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Petrography and geochemistry of the CambroOrdovician Wajid Sandstone, SW Saudi Arabia:

Implication for provenance and tectonic setting
Article in Journal of Asian Earth Sciences September 2006
DOI: 10.1016/j.jseaes.2005.05.002

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Journal of Asian Earth Sciences 27 (2006) 416429

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Petrography and geochemistry of the Cambro-Ordovician

Wajid Sandstone, southwest Saudi Arabia:
Implications for provenance and tectonic setting
H.A. Wanas*, N.M. Abdel-Maguid
Faculty of Science, Geology Department, Menoufia University, Shebin El-Kom, Egypt
Received 17 November 2004; revised 1 May 2005; accepted 19 May 2005

Abstract
The Wajid Sandstone, of probable Cambro-Ordovician age, rests unconformably on peneplained Precambrian crystalline rocks on the
southeastern margin of the Arabian Shield. The sandstone is composed of varicolored siliciclastic rocks, mainly coarse-to fine-grained
sandstones with granule conglomerate and siltstone interbeds, displaying diverse sedimentary primary structures such as planar- and troughcross bedding, and flat bedding. They form repeated fining-upward cycles, typical of deposition from braided streams. Current indicators
indicate that flow was from SW to NNE. Petrographically, all samples of the Wajid Sandstone are of quartz arenite type, highly enriched in
quartz, but poor in heavy minerals, feldspar and lithic fragments.
The provenance and tectonic setting of the Wajid Sandstone have been assessed using integrated petrographic and geochemical studies.
Petrographic analysis reveals that mono-and poly-crystalline quartz grains and heavy minerals from metamorphic and igneous rocks of a
craton interior setting were the dominant sources. Chemically, major and trace element concentrations in the rocks of the Wajid Sandstone
indicate deposition in a passive continental margin setting. Petrographic and geochemical data suggest that the sediments were derived from
metamorphic and igneous rocks forming the adjacent Precambrian basement rocks of the Arabian Shield, and were deposited on a passive
continental margin. Deposition took place after stabilization of the Arabian Shield following the Late Precambrian Pan-African Orogeny.
The Wajid Sandstone can be correlated with similar deposits elsewhere in Arabia and North Africa which were deposited on a low-lying
landmass forming the stable continental margin of the Arabian-Nubian Shield, flanking the southern margin of the Paleo-Tethys Ocean.
q 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Keywords: Cambro-Ordovician; Wajid Sandstone; Provenance; Tectonic setting; Saudi Arabia

1. Introduction
The occurrence of Lower Paleozoic rocks in Saudi Arabia
has been known for many years. These rocks crop out in three
regions, in the northwestern, central and southern portions of
Saudi Arabia. In the northwestern region, outcrops of the
Lower Paleozoic rocks extend from Great Nafud to Jordan
(Helal, 1968). In the central area, exposures of Lower
Paleozoic rocks were recorded by Clark-Lowes (1980); Al
Laboun (1986) in the Ha,il and Qasim regions. In the southern
region, exposed Lower Paleozoic rocks extend from Gabal
Wajid to north Yemen (Kellogg et al., 1986).
* Corresponding author. Tel.: C2 048 2238323; fax: C2 048 2222753.
E-mail address: wanas2000@yahoo.com (H.A. Wanas).

1367-9120/$ - see front matter q 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.jseaes.2005.05.002

The term Wajid Sandstone was first used by Jackson et al.

(1963) for the sandstone section exposed in the Gabal AlWajid, southwest Arabia. This name was formally documented in published works (e.g. Powers et al., 1966; Hardley and
Schmidt, 1975; Dabbagh and Rogers, 1983; Moshrif and ElHitt, 1989). This rock unit is also defined by others (e.g.
Italconsult, 1969; Pallister, 1982; Kellogg et al., 1986) as the
Wajid Formation. The name Wajid Sandstone is ascribed to
all sandstones in southern Saudi Arabia that occur directly
above the Precambrian Arabian Shield and below Permian
rocks (Powers et al., 1966). The sandstone has been also
described as of Nubian type (Hardley and Schmidt, 1975)
because of its similarity to other similar sandstones exposed in
North Africa, northern Saudi Arabia and Jordan (Beydoun,
1988). Alabouvette and Villemur (1973) suggested an Early

