Turkish Journal of Earth Sciences Turkish J Earth Sci

(2014) 23: 16-30

http://journals.tubitak.gov.tr/earth/
TBTAK
Research Article doi:10.3906/yer-1303-5

Sedimentary record of mid-Miocene seismotectonic activity

in the Sinop Peninsula, north-central Turkey
Ayhan ILGAR*
Department of Geological Research, General Directorate of Mineral Research and Exploration (MTA), Ankara, Turkey

Received: 12.03.2013 Accepted: 24.09.2013 Published Online: 01.01.2014 Printed: 15.01.2014

Abstract: The middle Miocene shallow-marine siliciclastic succession in the Sinop Peninsula, north-central Turkey, bears a well-
preserved sedimentary record of syndepositional deformation associated with the buried escarpment of an oblique-slip dextral reverse
fault and attributed to seismotectonic activity. The deposition occurred in a marginal trough at the edge of a tectonically inverted
retroarc foreland basin of the Central Pontides. The synsedimentary deformation involved contemporaneous shoreface deposits and
their consolidated, weakly cemented littoral substrate. Deformation features include neptunian dykes, convolute stratification, plumose
transposition structure, injection dykes, diapirs, and large sandstone blocks dislodged from the fault escarpment. The genetic sequence
of deformation structures deciphered from the outcrop section indicates 3 main episodes of seismotectonic activity associated with the
fault and separated by renewed sediment accumulation. The first episode formed a surface rupture equal to about a third of the total
minimum vertical displacement, estimated at ~5.5 m, with a detachment of a large sandstone block from the fault scarp. The second
episode is inferred to have involved at least 2 closely consecutive earthquakes, which caused partial liquefaction and fluidization of
footwall sediment. The last episode of fault activity caused detachment of an even larger sandstone block and was followed by abrupt
basin subsidence, possibly accompanied by a minor tsunami. The seismotectonic events postdated the Pontide orogen and are considered
to represent an early phase of neotectonic activity in the north-central Turkey, heralding the development of the North Anatolian Fault
Zone. Similar deformation features associated with fault escarpments are potentially common in the stratigraphic record, but may have
been lumped with fault breccias or talus deposits and escaped recognition. The study offers detailed sedimentological criteria for the
recognition of syndepositional seismotectonic activity.

Key words: Northern Anatolia, Central Pontides, marginal trough, fault, synsedimentary deformation, neotectonics

1. Introduction 1995; Altnok and Ersoy, 2000; Ambraseys, 2001; Tan et

The Anatolian block of Turkey, after its tectonic assembling
through the collision of the Pontides with the Anatolide-
Tauride platform of the East Mediterranean Alpine
orogeny, soon became subject to a westward tectonic
escape (structural strike-slip expulsion) driven by the
northward movement of the Arabian plate accommodated
by the sinistral East Anatolian and dextral North
Anatolian fault zones (Figure 1A; McKenzie, 1972; Dewey
and engr, 1979; engr et al., 1985; Flerit et al., 2004).
This postorogenic neotectonic regime is thought to have
commenced in the middle Miocene, around 12 Ma BP
(Barka and Hancock, 1984; engr et al., 1985), rendering
Anatolia one of the most seismically active regions of the
Eurasian continent notorious for its numerous and often
disastrous earthquakes (Dewey, 1976; arolu et al., 1992).
The Recent fault activity and seismicity in Anatolia are
well-document from the historical record of catastrophic
earthquakes and tsunami events (Ambraseys and Finkel,
* Correspondence: ayhan_ilgar@yahoo.com
16
al., 2008), from surface ruptures and shallow excavations
(Ambraseys and Jackson, 1998; Awata et al., 1999; Barka et
al., 2000; Witter et al., 2000; Bouchon et al., 2002; Kondo
et al., 2005; zaksoy et al., 2010), from high-resolution
shallow seismic-reflection imagery (Parke et al., 1999;
Kuu et al., 2002) and radar interferometry (Wright et al.,
2001), and from abrupt local paleogeographical changes
(Ryan et al., 1997; Leroy et al., 2002; zaksoy et al., 2010).
Little geological documentation exists of the earlier, pre-
Holocene neotectonic activity and its onset in Anatolia
(Poisson et al., 2003; Ko Tagn, 2011; Ko Tagn et al.,
2011), most probably because of the negligible preservation
potential of a surface record of older seismotectonic events.
The present study from a middle Miocene shallow-
marine siliciclastic succession in the Sinop Peninsula,
north-central Turkey (Figure 1B), is the first documentation
of a syndepositional seismic fault activity that can be
attributed to the early onset phase of neotectonics in
 ILGAR / Turkish J Earth Sci

AGE
Quaternary
FORMATION
alluvium nceburun BLACK SEA B
Unconformity
Pliocene- Sarkum Fm. 0 3 km
Pleistocene sandstones
Unconformity
middle Miocene
Konkian - Gelincik Fm.
Bessarabian sandstones & conglomerates
Unconformity Akliman
middle Miocene Sinop Fm.
Tarkhanian - mudstones, sandstones,
Tshokrakian fossiliferous limestones
Unconformity
middle Eocene Kusuri Fm. Sarkum SNOP
mudstones, sandstones, Lake
fossiliferous limestones Gelincik
Paleocene- Atba Fm.
early Eocene mudstones & calcarenites
Maastrichtian- Akveren Fm.
Paleocene calcarenites & marls
Unconformity Study
Cenomanian
Hamsaros Fm.
lava-flow basalts, area
dykes & pyroclastics

