceous landscape evolution
The variation in upper-crustal xenolith composition of
the Group I kimberlites is therefore probably related
to erosional/topographic differences at the eruption
sites, with the Kaal Vallei, Monastery, Jagersfontein,
Uintjiesberg and Lovedale Group I kimberlites erupting
through the entire Karoo stratigraphy, whereas the
Koffiefontein, Kimberley-cluster and Leicester/Balmoral
Group I kimberlites erupted through a truncated
sequence, devoid of Drakensberg Group basalts and
Stormberg Group sediments. The former are absent due
to active Cretaceous weathering and the latter due to
basin-margin pinch-out. The abundance of Karoo basalt
xenoliths at Jagersfontein and their absence or rarity at
the nearby contemporary Koffiefontein pipe would
appear to indicate the presence of an escarpment,
similar to the modern-day Lesotho-Remnant escarpment,
separating the two pipes (Figure 1).
The distribution of Karoo-basalt xenoliths within the
Group I kimberlites reveals that the Drakensberg Group
basalts probably extended only as far west as Kaal Vallei,
Jagersfontein, and Lovedale by 85 Ma. This pattern can
be explained by the presence of an eastward-retreating
inland escarpment (Figure 6) that occupied a position
some 180-200 km west of the present-day outcrop of the
Lesotho Remnant. The Monastery pipe has been eroded
to the diatreme/root zone contact (present surface area
0.6 ha), whereas the other Group I pipes (Koffiefontein,
Kimberley cluster) are all only eroded to the mid-
diatreme level (present surface areas between 5 and
12 ha). The Monastery pipe therefore has experienced
significantly greater post-emplacement erosion
(estimated at ~1350 m) than the other pipes (~850 m),
supporting arguments for the presence of this
escarpment. The Jagersfontein and Kaal Vallei pipes are
situated close to the proposed escarpment and have an
intermediate signature, having relatively large diatremes,
but containing common Drakensberg Group basalt
xenoliths. Over the past 85 Ma, the inland erosion front
has continued to retreat eastwards, at an average rate of
just over 2 km/Ma, to its present position at the western
margin of the Lesotho Remnant.
Evolved-basalt xenoliths from the upper Lesotho
Formation come mostly from the adjacent Voorspoed
and Lace pipes in the extreme north of the study area.
Further north in the Springbok Flats Karoo sub-basin,
the Drakensberg Group basalt stratigraphy indicates
truncation of the lower Lesotho Formation equivalents
and greater thicknesses of the more evolved upper
Lesotho Formation equivalents (Marsh et al., 1997).
This appears to be the case in the Voorspoed-Lace area
as well, which would explain the dominance of upper
Lesotho Formation evolved xenoliths in these pipes.
Scarp-retreat erosion was also probably proceeding
during the eruption of the Group II kimberlite pipes
(140 to 114 Ma). The Voorspoed and Lace kimberlites in
the north of the study area (Figure 1) are diatremes
exposed in the Ecca Group with their root-zone
boundaries some 300 m below surface near the
S O U T H A F R I C A N J O U R NA L O F G E O L O G Y
135
Karoo Supergroup/basement boundary (G. Howarth,
pers. observation), whereas the Phoenix/Star kimberlites
70 km to the south are dykes with small pipes, at the
diatreme/root-zone boundary, exposed in the overlying
Beaufort Group. An explanation for this root-zone
elevation difference (approx. 500 m) would be that an
escarpment existed between the two areas (Figures 1
and 6).
Such a scarp-retreat model indicates that a
tremendous volume of material was removed from the
central part of South Africa in the last 140 Ma. An inland
Drakensberg-Group basalt escarpment has retreated at
least 200 kilometers eastward to the present Lesotho-
Remnant outcrop during this period. This represents a
similar distance to that estimated for external scarp
retreat from the east coast of South Africa to the present
outcrop on the Great Escarpment over the same 140 Ma
period (Partridge and Maud, 1987). Rates of erosion
above the escarpment in the Lesotho Remnant have
been an order of magnitude less than those below
(minimum of 300 to 400 m compared to ~2300 m over
180 Ma; Dunlevey et al., 1993; this study). The large
surface areas of certain kimberlite pipes in the Lesotho
highlands outcropping above 2500 m altitude (Letseng le
Terai ~15.9 ha; Kao 19.8 ha; Mothae ~8.8 ha; Liqhobong
~8.5 ha) tend to support this argument. The presence of
this inland escarpment has been overlooked in most of
the geomorphological models for southern Africa. Such
large-volume erosion in central South Africa would
require significant contemporaneous uplift in the same
area (see Brown et al., 1998; 2000).