H.A. Wanas, N.M. Abdel-Maguid / Journal of Asian Earth Sciences 27 (2006) 416429

Paleozoic age for the Wajid Sandstone but more recent studies
(Dabbagh and Rogers, 1983; Moshrif and El-Hitt, 1989) have
assigned a Cambro-Ordovician age. In the central and
northwestern regions of Saudi Arabia, equivalents of the
Wajid Sandstone include the Saq and Lower Tabuk formations
(AlLaboun, 1986).
The present study reports petrographic and geochemical
data from rocks constituting the Wajid Sandstone in the
extreme southwestern portion of Saudi Arabia (near north
Yemen). The aim of the study is to evaluate the provenance
and the tectonic depositional setting of these sandstones.
2. Geological setting
The Arabian Shield consists of a broad area of crystalline
rocks that crop out from southern Jordan through central and
southwest Arabia to northern Yemen. The shield is
separated from similar rocks of the Nubian Shield in
Egypt and Sudan by the Red Sea (Beydoun, 1988). The
Wajid Sandstone was described briefly as a continuously
exposed series of flat-lying to slightly tilted homogenous
sandstones and siltstones, covering the Arabian Shield in the

417

southwestern part of Saudi Arabia and northern Yemen

(Powers et al., 1966; Geukens, 1966).
The Wajid Sandstone covers an area extending
approximately 450 km N-S and up to 300 km E-W
(Geukens, 1966). It therefore, covers an area of about
25,000 km2 southwards from Wadi ad Dwasir (Lat.
20830 0 N), reaching nearly to the city of Najran (Lat.
17830 0 N). However, the Wajid Sandstone also extends
further south, crossing the border of Yemen, where it
appears to the east and north of the Jauf and north of the
Sa,dah area (Geukens, 1966). The Wajid Sandstone is
virtually undeformed, having only a very slight dip (less
than 38) to the east, characteristic of most of the
Paleozoic rocks in Saudi Arabia (Powers et al., 1966).
The Wajid Sandstone dips eastwards at a slightly greater
angle than the ground surface, so that younger horizons
of the Wajid Sandstone are exposed towards the east.
The lower Wajid Sandstone outcrops along the western
and southwestern parts of the outcrop area, whereas the
upper, through middle Wajid is well exposed in the areas
further east (Powers et al., 1966). This study concentrates
on the extreme southern exposures of the Wajid

Fig. 1. Outcrop of the Wajid Sandstone in southwest Saudi Arabia (simplified from Powers et al., 1966; Dabbagh and Rogers, 1983).

418

H.A. Wanas, N.M. Abdel-Maguid / Journal of Asian Earth Sciences 27 (2006) 416429

Sandstone, south of Lat. 18830 0 N extending into Yemen

(Fig. 1).

3. Sampling and analytical techniques

Two lithostratigraphic sections were measured and
described in the field (Figs. 1 and 2). Sixty samples were
collected, from which thirty thin sections were prepared and
examined under the polarizing microscope. Framework
mineral composition (modal analysis) was quantified using
the point-counting method of Gazzi and Dickinson, as
described by Ingersoll et al. (1984).

Chemical analyses of selected samples (12 samples)

were performed at the laboratories of the Department of
Earth and Atmospheric Sciences in Alberta University,
Canada. Samples were chosen to cover the variations in
color and grain size among the sandstone and siltstone beds
of the studied stratigraphic sections. Samples with more
than 15% carbonate cement were excluded from the
geochemical analysis.
Major and minor oxide data were obtained by X-ray
fluorescence (XRF) spectrometry technique on fused and
pressed beads, respectively. Analytical precision is better
than 3% for the major oxides and 7% for minor oxides.
Accuracy was controlled by repetitive measurements of

Fig. 2. Lithostratigraphic columnar sections of the Wajid Sandstone (see Fig. 1 for locations of sections).