Kusuri

Balfak

Erfelek

Erikli
Gerze
Tangal

Figure 1. A) Tectonic map of Anatolia, showing the Pontide and Tauride orogenic belts enveloping the Krehir and Menderes crystalline massifs
(simplified from Leren et al., 2007); note the neotectonic pattern of strike-slip deformation along the East Anatolian (EAF) and North Anatolian (NAF)
fault zones driving the westward tectonic escape of the Anatolian craton. B) Geological map of the Sinop Peninsula, showing the tectonically-inverted
foreland basin of Central Pontides to the south and the associated marginal trough to the North (modified from Gedik and Korkmaz, 1984). The troughs
southern margin is approximated by the Balfak thrust, whereas the northern, outer margin corresponds to the belt of Cenomanian volcanics. Note the
location of the study area in the NE part of the Sinop Peninsula.

17
 ILGAR / Turkish J Earth Sci
northern Anatolia. The synsedimentary deformation
described from the Sinop outcrop section was associated
with the subaqueous escarpment of an active, oblique-
slip reverse fault and involved both contemporaneous
nearshore sediments and their consolidated shallow-
marine substrate. Similar features related to underwater
or terrestrial fault escarpments may be common in the
stratigraphic record of Anatolia and other tectonically
active regions, but may have been lumped with
postdepositional fault breccias or talus deposits and their
significance may have escaped recognition. The present
study thus also contributes to the sedimentological criteria
for the deciphering of ancient seismotectonic events from
the stratigraphic record.
2. Geological setting
The Neogene basin in north-central Turkey formed as a
marginal trough at the northern edge of the tectonically
inverted, ESE-trending foreland basin of the Central
Pontides (Figure 1A). The retroarc foreland basin evolved
from a failed Late Cretaceous rift (Leren et al., 2007).
The marginal trough, paralleling the folded and thrust-
deformed foreland, is presently exposed only in the Sinop
Peninsula (Figure 1B). The Neogene siliciclastic succession
represents the southern reaches of Eastern Paratethys
(Grr et al., 2000) and rests unconformably on the
preorogenic Late JurassicEarly Cretaceous carbonate
platform and Cenomanian volcanic rocks, whereas to
the south, it overlies partly the youngest, middle Eocene
deposits of the deformed foreland basin (Figure 1B). The
Neogene basin is structurally bounded by Balfak thrust to
the south. Thrusting of the Paleoceneearly Eocene Atba
Formation over the middle Eocene Kusuri Formation on
the NW part of the Balfak thrust (Figure 1B) reflects
the post-middle Eocene activity of the fault. This activity
continued up to the early Miocene and caused the uplift of
the region.
The formation of marginal troughs is known to be
associated with rift basins tectonically inverted into
fold belts (e.g., see the Polish-Danish Anticlinorium in
Poaryski and Brochwicz-Lewiski, 1978; Ziegler, 1990,
fig. 71). The early Miocene development of the Sinop
marginal trough was due to the uplift and gravitational
foundering of the Pontide orogen caused by crustal
thickening (see Seyitolu and Scott, 1991, 1996; Ylmaz et
al., 1997), which reactivated the foreland Balfak thrust
(Figure 1B) and resulted in crustal downwarping along
the orogen margin. The resulting synclinal basin initially
hosted a neritic marine environment, but underwent rapid
shallowing as the subsidence ceased by the end of early
Miocene. Littoral sedimentation prevailed in the middle
Miocene, when the abandoned marginal trough eventually
became affected by transpressional tectonic deformation
(see Barka and Hancock, 1984; engr et al., 1985).
18
3. Basin-fill stratigraphy
Sedimentation in the Sinop marginal trough commenced
with the deposition of the shallow-marine Sinop
Formation (Figure 1B; Gedik and Korkmaz, 1984),
composed of mudstones, sandstones, and minor fine-
grained conglomerates. The lower part of the formation
consists of dark gray, nonfossiliferous mudstones
intercalated with thin sandstone sheets (Figure 2A). These
deposits pass upwards into a heterolithic facies composed
of fine-grained sandstones with mudstone interlayers and
with wavy to lenticular bedding (Figure 2B). Molluscan
fauna at the transition of the mudstone to heterolithic
facies indicates a Tarkhanian/Tshokrakian (early middle
Miocene) age of the deposits. The proportion of sand
increases upwards and slightly varies (Figure 2C), until
fossiliferous sandstones predominate, intercalated
with thin erosional layers of granule and fine-pebble
conglomerate. Interbeds of fossiliferous stromatolitic
and/or oolitic limestone (Figure 2D) also occur locally
in the upper part. Primary sedimentary structures in
sandstones include wave-ripple cross-lamination (Figure
2E), hummocky and planar parallel stratification (Figure
2F), and bidirectional planar cross-stratification. A local
occurrence of granule-rich fossiliferous sandstones shows
lateral accretion cross-stratification (Figure 2G), attributed
to an isolated paleochannel.
The sedimentary facies succession of the Sinop
Formation indicates a gradual upward shallowing with
minor sea-level fluctuations and with the environment
evolving from a mud-dominated offshore transition zone
into a heterolithic lagoonal tidal flat by the beginning of
middle Miocene. Barrier facies are unexposed, but the
coarse-grained lateral-accretion unit probably represents
a migrating tidal inlet channel extended over the lagoon.
The sedimentary environment evolved further into a wave-
dominated sandy shoreface, with a gradual encroachment
of a seaward-prograding gravelly foreshore zone.
The normal (progradational) marine regression was
then interrupted a strong sea-level fall at the Tshokrakian/
Karaganian transition, when a forced regression occurred
and the basin was emerged. Incised fluvial valleys formed,
more than 120 m deep, and were subsequently filled with
marine to deltaic deposits as the sea level began to rise in
the Konkian time. The transgressive Gelincik Formation
(Figure 1B) consists of foreshore to shoreface deposits with
associated shoal-water and Gilbert-type deltas, recording
a gradual rise in sea level followed by highstand. This
record of sea-level changes in the basin clearly postdates
the orogeny and corresponds to the Paratethyan eustatic
history (Harzhauser and Piller, 2004).
The basin was then tectonically uplifted in the late
Miocene, with the basin-fill succession presently exposed
at up to 130 m above sea level. The Plio-Pleistocene
 ILGAR / Turkish J Earth Sci