The Cretaceous palaeo-surfaces (Figure 6) all drain
north-westward away from the north-east striking
palaeo-escarpment and indicate internal drainages in
central South Africa throughout the Cretaceous (Moore
and Moore, 2004). This continued until the end-
Cretaceous (~65 Ma) as evidenced by the north-
westward palaeo-drainage at Mahura Muthla which
contains transported fossil wood, sandstone clasts and
agates of Karoo Supergroup origin together with in-situ
late Cretaceous fossil wood (Ward et al., 2004). The Vaal
and Harts drainages are shown to be post-Cretaceous
features that developed from exhumation of south-west-
draining basal Karoo glacial valleys that effectively
beheaded the north-west Cretaceous drainages.
Implications for kimberlite erosion
Erosion estimates are characterised by large error
margins that result from uncertainties about the original
thickness of the Karoo-Supergroup units in the study
area. Borehole data from the eastern edge of the
study area near Monastery pipe indicate thicknesses of
approximately 40 m for the Dwyka Group, 500 m for the
Ecca Group, 700 m for the Beaufort Group and 250 m
for the Stormberg Group (Beukes, 1970; Winter and
Venter, 1970) (Table 2). The Drakensberg Group
averages about 1500 m in the adjacent Lesotho Remnant
(Marsh et al., 1997) and is estimated to have been
between 1600 and 1800 m thick, based on zeolite
136 CRETACEOUS EROSION IN CENTRAL SOUTH AFRICA

Figure 7. Profile showing the relative positions of Group I and II kimberlites in relation to the stratigraphy of the Karoo Supergroup and
various palaeo-surfaces in the Kimberley area. No horizontal scale is provided as the pipes have variable dimensions (between 5 and 12 ha
at present-day surface in the Kimberley Group I cluster; Clement et al., 1986).

thermal stability (Dunlevey et al., 1993), amounting to a
total thickness of approximately 3200 m for the Karoo
Supergroup at this locality. In the south-west near the
Melton Wold, Pampoenpoort and Uintjiesberg pipes,
borehole data indicate significantly increased
thicknesses for the Dwyka, Ecca and Beaufort Groups
(Winter and Venter, 1970) (Table 2).
Thicknesses in the Kimberley area are unknown and
have to be extrapolated using recorded thinning rates in
remnants of the Karoo Supergroup sedimentary units
(Johnson, 1976; Visser, 1984; Johnson, 1991; Johnson,
1994; Veevers et al., 1994). It is generally assumed that
most units thin towards the western margin of the main
Karoo Basin. However the basal part of the Karoo

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 E.K. HANSON, J.M. MOORE, E.M. BORDY, J.S. MARSH, G. HOWAR TH AND J.V.A. ROBEY
Supergroup is highly variable here, with the Tierberg
Formation of the Ecca Group showing maximum
thicknesses of 700 m along this margin (Johnson et al.,
2006) and deep glacial valleys existing locally in the
Dwyka Group. Uncertainty also arises concerning the
total thickness of dolerite sills present in the stratigraphy.
Hawthorne (1975) includes a total thickness of ~200 m
of dolerite sills in his estimation. Winter and Venter
(1970), however, indicate that the dolerite-sediment ratio
reaches levels of 0.3 and greater over significant portions
of the study area.
If the Hawthorne (1975) model is reconsidered
simply with Stormberg and Drakensberg Group
successions omitted for reasons discussed above, the
post-eruption loss due to erosion of the Kimberley
cluster would be closer to 850 m (Figure 7) than the
1400 m proposed. Hawthorne (1975) allocated 400 m to
the Dwyka and Ecca Groups, including 100 m of dolerite
sills. This may be an under-estimation given the
potential for increased thickness of Tierberg Formation
in this area. Five hundred and fifty meters is allocated to
the Beaufort Group, including 100 m of dolerite sills.
Given the north-westerly current directions and southern
source for the Beaufort Group (Johnson, 1991; Johnson
et al., 2006), thinning of the group into the Kimberley
area, compared to the borehole near Monastery pipe
(700 m thickness), is to be expected. However, the
amount is unknown. For comparative purposes, the
following discussion assumes that the thicknesses
proposed by Hawthorne (1975) for the Ecca and
Beaufort Groups are correct, although in reality there is
a high degree of uncertainty on the estimate.