H.A. Wanas, N.M. Abdel-Maguid / Journal of Asian Earth Sciences 27 (2006) 416429

standards, and each sample was measured twice. FeO was

determined by powder attacked with HF and H2SO4 acids
and titrated with standard potassium dichromate solution,
using the diphenilamine sulphonate indicator. Trace
elements were analyzed by inductively coupled plasma
emission spectrometry (ICP-MS). For ICP-MS measurements, samples were decomposed by lithium borate fusion
and subsequent dissolution of the glass beads. The precision
of replicate analysis for ICP-MS measurements was better
than 3% for all analyzed trace elements, except Co and Cu
(which have precision of 35%) and V and Cr (which have
precision of 510%). Instrumentation and sample preparation techniques are extensively described in Rollinson
(1993).

4. Lithostratigraphy
The Wajid Sandstone occurs as scattered outcrops in the
area of study, in a series of hills and mesas that lie between Lat.
17800 0 &17850 0 N, and Long. 43830 0 & 44845 0 E (Fig. 1). The
Wajid Sandstone rests unconformably on the peneplained
basement rocks (mainly metamorphic and igneous rocks) of
the Arabian Shield (Fig. 2). The upper contact of the Wajid
Sandstone does not occur in the study area, but in the extreme

419

north the Wajid Sandstone is overlain by the Permian Khuff

Formation (Dabbagh and Rogers, 1983).
In the present work, two lithostratigraphic sections in the
Wajid Sandstone, similar in their lithologic characters, were
measured and described (Fig. 2). Generally, the Wajid
Sandstone consist entirely of sandstone, with subordinate
granule conglomerates and siltstones. The rocks exhibit
variable colors of red, pale pink to pinkish brown and
yellow. Most of the sandstones are friable to poorly
cemented, while a few are cemented by iron oxides. The
lithologic sequence is characterised by repeated finingupward cycles, in which each cycle consists of a granule
conglomerate at the base, followed upwards by coarse- to
medium-grained sandstone, and topped by fine-grained
sandstone and/or siltstone (Fig. 2). The thickness of the
cycles ranges from 4 to 10 m. Each cycle shows vertical
variation in the primary sedimentary structures, with trough
cross-bedded, pebbly coarse-grained sandstones at the base,
followed upwards by planar cross-bedded, medium-grained
sandstones, and terminated by flat-bedded to laminated finegrained sandstones and siltstones in the upper part of the
cycle. Fining-upward cycles and the vertical variation in the
sedimentary structures has been interpreted as indicating
deposition by a SW to N or NE-flowing river system
(Dabbagh and Rogers, 1983; Moshrif and El-Hitt, 1989).

Fig. 3. (A) Photomicrograph showing quartz arenite consisting mainly of monocrystalline quartz grains with a few polycrystalline quartz grains. Notice, the
undulose extinction (u) and incipient overgrowth (see arrow) in a few quartz grains, see also the concavo-convex grain to grain contacts (ps); (B)
polycrystalline quartz grain exhibiting a number of individual crystals with straight to slightly curved intercrystal boundaries; (C) polycrystalline quartz grain
consisting of elongated individual crystals that display crenulate to suture intercrystal boundaries; (D) polycrystalline quartz grain that displays a bimodal size
distribution of individual crystals.

420

H.A. Wanas, N.M. Abdel-Maguid / Journal of Asian Earth Sciences 27 (2006) 416429

Table 1
Percentages of heavy minerals in the selected sandstone samples of the Wajid Sandstone
Sample No.
Section A
1
5
9
12
14
16
Section B
2
6
10
12
15
18