A C

1m

1m

D E

10 cm
Figure 2. Sedimentary facies of the Sinop Formation. A) Dark gray offshore-transition mudstone interspersed with thin sandstone sheets. B) Thin
lenticular sandstone beds intercalated with mudstones of a lagoonal tidal-flat succession. C) Planar parallel-stratified, fine- to coarse-grained shoreface
sandstones with subordinate wave-ripple cross-lamination, intercalated with silty mudstone layers. D) Fossiliferous oolitic limestone interbed in the
upper part of the formation. E) Close-up view of wave ripple forms in fine-grained, cross-laminated shoreface sandstone. F) Fossiliferous, granule-rich,
planar parallel-stratified foreshore sandstone. G) Fossiliferous, granule-rich sandstone with laterally accreted cross-strata, interpreted as a point bar of
tidal inlet channel.

19
 ILGAR / Turkish J Earth Sci
aeolian deposits of the Sarkum Formation (Figure 1B)
unconformably overlie the Sinop and Gelincik formations,
smoothing out the post-Miocene paleotopography.
4. Outcrop evidence of synsedimentary deformation
4.1. Description and interpretation of deposits
The evidence of synsedimentary deformation, attributed to
seismotectonic activity, has been found in the upper, sandy
part of the shallow-marine Sinop Formation exposed in a
roadcut section on the eastern side of the Sinop Peninsula
(see study area in Figure 1B). The EW roadcut section
is 4.5 m high and 35 m long (Figure 3). An oblique-slip
reverse fault formed in, and buried by, sandy shoreface
deposits divides the outcrop section into a hanging-wall
part to the left and a footwall part to the right. The fault-
plane dip azimuth and angle are 105/65. Striations on the
fault plane indicate a reverse fault with dextral strike-slip
component (Figure 3).
4.1.1. The hanging-wall part
The hanging-wall part of the fault structure in its lower
part (Figure 3, lower left) consists of alternating very fine-
grained sandstone and subordinate siltstone beds showing
planar parallel stratification and minor wave-ripple cross-
lamination. The deposits also show open fissures filled
with angular fragments of similar rock and a poorly sorted
matrix of fine to coarse sand. Directly above, the deposits
show intense brecciation into small angular blocks
surrounded by a similar, relatively coarse sand matrix.
The brecciated sandstone is unconformably overlain by an
upper unit of nondeformed, very fine-grained sandstone
alternating with siltstone layers (Figure 3, upper left). The
sediment is similarly well-sorted, forming tabular layers
110 cm thick, with mainly planar parallel stratification
and minor wave-ripple cross-lamination (ripple cross-sets
of 0.5 cm thick).
There is no evidence of unidirectional paleocurrent
in the lower and upper unit, and the stratification types
indicate a perennial action of waves with near-bottom
orbital velocities of mainly 0.5 m s1 (see Allen, 1982,
figs. 1119). For the available grain-size range, the near-
bottom oscillatory currents were apparently too strong to
allow common formation of wave ripples, whereby plane-
bed configuration predominated. Perennial wave action
implies deposition above a fair-weather wave base. The fine
grain sizes and scarcity of recognizable erosional surfaces
suggest deposition in a middle shoreface environment, at
the transition of lower to upper shoreface zone (Goldring
and Bridges, 1973; Clifton, 1976, 1981; Walker and Plint,
1992; Ainsworth and Crowley, 1994).
4.1.2. Footwall part
The footwall part of the fault structure shows a considerably
greater degree of deformation (Figure 3, lower right).
The deformation is strongest near the top of the lower
20
sandstone unit, with the deformation zone thinning from
135 cm to less than 50 cm with distance from the fault
(Figure 3). The large isolated blocks of stratified sandstone,
up to 3.5 m in length, consist of similar shoreface deposits
as those in the lower hanging wall, but show steep to
vertical internal parallel stratification and have apparently
been dislodged from the fault escarpment. The lower
block (first block in Figure 3), after its emplacement, was
buried by fine- to medium-grained sand, but initially shed
some smaller fragments and accumulated massive sand
on its lower flanks. The surrounding sandstone shows
planar parallel stratification and sporadic wave ripples on
bedding planes in its lowest part, 5075 cm thick, but is
increasingly fossiliferous and dominated by hummocky
cross-stratification in the upper part, 70125 cm thick.
This lower sandstone unit has an uneven upper boundary
overlain by stratified medium-grained sandstone on which
the second large block is resting (second block in Figure
3). The sandstone planar parallel strata are deformed both
below the block and on its sides, with small convolutions
and diapiric folds (Figures 3 and 4). Notably, this middle
sandstone unit lacks deformation farther away from the
fault and overlies sharply the deformed lower sandstone
unit (Figure 3, right-hand part), which means that the
second block was emplaced considerably later, after a
significant episode of sedimentation. This block and the
middle sandstone unit disturbed by its emplacement
are overlain unconformably, with slight erosional
truncation, by an upper unit of parallel-stratified, very
fine-grained sandstone alternating with siltstone layers.
As in the underlying units, the seafloor-draping parallel
stratification is not perfectly planar, apparently adjusted
to the preexisting local relief and also bent slightly by
compaction.
The characteristics of the lower sandstone unit, ~2.5
m thick, differ from those of the hanging-wall sandstone
and suggest deposition in an upper shoreface environment
(Clifton, 1976, 1981; Bourgeois, 1980; Walker and Plint,
1992; Ainsworth and Crowley, 1994). Wave near-bottom
orbital velocities were 0.7 m s1, often >0.9 m s1 (Allen,
1982, fig. 1119), and the occurrence of hummocky
stratification indicates episodic storm-generated
combined flow (Dott and Bourgeois, 1982; Brenchley,
1985; Duke et al., 1991; Brenchley et al., 1993; Cheel and
Leckie, 1993). The upper sandstone unit, which onlapped
and fully buried the fault escarpment (Figure 3), shows
planar parallel stratification and minor wave-ripple cross-
lamination and is attributed to deposition in a middle
shoreface environment.
4.2. Deformation features
4.2.1. Neptunian dykes
Structures interpreted to be neptunian dykes occur in
the mid-shoreface sandstone of the fault hanging wall
 1m

