---

The ophiolitic complex of eastern Birjand consists of various rocks of a complete ophiolitic complex. Except for basaltic pillow lavas which are changed to metabasites such as eclogites and blueschists under metamorphic conditions, all other rock types of an ophiolitic complex could be seen in this sequence. Chemistry of garnets and their zoning patterns indicates the occurrence of subduction in the study area. The presence of the low-temperature and medium-temperature eclogites in the study area also may show the collision process between Lut and Afghan Blocks which has occurred after the subduction process. This collision process has lead to the occurrence of medium-temperature eclogites in response to the increase of temperature in the study area and then uplifting of the eclogitic rocks during the emplacement of area ophiolite in the suture zone between Lut and Afghan Blocks.

---

The ore bodies of Galali and Baba-Ali are two relatively important iron ore deposits in west Iran.  These ore deposits are situated in the Sanandaj-Sirjan zone. The deposits are associated with ultramafic, calc-alkaline, carbonatite and other rocks. Macroscopic observations, on the boreholes, show that one of the rare ultramafic rocks (hornblendite) appears in all various horizons parallel to magnetite. Petrological and mineralogical study (microscopic) show that two kinds of hornblendite exist: a) hornblendite with flow-texture and b) without flow-texture. Latter contain only one generation of amphibole. The major rock-forming mineral in this hornblendite is actinolite, which may contain minor concentration of diopside which probably is originated from pyroxenite by late stage supercritical solutions. Other rocks with flow-texture (hornblendite typeII) contain two generations of amphiboles. The first generation generated the flow-texture. Chemical compositions of rock-forming minerals are actinolite or actinolite hornblende and Tschermakitic hornblende. The second generation of amphibole is resulted by recrystallization of first generation. On the basis of XRF analyses, hornblendites are calc-alkaline to low-K tholeitic series into Chemical data of microprobe and regional tectonic indicate that the origin of magma was related to an intra-continental rifting. The subduction processes which were active up to Pliocene, also affected it. 

---

The Mashhad ultramafic complex with a Permo-Triassic stratigraphic age is exposed at the NE of Binaloud Mountain and the SW to NW of Mashhad city. This area is mainly composed of mafic and ultramafic rocks, metamorphosed carbonate and pelitic rocks and granitoids in a NW- SE trend. Serpentinized amphibole-peridotites are the main types of ultramafic rocks in this area. Minerals in these rocks include olivine, orthopyroxene, clinopyroxene, brown amphibole and opaque minerals as the original minerals and serpentinite group minerals, tremolite, actinolite, chlorite, talc and carbonate minerals are the secondary minerals. The amphiboles are commonly of two types. One comprises brown to red-brown subhedral  pargasites. The second type is seen as colorless or pale green unhedral tremolite-actinolite. Variations in the cation proportions of Al, Fe, Cr and Ti  in structure of amphiboles are strongly influenced by adjacent minerals (e.g. olivine and pyroxene, especially iron-bearing phases such as chromite). Petrographic (textural relationships between minerals) and mineral chemistry data indicate that the pargasites in amphibole-peridotite in the study area compatible with metasomatized mantle peridotites in a subduction zone.