Opaque

Non-opaque

Zircon

Tourmaline

Rutile

Garnet

Staurolite

Epidote

82.23
75.20
82.28
80.35
87.63
75.08

17.77
24.80
17.72
19.65
12.64
24.92

12.82
14.33
12.26
11.65
6.99
15.64

2.45
4.26
1.39
1.71
2.36
1.77

0.55
2.45
1.58
2.04
1.27
1.42

0.00
1.33
1.01
1.18
0.41
2.02

0.96
0.75
0.17
1.02
0.78
1.52

0.97
1.51
1.29
2.02
0.54
2.51

76.52
76.18
95.50
80.16
80.98
85.36

23.48
23.82
4.50
19.84
19.02
14.64

12.20
15.42
3.59
14.18
12.43
8.71

4.27
2.55
0.56
1.68
1.68
1.94

2.37
1.86
0.00
1.68
1.69
1.80

1.21
1.00
0.00
0.39
0.45
0.58

1.83
1.20
0.00
0.25
0.80
1.04

1.57
1.70
0.33
1.63
2.12
0.53

Neither body nor trace fossils have been found in the studied
rocks. The absence of recognizable fossils means that it is
not possible to determine the age of the Wajid Sandstone.
Therefore, Cambro-Ordovician age assigned during the
recent studies of Dabbagh and Rogers (1983); Moshrif and
El-Hitt (1989) is accepted.

5. Petrography and modal analysis

Petrographic investigation of the thin-sections of
samples from the Wajid Sandstone shows that according
to Pettijohn et al.s (1987) classification, the sandstones are
mainly quartz arenites (Fig. 3A). The sandstones are
composed of three components: framework grains, cementing materials and pores. The framework grains are mainly
quartz (about 90% of the rock volume) and less frequently

of feldspar, rock fragments and heavy minerals (less than

3%). The quartz grains are rounded to subrounded and show
point, straight to concavo-convex grain contacts (Fig. 3A).
Most of the quartz grains are monocrystalline, while a few
are polycrystalline (Fig. 3A). Monocrystalline quartz grains
exhibit unit extinction and a few of them display undulose
extinction (Fig. 3A). Heavy minerals form a minor
constituent (less than 1%) of the sandstones and include
rounded to well rounded grains of zircon, tourmaline, rutile,
garnet, epidote and staurolite and opaque minerals
(Table 1). Cementing materials occurring as pore fillings
are hematite, calcite and authigenic kaolinite, with
ferruginous cement being predominant. A proportion of
oversized pores (10%) is presumed to be due to the
dissolution of feldspars and other unstable minerals.
Modal analysis from point-counting of the framework
grains is listed in (Table 2). Monocrystalline quartz (Qm),

Table 2
Modal analysis data of the selected sandstone samples of the Wajid Sandstone
Sample No.
Section A
1
3
5
9
12
14
16
Section B
2
3
6
9
8
10
12
15
18

Mono Qtz

Non-undulose
Qtz

Undulose Qtz

93.90
94.90
93.55
90.20
90.20
95.10
94.65

62.00
61.00
60.00
62.10
60.35
61.70
61.30

31.20
33.40
34.25
28.10
29.85
33.40
33.35

89.40
92.00
88.75
90.55
92.70
91.45
92.35
89.85
91.60

59.20
62.00
60.55
52.10
62.05
61.60
64.25
60.55
62.40

30.20
30.00
28.20
38.10
30.65
29.85
28.10
29.30
29.20

Poly Qtz

Total Qtz

Feldspar

Rock fragments

5.00
4.20
6.37
8.50
7.78
4.15
5.25

98.90
99.10
99.92
98.70
97.90
99.25
99.90

1.10
0.90
0.08
0.80
1.40
0.75
0.10

0.00
0.00
0.00
0.50
0.70
0.00
0.00

9.25
7.00
10.64
7.25
6.25
8.52
6.95
8.80
7.80

98.65
99.00
99.39
97.80
98.95
99.97
99.30
98.65
99.00

0.95
1.00
0.01
0.80
0.85
0.03
0.70
1.35
0.60

0.40
0.00
0.60
0.50
0.20
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00

H.A. Wanas, N.M. Abdel-Maguid / Journal of Asian Earth Sciences 27 (2006) 416429

polycrystalline quartz (Qp), total feldspar (F) and total lithic

fragments (L) are distinguished. Varieties of monocrystalline quartz extinction types (undulose, and non-undulose)
are also recognized (Table 2).