Kimberlite pipe models generally involve the
presence of a crater facies within the uppermost part of
the diatreme. Hawthorne (1975) allocated approximately
200 m to the crater facies, although the crater facies at
the Group I Orapa pipe in Botswana is in excess of
400 m thick (Field et al., 1997). As the epiclastic rocks in
any crater facies are superimposed on the underlying
pyroclastic/volcaniclastic kimberlites of the diatreme
facies, they are not thought to materially affect the
estimations of amounts of erosion. They are, in fact,
products of the initial erosional processes themselves.
However, should significant tuff rings or cones develop
at the eruption site, these may affect the estimations of
rates of erosion.
The Kimberley area is unique in that it hosts both
Group II (Wimbledon) and Group I (Kimberley cluster)
kimberlites within close proximity that can be compared
as a means of erosion estimation. The current erosion
levels of the Wimbledon and Kimberley-cluster
diatremes can be utilized to assess the erosion rates that
existed in the time period between Group II and Group
I kimberlite eruption (in this case, 120 to 85 Ma).
Wimbledon is eroded down to the root-zone/diatreme
interface, while this interface occurs at depths of
approximately 400 to 600 m below present-day surface
in the Kimberley cluster (Hawthorne, 1975; Clement,
1982; Clement et al., 1986). If Group I and II kimberlites
S O U T H A F R I C A N J O U R NA L O F G E O L O G Y
137
are broadly of similar size and shape in the study area
(Clement and Reid, 1989), then Wimbledon had to have
experienced ~500 m more erosion than the Kimberley-
cluster pipes (Figure 7). Post-emplacement erosion for
Wimbledon, therefore, would have been approximately
1350 m based on the model proposed above.
Erosion rates can also be estimated based on the
differences in erosion levels between the Wimbledon
and Kimberley-cluster kimberlites. From 120 Ma to
85 Ma, ~500 m of material, predominantly Drakensberg
Group basalts, was removed from the Kimberley area at
an average rate of ~15 m/Ma. In the past 85 Ma,
however, denudation rates have slowed to an average of
10 m/Ma resulting in the erosion of 850 m of Beaufort
and Ecca Group rocks and the development of the
modern-day land surface. This apparent decrease in
erosion rates since the late Cretaceous also applies on a
regional scale (Tinker et al., 2008a). According to
Partridge and Maud (1987), post-Gondwana landscape
evolution is characterized by variable denudation rates
of up to 15 m/Ma with resulting off-shore sedimentation
peaking in the early stages, from Late Jurassic to Mid-
Cretaceous, and slowing through the Late Cretaceous to
minimum levels by Tertiary times as landscape planation
was achieved. Crater-facies sediments are preserved in
the late Cretaceous/Tertiary kimberlite pipes at
Stompoor (Smith, 1986) and Banke, supporting this
argument. In the southern African region, fission-track
studies indicate that peaks in erosion are evident in the
early (140 to 120 Ma) and mid-Cretaceous (100 to 80 Ma)
(Brown et al., 2000; Tinker et al., 2008a). These peaks
complement the measured offshore sedimentation rates
(Dingle et al., 1983; Tinker et al., 2008b).
Based on an eruption age of 183 Ma for the
Drakensberg Group basalts (Duncan et al., 1997), and
assuming a similar erosion rate to that of the 120 to 85
Ma period (i.e. 15m/Ma), it is estimated that some
945 m of material, again predominantly Drakensberg
Group basalts, were removed subsequent to eruption of
the Drakensberg Group lavas, but prior to the extrusion
of the Group II kimberlites (Figure 7). This would
represent a total thickness of 2295 m that has been
removed in the Kimberley area subsequent to the Karoo
flood basalt eruption. It also implies that some 1445 m
of Drakensberg Group flood basalts were present in the
Kimberley area, compared to the 1600 to 1800 m
estimate in the Lesotho Fragment (Dunlevey et al., 1993).
An approximate 250 m thickness of Dwyka and Ecca
Group sediments has survived erosion at the 90 Ma
Koffiefontein pipe (Naidoo et al., 2004) compared to
about 100 m at the Kimberley cluster (Hawthorne 1975,
Clement et al., 1986). Assuming a similar erosion rate to
the Kimberley area of 10 m/Ma, some 900 m of erosion
would have occurred post-eruption. The absence of
Drakensberg-Group lava xenoliths would imply a total
thickness of Karoo-Supergroup sediments of at least
1150 m, compared to 950 m in the Kimberley area.
The 85 Ma Jagersfontein and Kaal Vallei pipes outcrop
close to the Ecca-Beaufort contact in the lower Beaufort
138 CRETACEOUS EROSION IN CENTRAL SOUTH AFRICA
Group. Assuming 10 m/Ma erosion rates, some 850 m of
post-eruption erosion would have occurred. Both pipes
contain Drakensberg lava xenoliths indicating that the
combined thickness of Beaufort and Stormberg Group
sediments was less than 850 m at these localities.