EAST WEST
4

3
ILGAR / Turkish J Earth Sci

neptunian dykes

Figure 4
2

2nd block

HCS
hanging wall
1st block

Structural data 0
of the fault plane oblique-reverse fault footwall silt sand

Figure 3. The studied outcrop section and overlay drawing, showing the deformation features and vertical facies changes (log). Note the inset frame indicating the
close-up detail shown in Figure 4.

21
 ILGAR / Turkish J Earth Sci
Diapir structure
Plumose pattern
Fault plane
Shells
Figure 4. Close-up detail of the outcrop part indicated in Figure 3 (see inset frame), with an overlay drawing to enhance visibility
of the observed pattern of stratification and deformation.
(Figure 3, left). On the basis of their extent and sediment
infill, 2 types of dykes can be distinguished. One type is
represented by the deep vertical dyke that extends from
the base of the brecciated top part of the hanging wall
to a depth of at least 3 m (Figure 3, left) and is probably
longer in strike-parallel lateral extent. This fissure is filled
with angular fragments of the fine-grained host sandstone,
mainly 1545 cm in size, and an interstitial matrix of
fine- to coarse-grained sand. The medium to coarse sand
component of the matrix resembles texturally the upper
shoreface sandstone of the fault footwall, rather than the
host hanging-wall rock. The other dyke type comprises
relatively small fissures that form short wedges inclined at
a high angle to the large dyke (Figure 3, left). These dykes
are 745 cm in width and 50150 cm in down-dip extent.
The fissure-fill is mainly fine to coarse sand, with minor
parabreccias (sensu Spalleta and Vai, 1984) composed of
host sandstone angular fragments of 10 cm in size.
Neither the large nor the smaller dykes show any offset
of the host rock (Figure 3, left), which means that they
22
2nd block
Convolute
stratification
1st block
represent sediment-filled open fissures rather than small
faults. The angular geometry of dykes implies host-rock
brittle dilation, attributable to relaxation of the fault scarp.
The dyke parabreccia component was formed by a brittle
disintegration of the fissure sidewalls. The sandstone
fragments show no evidence of weathering or dissolution,
and their sharp edges suggest that the sand was well-
compacted and perhaps slightly cemented prior to its
rupture (see Cozzi, 2000).
The sedimentary infill of open fractures and cavities in
seabed, referred to as neptunian dykes, consists of sediment
derived from the sidewalls and from above (Winterer and
Sarti, 1994; Cozzi, 2000; rne et al., 2007). The origin of
neptunian dykes is widely attributed to seismic activity
(Playford, 1980; Winterer and Bosellini, 1981; Lehner,
1991; Montenat et al., 1991; Cozzi, 2000), although similar
features have also been reported from the surfaces of
submarine slides (Winterer et al., 1991; Winterer and
Sarti, 1994). The formation of open fissures is related to
extension in cohesive or consolidated sediment (Moretti
 ILGAR / Turkish J Earth Sci
and Sabato, 2007), caused by such factors as a surficial
stretching associated with the strain relaxation of fault
scarps, slide extension gashes, diapir rising, or overloading
(Montenat et al., 2007). Only this first factor is relevant in
the present case, as the others can be precluded.
4.2.2. Convolute stratification
Convolute stratification occurs in the fine- to medium-
grained sandstones of the fault footwall (Figures 3 and
4). The convolutions consist of disorderly anticlines and
synclines, 1035 cm in amplitude and 525 cm in width.
Fold axial planes vary from vertical to subhorizontal and
lack preferential orientation. The fold size decreases as
the intensity of folding increases upwards, and the higher
convolutions are commonly disharmonic with respect to
the lower ones. The convolutions show a gradual transition
to the underlying nondeformed parallel stratification,
whereas their upward transition to a diffuse plumose
structure above is relatively abrupt, although the contact
itself is highly irregular and digitated (Figure 4). The
gradational lower contact and the chaotic orientation of
fold axial planes indicate an in situ deformation rather than
a slump. The intensity of convolutions and the thickness of
convoluted zone decrease away from the fault (Figure 3).
The formation of convolute stratification is widely
attributed to a hydroplastic deformation of nonconsolidated
sediment in a state of moderate or partial liquefaction
(Lowe, 1975; Allen, 1986; Jones and Omoto, 2000; Rossetti
and Goes, 2000; McLaughlin and Brett, 2004; Neuwerth
et al., 2006; Montenat et al., 2007). Despite the apparent
geometrical complexity of convolution structures, the
deformation is most commonly driven by unidirectional
stress, whether due to a seismic shaking or to gravity