6. Provenance
The provenance of clastic rocks has been determined by
several petrographical techniques, including investigation
of the undulosity and polycrystallinity of quartz grains
(Basu et al., 1975; Young, 1976), feldspar types (Pittman,
1970), rock fragments (Pettijohn et al., 1987), scanning
cathodoluminscence of quartz grains (Matter and Ramseyer,
1985; Seyedolali et al., 1997), and heavy mineral types and
their chemistry (Morton, 1985; Asiedu et al., 2000).
Because of the scarcity of feldspars and rock fragments,
provenance was established mainly by quartz typology and
the study of heavy minerals.
To evaluate the relative importance of quartz grain types
for determining the provenance of the Wajid Sandstone, we
plotted polycrystalline (composite grains) quartz versus
undulatory (strained) to non-undulatory (unstrained) monocrystalline quartz (Fig. 4), following the technique of Basu et
al. (1975). This plot suggests that quartz grains of the Wajid
Sandstone are of metamorphic origin. Also, the approach of
the plot to the boundary of plutonic provenance (Fig. 4)
indicates the possibility of an igneous origin for some of the
quartz grains. The relatively high proportion of monocrystalline quartz grains may be attributed to the disaggregation of
original polycrystalline quartz during high energy and/or long
distance transport from the source area (Dabbagh and Rogers,
1983). The small percentage of polycrystalline quartz grains
are of two types: the first type are polycrystalline grains
composed of five or more crystals with straight to slightly
curved intercrystal boundaries (Fig. 3B). The second type
consists of polycrystalline quartz grains composed of more
than five elongated crystals, exhibiting irregular to crenulated
Polycrystalline
Quartz

Plutonic

Medium &
high rank
Metamorphic
Low rank
Metamorphic

Non-undulose
Quartz

Undulose
Quartz

Fig. 4. Ternary plot of detrital quartz types of the Wajid Sandstone (after
Basu et al., 1975). Open circles represent the studied samples.

421

intercrystal boundaries (Fig. 3C). The first type suggests an

origin from plutonic igneous rocks (Folk, 1974; Blatt et al.,
1980) while the second type indicates an origin from
metamorphic source rocks (Blatt et al., 1980; Asiedu et al.,
2000). Polycrystalline quartz grains with a bimodal size
distribution were also noticed (Fig. 3D). Such bimodal sizedquartz grains may be derived from a gneissose source (Blatt et
al., 1980; Abdel-Wahab, 1992). A few quartz grains have
incipient silica overgrowths (Fig. 3A). These overgrowths
may be the result of pressure dissolution at the grain contacts,
when the grains were buried under the pressure of the
overlying rocks. Dissolution is indicated by the occurrence of
concavo-convex and sutured grain to grain contacts (Pettijohn
et al., 1987, Fig. 3A).
Investigation of the heavy mineral types revealed that
zircon, tourmaline and rutile were the dominant minerals,
with subordinate amounts of epidote, garnet and staurolite
(Table 1). The occurrence of zircon, tourmaline and rutile
suggests an origin from igneous (plutonic) source rocks,
whereas subordinate amounts of epidote, garnet and
staurolite indicate a source in metamorphic rocks (Morton,
1985; Morton et al., 1992). Therefore from the types of
heavy mineral, the Wajid Sandstone was derived from
metamorphic and igneous sources. The dominance of the
most stable heavy minerals (e.g. zircon, tourmaline and
rutile-ZTR) indicates intensive chemical weathering of the
source rocks and the recycling of earlier detrital material.
This in turn indicates a high degree of maturity of
sandstones (Morton, 1985). These characters are diagnostic
of a clastic passive margin facies (Burnett and Quirk, 2001).
Feldspars and rock fragments make up less than 1.5% of
all samples and are absent in many thin sections. When
present they are cloudy and show evidence of dissolution.
Scarcity of feldspars and rock fragments suggests that the
source area for the sandstones underwent a long period of
intensive chemical weathering in a warm humid climate
(Pettijohn et al., 1987; Amireh, 1991). Also, the petrographic characters are consistent with sandstones derived
from an area of low relief on a stable shelf margin (Amireh,
1991). Such characters may also indicate that the sandstones
were derived from a cratonic interior (Cassinis et al., 1979;
Burnett and Quirk, 2001) and were deposited on a passive
margin (Emilia and Arribas, 2004).
In addition to the petrographic characters indicating a
cratonic origin, NE-NNE palaeocurrent data from crossbedded sandstones of the Wajid Sandstone (Dabbagh and
Rogers, 1983) indicate flow from the southwest, where the
Wajid Sandstone rests directly on the Precambrian basement metamorphic and igneous rocks of the Arabian Shield
(Fig. 1). These Precambrian basement rocks of the Arabian
Shield are the most probable source for the clasts in the
Wajid Sandstone. These clasts were transported from
highlands in the southwest to a lowland area in the
northeast. Erosion transport and deposition followed the
stabilization of the Arabian Shield at the end of the Late
Precambrian Pan-African Orogeny.