Taking erosional levels of 850 m in the Kimberley
area, with an average of ~500 m of diatreme-facies
kimberlite unexposed below surface, the mean extent of
the diatreme facies of Group I kimberlites is estimated to
be 1350 m, which is close to that of Field and Scott-
Smith (1500 m, 1999). Extending this to the Group II
kimberlites would indicate that the upper ~40% of the
diatreme facies occurred within flood basalts of the
Drakensberg Group (Figure 7). This would explain why
basalt xenoliths are so dominant in Group II kimberlite
pipes.
Older Group I and Group II kimberlite pipes in the
west of the study area (Uintjiesberg, Melton Wold,
Pampoenpoort) have been eroded down to similar
diatreme/root-zone levels to Group II pipes in the
Kimberley area, implying similar post-eruption erosion
rates (~1350 m since 120 Ma). However younger Group
I pipes in the Britstown area are either hypabyssal in
nature (Lushof, Britstown) or occur at the diatreme/root
zone boundary (Lovedale) (Robey, 1981). This implies
greater erosion rates (~1350 m since 75 Ma), similar to
the situation at Monastery, indicating the probable
presence of an escarpment to the north-west of
Britstown prior to 75 Ma (Figure 1). Supporting evidence
is provided by the presence of basaltic xenoliths in the
Group I Lovedale pipe (Robey, 1981).
All these estimates measure absolute amounts of
erosion and are unaffected by any differential uplift,
either temporal or spatial, that might have occurred in
the study area. As a consequence, the palaeo-profiles
shown in Figure 6 do not represent true profiles, but are
based on the present-day surface as a fixed datum.
Proposed uplift events in the Miocene and Pliocene
(Partridge and Maud, 1987) occurred along axes outside
the study area and postdate most of the erosion history
outlined above. Scarp-retreat models involve significant
uplift in the fore-scarp regions (Gilchrist et al., 1994)
which would cover much of the study area. Based on
Figure 6, the maximum volumes of material removed,
and hence the areas of potential maximum uplift,
have migrated progressively eastwards with time from
the western Finsch-pipe region for the period 183 Ma
to 120 Ma, to the eastern Monastery-pipe region
post-85 Ma.
Conclusions
The presence or absence of xenoliths of Karoo
Supergroup rocks in the kimberlite diatremes in central
South Africa generally reflects respectively the presence
or absence of the specific stratigraphic units at the site
of eruption of the kimberlite at the time of eruption.
With regard to the original distribution of various
stratigraphic units within the main Karoo Basin, it is
concluded that the Stormberg Group had a restricted
SOUTH AFRICAN JOURNAL OF GEOLOGY
distribution to the west of its current outcrop but
extended further northwards into the Voorspoed/Lace
area. Basalts of the Drakensberg Group, mainly from the
Lesotho Formation, originally extended across the entire
study area and had thicknesses of ~1500 m in the
Kimberley area at the time of eruption (183 Ma).
By 140 to 120 Ma, the entire surface area was still
covered predominantly by rocks of the Drakensberg
Group, despite ~1000 m of erosion. An escarpment had
developed between the Voorspoed-Lace and Phoenix-
Star kimberlite clusters. By 90 to 85 Ma, a further
~500 m of erosion had occurred at a rate of ~15 m/Ma
and an eastward-progressing escarpment comprising
lavas of the Drakensberg Group had advanced to a line
to the west of the Jagersfontein and Kaal Vallei pipes
some 180 km west of its present position. From 85 Ma
to the present day, a further ~850 m of erosion have
subsequently taken place at a slower rate of ~10 m/yr,
with an eastward scarp-retreat rate of ~2 km/Ma.
Models for kimberlite pipes in the Kimberley cluster
should exclude the presence of rocks of the
Drakensberg and Stormberg Groups. This reduces
the extent of the diatreme/crater facies from 1900 m, as
proposed by Hawthorne (1975), to 1350 m. Reductions
of this nature will lower significantly estimations of the
diamond budget provided by the Cretaceous kimberlite
pipes to the younger alluvial and marine deposits.
Acknowledgments
E. K. Hanson acknowledges financial support received
from the Research Committee of De Beers Group
Services Exploration Division for her MSc thesis study.
We would like to thank various mining companies and
farmers for providing access to the sampling locations.
Mike Skinner is thanked for fruitful discussions.
Improvements to the manuscript resulted from reviews
by Craig Smith and Mike de Wit.
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