(Collinson, 1994).
4.2.3. Plumose structure
A diffuse and mainly amorphous plumose structure occurs
in the footwall of the fault, at the transition from the
strongly convoluted fine/medium-grained sandstone to
the overlying coarse-grained massive sandstone (Figures
3 and 4). As in Matsudas (2000) description of similar
features, the structure shows an interweaving of sediment
from the upper and lower layers and consists of concave-
upwards diffuse flow bands between the downwards-
sagged pockets of the upper, heavier sand. The resulting
interdigitation of sediment layers reaches up to 40 cm in
amplitude (Figure 4), and the complexity of the plumose
structure increases towards the fault (Figure 3).
The formation of plumose structures requires the
applied shear stress to overcome the frictional shear
strength of the deposit, which normally happens due
to an increase of pore-water pressure that leads to
liquefaction or fluidization (Elliot, 1965; Matsuda, 2000).
This pattern of sediment transposition may be regarded
as a combination of dish structures formed by dewatering
and load structures caused by unstable sediment-density
gradient (see Duyski and Walton, 1965; Collinson et al.,
2006), resulting in a varied direction of transposition.
4.2.4. Injection dykes
At least one major injection dyke and a couple of minor
ones, possibly its branches, are recognizable in the faults
hanging wall (Figure 4). In contrast to neptunian dykes,
these features extend obliquely upwards from the fault
plane, wedge out blindly, and have apparently drained a
mixture of fine- to coarse-grained liquefied sand from
the zone of convolution and plumose deformation in the
faults footwall. The main dyke is 525 cm wide and its dip-
parallel extent from the fault plane is ~90 cm.
The emplacement of injection dykes is generally
attributed to sediment fluidization combined with
hydraulic fracturing (Montenat et al., 1991) These features
are common in synsedimentary deformation horizons
interpreted as seismites (e.g., Hesse and Reading, 1978;
Seilacher, 1984).
4.2.5. Diapiric features
Small diapirs are associated with the edges of the upper
large sandstone block (second block in Figures 3 and 4),
which was apparently dislodged from the fault escarpment.
These features are tight, shallowly protrusive folds of the
underlying medium-grained sand, no more than 1015
cm wide, with a penetration height of 2030 cm. Their
internal stratification is preserved, but tightly folded
in accordance with the diapir shape. The deformation
decreases towards the diapir root zone, where the folded
strata pass into undisturbed ones.
The diapirs are synsedimentary deformation features
that, in the present case, may have been caused by the
impact shock of the fallen sand block or by its subsequent
shaking.
5. Discussion
5.1. Trigger mechanism of synsedimentary deformation
The synsedimentary deformation structures owe
their origin to the formation of open fissures in well-
compacted, consolidated shoreface sand exposed in the
fault hanging wall and to the process of sand liquidization
(i.e. liquefaction or fluidization; sensu Allen, 1982) in the
footwall. Liquidization increases pore-water pressure,
breaks down the grain-supported sand framework, and
causes a dramatic decrease of the sand shear strength,
which effectively renders the sand mobile (Allen and Banks,
1972; Youd, 1973; Allen, 1982; Owen, 1987). This process
is the main agent for the development of hydroplastic
deformation structures in water-saturated cohesionless
sediments (Lowe, 1975; Allen, 1986; Collinson, 1994;
Rossetti, 1999; Jones and Omoto, 2000; McLaughlin and
Brett, 2004; Neuwerth et al., 2006; Montenat et al., 2007;
Moretti and Sabato, 2007). The triggering factor may be an
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 ILGAR / Turkish J Earth Sci
overloading or differential loading, gravitational slumping,
seismic shaking, groundwater movement, cyclic and/or
impulsive effect of storm wave loading, shear stress of an
overriding current, or possibly an abrupt change in relative
sea level or ground-water level (Jones, 1972; Lowe, 1975;
Allen, 1982; Glennie and Buller, 1983; Mills, 1983; Owen,
1987; Molina et al., 1998; Moretti, 2000).
A seismic trigger is the most likely factor in association
with a fault rupture, especially if alternative nonseismic
causes can be precluded (Moretti, 2000). The deformed
shoreface sandstones in the footwall part of the fault
structure (Figure 3, right) were deposited by waves
combined with storm-generated currents, and hence the
origin of the convolute stratification and plumose structure
cannot be attributed to a rapid emplacement of sediment
or an unstable, reversed sediment density gradient. The