422

H.A. Wanas, N.M. Abdel-Maguid / Journal of Asian Earth Sciences 27 (2006) 416429

modal analysis of the Wajid Sandstones in the ternary Q-FL diagram of Dickinson et al. (1983), shows that the Wajid
Sandstones falls entirely in the craton interior field (Table 2,
Fig. 5). This points to derivation of the sandstones from
stable parts of the craton, with perhaps a subordinate
contribution from recycled orogens, shedding quartzose
debris of continental affinity into the basin (Dickinson et al.,
1983). Nevertheless, such provenance determination has to
be considered with caution, because of the changes in the
original composition which may be caused by diagenesis,
leading to modification in the Q-F-L plot (McBride, 1985).

Qt
Craton Interior

Transitional
Continental
Recycled
Orogen

Basement Uplift
Transitional
Magmatic Arc

Undissected
Magmatic Arc

Fig. 5. Ternary plot of detrital components of the sandstones of the Wajid

Sandstone on the tectonic provenance discrimination diagram of Dickinson
et al. (1983). Qt is the total quartz, F is the feldspar, L is the total rock
fragments. The dotted lines mark the major fields of provenance in terms of
tectonic setting. Open circles represent the studied samples.

7. Tectonic setting
Sandstones from different tectonic settings have characteristic detrital components and characteristic chemistry
(Crook, 1974; Dickinson and Suczek, 1979; Valloni and
Maynard, 1981; Dickinson et al., 1983) (Bhatia, 1983;
Roser and Korsch, 1986; Kroonenberg, 1994). In the
following account we will discuss how the detrital and
chemical compositions of the Wajid Sandstone may be used
to determine their tectonic setting.
7.1. Detrital modes and tectonic setting
The determination of the tectonic setting of sandstones
using the framework mineral composition (detrital modes)
was first proposed by Crook (1974), and has since
undergone considerable refinement (e.g. Dickinson and
Suczek, 1979; Dickinson et al., 1983). Plotting data from the

7.2. Major element chemistry and tectonic setting

Major element chemistry has been used to discriminate
the tectonic settings of sandstones since the studies by
Schwab (1975); Bhatia (1983); Roser and Korsch (1986),
and has been commonly applied in more recent publications
(e.g. Kroonenberg, 1994; Zimmermann and Bahlburg,
2003; Armstrong-Altrin et al., 2004). The major element
chemistry of the Wajid Sandstones (Table 3) is discussed in
terms of ternary plots and discrimination diagrams used to
characterise tectonic setting proposed by Bhatia (1983);
Roser and Korsch (1986) and Kroonenberg (1994). These
plots and diagrams show that the Wajid Sandstones were
deposited in a passive continental margin tectonic setting
(Figs. 68).
As the major element geochemical analysis of sedimentary rocks is a valuable tool for determining the tectonic
settings of matrix-rich sandstone which have not been
strongly affected by diagenesis, metamorphism or other
alteration processes (McLennan et al., 1993), it is necessary
to determine the degree of alteration of the Wajid Sandstones.
This determination is to detect if the studied rocks were
subjected to alteration or not. The degree of alteration in
clastic rocks is assessed by using the chemical index of
alteration (CIA) of Nesbitt and Young (1982). The CIA may
be low, moderate and high. The increasing of CIA value from

Table 3
Major and minor oxide values of the selected sandstone samples of the Wajid Sandstone
Sample
No.
Section A
1
5
7
9
11
15
Section B
2
4
7
9
13
15

