Zircons to the front: accretionary history of the Rheno-Hercynian active margin (Variscides, Germany)

Our paper reports the detrital zircon record from Late Devonian to late Carboniferous foreland basin deposits in the Rheno-Hercynian (RH) Variscides of Germany. Together with a review of petrography and detrital mineral ages from the literature, the data permit to reconstruct accretion and exhumation along the RH active margin. From Frasnian to latest Carboniferous, the main source (now eroded) was a north-Armorican microcontinent (Franconia)...