gradual transition of these deformation features to the
underlying nondeformed horizontal parallel stratification,
the disorderly orientation of convolutions, and the lack of
lateral displacement indicate an in situ deformation and
preclude both gravitational slumping and basal shear stress
of an overriding current (see Collinson, 1994). There is no
facies evidence of an abrupt major change in relative sea
level and no sign of sediment disturbance by bioturbation,
and also rapid groundwater movements are unlikely to
have occurred in a littoral environment.
Substrate deformation can be triggered by the impact of
a collapsing sand block, but the emplacement of the second
large block in the outcrop section (Figure 3) apparently
caused only shallow deformation directly beneath the
block and at its edges. The blocks impact cannot explain
the deeper zone of more extensive deformation, covered
by little deformed to nondeformed sand (Figure 3). The
thickness of the deformation zone increases towards
the fault, which suggests a genetic link with the latter.
Therefore, the laterally extensive deformation of seafloor
sediment and the collapses of sand blocks from the fault
escarpment are thought to have been triggered by seismic
shocks.
It is worth noting that the deformation structures
described here are similar to those reproduced
experimentally by Kuenen (1958) and Sims (1975) in
laboratory simulations of seismic shaking. Earthquake-
produced ground fissures and liquefaction phenomena,
from distinct horizons of load structures and convolutions
to sand dykes, have long been recognized as seismites
(Seilacher, 1969, 1984) and used to identify ancient
earthquakes (e.g., Talwani and Cox, 1985; Allen, 1986;
Anand and Jain, 1987; Obermeier, 1996; Vanneste et
al., 1999; Matsuda, 2000; Rodrguez-Pascua et al., 2000;
Obermeier et al., 2002; Singh and Jain, 2007). Apart from
the similarity to experimental structures, Matsuda (2000)
considered the following aspects of synsedimentary
24
deformation to be diagnostic of seismic events: 1) the
vertical narrowness and considerable lateral extent
(synchronicity) of deformation zones; 2) a systematic
lateral decrease in the deformation zone thickness and
intensity; and 3) the evidence of sediment liquefaction
or fluidization with minor horizontal transposition of
sediment, implying in situ deformation. Rossetti and
Ges (2000) emphasized the diagnostic significant of
deformation horizons separated by nondeformed sediment
zones. All these criteria are met in the present case.
Obermeier et al. (2002) argued that if strong seismic
shaking occurs in a sedimentary basin, liquefaction
features should inevitably be formed. Earthquake-induced
stresses cause a back-and-forth shear strain, which
increases pore-water pressure, results in a loss of sediment
shear strength, and causes deformation (Youd, 1973; Allen,
1977; Obermeier, 1996).
Many studies have focused on earthquake-induced
soft-sediment deformation in an attempt to make
inferences about the magnitude, epicenter location, and
frequency of past earthquakes (Sims, 1975; Talwani and
Cox, 1985; Allen, 1986; Anand and Jain, 1987; Obermeier,
1996; Vanneste et al., 1999; Matsuda, 2000; Rodrguez-
Pascua et al., 2000; Obermeier et al., 2002; Singh and Jain,
2007). It has been argued that, for ground liquefaction to
be triggered, the earthquake magnitude should be at least
Mw 5, because weaker earthquakes lack sufficient strength
and duration (Audemard and De Santis, 1991). Marco and
Agnon (1995) suggested that seismic ground-level fault
ruptures develop with earthquake magnitudes of Mw
5.5.
5.2. Chronology of seismotectonic events
Three distinct episodes of syndepositional seismotectonic
activity can be recognized in the outcrop section on the
basis of the stratigraphic succession of deformation
features separated by renewed sediment deposition (Figure
3). They are reconstructed hypothetically in Figure 5 and
are discussed below.
5.2.1. Episode 1
The first episode of syndepositional deformation involved
the formation of an oblique-slip reverse fault (Figure 5A).
The reverse fault lifted up well-compacted and possibly
weakly cemented mid-shoreface deposits of the hanging
wall above the seafloor level and contemporaneous upper-
shoreface deposits of the footwall. Brittle deformation
occurred along the fault plane and a subaqueous
topographic escarpment was formed, with soft sediment
stripped by waves from the hanging wall. Stress relaxation
in the uplifted hanging wall caused its brittle disintegration,
whereby penetrative open fissures developed and were
filled in with wave-washed sand, forming neptunian dykes,
while also the first large sandstone block fell off from the
fault escarpment (Figure 5B). The sandy matrix of the
 ILGAR / Turkish J Earth Sci

A
WAVE-DOMINATED
SHOREFACE ENVIRONMENT

Upper shoreface sand underlain by

consolidated mid-shoreface facies

Oblique-slip reverse
fault forms

C
Brecciation and winnowing
Erosion and brecciation by waves by waves

Block
falls Depositional cover

Substrate deformed by impact

Erosion and increased

D E
brecciation Erosion by waves

Liquefaction and in situ Erosional cover

seafloor deformation

F G
SHOREFACE ENVIRONMENT

Eroded
Block
topples over Depositional cover

Fault buried
Substrate deformed
by impact

1.5 m

Abrupt subsidence

Figure 5. Cartoon reconstruction of the time series of mid-Miocene seismotectonic and sedimentation events recognized in the outcrop section (Figure
3). A) A reverse fault rupture forms at seafloor in medium- to coarse-grained sand of an upper shoreface environment. B) The fault escarpment reaches
~2 m in amplitude, with erosion and fracturing of the hanging wall and a large sandstone block dislodged from the fault scarp. C) The fallen block
is buried by upper-shoreface sand, with little or no accumulation on the hanging wall. D) The second episode of seismotectonic activity, with partial
liquidization and strong deformation of footwall sediment. E) An erosional covering of the deformed sediment by upper-shoreface sand. F) The third
episode of seismotectonic activity, with another large sandstone block dislodged from the fault scarp. G) The seafloor rapidly subsides and fine-grained
mid-shoreface sand gradually buries the fault escarpment; the fault becomes extinct.

25
 ILGAR / Turkish J Earth Sci
neptunian dyke parabreccias is texturally similar to coeval
upper-shoreface sand, coarser than the host sandstone,
which supports the notion of a contemporaneous
derivation by wave action.
The development of neptunian dykes signifies
extensional strain and is typically associated with normal
faults (Montenat et al., 1991; Cozzi, 2000). The hanging wall
in the present case was likely fractured due to its internal
relaxation stresses (Montenat et al., 2007). Shock-induced
dilation would likely contribute to the fracturing, as the
formation of ground rupture may suggest an earthquake
magnitude of Mw 5.5 (Marco and Agnon, 1995). The
amplitude of vertical seafloor displacement by the fault at
this first stage is uncertain, estimated as at least ~2 m on
account of the exposure of consolidated substrate in the
hanging wall and the size of the first block detached from
the escarpment.
5.2.2. Episode 2
The first stage of deformation was followed by continued
sand accumulation in upper-shoreface regime in the
accommodation space provided by the fault footwall,
whereas little or no deposition occurred on the wave-
swept elevated hanging wall. Sand draped and buried the
first collapsed block (Figure 5C). The action of fair-weather
and storm waves accumulated over 2 m of stratified sand
before a second episode of seismotectonic deformation
occurred, convoluting the strata and resulting in a
plumose liquefaction structure with associated injection
dykes (Figure 5D). It is uncertain if the hanging wall
accumulated sand, but its further fracturing probably
occurred. The hydroplastically deformed sediment was
then slightly truncated by waves, probably smoothing the
deformation relief, and was overlain by parallel-stratified
sand (Figure 5E).
The thickness of the hydroplastic deformation zone
decreases rapidly with distance from the fault (Figure 3),
which suggests a ground-roll shock wave propagating
away from the fault. The fault movement may have been
incremental, with multiple shocks, since the multilobate
geometry of convolutions (Figure 3) suggests that the
strata were liquefied at least twice (Bhattacharya and
Bandyopadhyay, 1998). Allen (1982) and Tuttle and Seeber
(1991) reported on the occurrence of superimposed
or cross-cutting liquefaction structures as indicative of
multiple, closely-successive seismic events. One such
superposition reportedly common in seismites (Matsuda,
2000) is the outward development of convolutions into
a plumose structure with homogenized sand crown,
indicative of stepwise liquefaction. Accordingly, this
deformation episode is inferred to have involved at least 2
successive seismic events that followed shortly each other.
The deformation included the injection of sand dykes
into the hanging wall (Figure 4), which implies some
accompanying fluidization.
26
The bulk amplitude of vertical displacement associated
with this second seismotectonic event probably did not
exceed ~1.5 m (see further inferences below). Although
sediment liquidization might suggest an earthquake
magnitude of Mw 5 (Audemard and De Santis, 1991;
Marco and Agnon, 1995), the actual magnitude could
be lower, as the ground deformation seems to have been
limited to the faults close neighborhood.
5.2.3. Episode 3
Sediment accumulation resumed on the footwall and the
deformed substrate was unconformably covered with a
wave-worked, planar parallel-stratified upper-shoreface
sand (Figure 5E). This depositional unit is 0.70 m thick
near the fault and thins to 0.25 m away from it (Figure
3), which reflects mainly the footwall postdeformational
topography. Another episode of the fault activity then
occurred and the second large sand block collapsed from
the fault scarp (Figure 5F). The blocks impact deformed
the substrate directly beneath it, forming small shallow
convolutions and diapiric features. On the account of the
fallen blocks size, the hanging wall is estimated to have
been elevated by an additional ~2 m and subsequently
eroded to a depth of ~4 m before eventually becoming
draped with sediment. A minor tsunami generated by
the basins northern-margin fault (Figure 1B) may have
possibly contributed to the rapid erosion, as the basin
concurrently underwent an abrupt subsidence and relative
sea-level rise (see facies change in the log in Figure 3).
The rise in relative sea level instigated sediment
deposition, also in the hanging wall, whereby the fine-
grained mid-shoreface sand draped and eventually buried
the fault escarpment (Figure 5G). The fault became extinct,
as the sand cover lacks deformation (Figure 3). The total
vertical displacement on the fault is estimated at ~5.5
m, since the footwall accommodated ~2 m of shoreface
sand between the fall of the first and the second block,
whereas the size of the latter block (Figure 3) indicates
dislodgement from a scarp of at least 3.5 m high.
5.3. Evaluation of the possible cause of the reverse fault
The formation of the Karasu anticline (Figure 1B) in
relation with the mid-Miocene activity of the Balfak
reverse fault and the structural data of Yldrm et al.
(2011) from Neogene marine deposits show NNESSW
shortening in the Sinop Peninsula. However, the dip
azimuth of the studied reverse-fault (105/65) suggesting
NWSE compressional deformation is not compatible
with this stress distribution of the region. The structural,
morphometric, and plate kinematic analyses recently
carried out in the region by Yldrm et al. (2011) document
the fundamental influence of the North Anatolian Fault
(NAF) on the evolution of the Central Pontides (CP) and
show that the transpressional deformation that is related
to the NAF is distributed in the CP and extends to the
 ILGAR / Turkish J Earth Sci

abyssal plain of the Black Sea. The NAF is the main driving
mechanism for wedge tectonics and uplift in the CP and
the onset of the dextral crustal shearing along the NAF
controlled the tectonic inversion and NWSE contractional
deformation of CP Neogene basins (Andrieux et al., 1995;
Yldrm et al., 2011). Barka (1992) also pointed out that
a wide dextral shear zone developed before the initiation
of the NAF in the region, which caused NESW directed
compressional structures including thrusts, reverse faults,
and folds. Thus, the oblique-slip reverse fault may be
attributed to the mid-Miocene activity of the dextral shear
zone in the region, preceding full-scale development of the
North Anatolian Fault Zone (see Barka and Hancock, 1984;
engr et al., 1985; Andrieux et al., 1995).
The shallow-marine, neritic to littoral Miocene deposits
in the Sinop Peninsula were deposited in a marginal trough
developed at the edge of a tectonically inverted foreland basin
of the Central Pontides. The development of the marginal
trough and its sedimentation history indicate a transition
from postorogenic rebound tectonics to the regional
neotectonic regime in northern Anatolia. The middle
Miocene shoreface deposits of the Sinop Formation show
a well-preserved sedimentary record of syndepositional
deformation associated with the escarpment of an oblique-
slip dextral reverse fault and attributed to seismotectonic
events in the basin. The events are thought to represent the
early phase of neotectonics in the region. The deformation
features include neptunian dykes, convolute stratification,
plumose transposition structure, injection dykes, diapirs,
and large sandstone blocks dislodged from the fault
escarpment. The stratigraphic order of deformation
structures deciphered from the outcrop section indicates
3 main episodes of seismotectonic activity separated by
renewed sediment accumulation. The first episode formed
a surface rupture, about a third of the total amplitude of
vertical fault displacement (estimated at ~5.5 m), and
dislodged a sandstone block from the fault scarp. The
second episode is inferred to have involved at least 2
consecutive earthquakes, causing liquidization of footwall
sediment. The last episode of fault activity detached
another large sandstone block from the escarpment and
was followed directly by abrupt basin subsidence, possibly
accompanied by a minor tsunami. This study contributes
to sedimentological research concerned with the
deciphering of paleoseismic events from the stratigraphic
record. Subaqueous features similar to those described
in the present paper could potentially be common in
association with ancient fault escarpments in tectonically
active basins, but may have escaped recognition by being
lumped with fault breccias or talus deposits.
Acknowledgments
The field study was funded by the General Directorate
of Mineral Research and Exploration (MTA). Field
assistance by Erhan Karaku and H Aysel Esatolu and
helpful discussions with T kr Yurtsever, Okan Tysz,
Oktay Parlak, Fatma Belindir, Hakan Nefesliolu, and
mer Emre are greatly appreciated. Special thanks go to
Massimo Moretti, Wojciech Nemec, Brian Pratt, and Halil
Yusufolu for a critical reading of the original manuscript.
Timur Ustamer, M Cihat Aliek, and 2 anonymous
referees are much appreciated.

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