SiO2%

Al2O3%

Fe2O3%

MgO%

CaO%

Na2O%

K2O%

P2O5%

TiO2%

MnO%

LOI%

92.03
93.52
92.40
94.08
92.55
83.30

3.13
2.70
3.30
3.14
4.28
3.14

1.30
0.72
0.14
2.21
0.14
0.08

0.01
0.28
0.30
0.02
0.01
0.02

0.30
0.61
0.20
0.06
0.34
2.28

0.22
0.45
1.45
0.08
0.22
3.90

0.46
0.90
0.60
0.04
0.24
0.54

0.03
0.08
0.04
0.02
0.05
0.06

0.16
0.20
0.22
0.18
0.16
0.22

0.01
0.13
0.13
0.08
0.01
0.00

0.42
0.19
0.16
0.22
0.40
0.38

94.72
92.62
90.56
94.60
91.90
92.30

2.84
3.32
4.16
2.66
3.60
3.80

0.65
0.20
0.36
0.72
1.20
1.30

0.01
0.02
0.01
0.01
0.02
0.01

0.16
0.39
1.46
0.26
0.82
0.73

0.53
0.33
0.42
0.17
0.45
0.39

0.62
0.81
0.61
0.51
0.32
0.29

0.06
0.02
0.01
0.04
0.02
0.01

0.20
0.65
0.22
0.16
0.22
0.18

0.02
0.01
0.42
0.03
0.02
0.01

0.28
0.54
0.08
0.32
0.30
0.27

H.A. Wanas, N.M. Abdel-Maguid / Journal of Asian Earth Sciences 27 (2006) 416429

423

100

(a)

Log(k2O/Na2O)%

0.3

Al2O3/SiO2%

0.2
C

10

PM

2.3
1
ACM

0.10

0.085

ARC
0.1
D

64

10

12

14

Fe2O3 + MgO%
(b)

84
74
SiO2%

94

Fig. 7. Plots of the major element composition of the Wajid Sandstone on

the tectonic setting discrimination diagrams of Roser and Korsch (1986).
PM, Passive margin; ACM, Active continental margin; ARC, Island Arc.
Symbols as in Fig. 6.

2.0
1.0

Ti O2%

A
0.8
0.6

B
C

0.4
D
0.2

10

12

14

Fe2O3 + MgO%
(c)

Discriminant Function II

4
2

7.3. Trace element chemistry and tectonic setting

A

0
B
2
4

low to high is related to the degree of chemical alteration. A

low CIA indicates that alteration is absent or only incipient,
whereas a moderate or high CIA is correlated with the
removal of mobile cations (e.g. CaCC, NaC and KC) relative
to the less mobile residual constituents (AlCCC and TiC)
(Nesbitt and Young, 1982). Consequently, as the Wajid
sandstones are characterized by high values of Al and Ti
relative to those of Na, K and Ca (Table 3), these sandstones
have high values of CIA, indicating that they have been
subjected to severe alteration. Therefore, care is required
considering their tectonic setting (Figs. 68). Nevertheless,
the high value of CIA suggests transportation and recycling
from sources located far away from the depositional basin
(Nesbitt and Young, 1982), which in turn is consistent with
a provenance from the interior of a stable craton (Dickinson
et al., 1983; Burnett and Quirk, 2001).

6
5 4 3 2 1 0 1 2 3 4
Discriminant Function I

Fig. 6. Plots of the major element composition of the Wajid Sandstone on

the tectonic setting discrimination diagrams of Bhatia (1983). (A) Oceanic
island Arc, (B) Continental island Arc, (C) Active continental margin, (D)
Passive margin. Open circles represent sandstone samples of lithostratigraphic section A; filled triangles represent sandstone samples of the
lithostratigraphic section B.

Trace elements (e.g. Ti, Nb, Ta, Cs, Ce, Ni, V, Co, Y, La,
Th, Sc and Zr) in clastic sedimentary rocks are considered to
be immobile under conditions of weathering, diagenesis and
moderate levels of metamorphism, and are commonly
preserved in sedimentary rocks (Bhatia and Crook, 1986;
McLennan et al., 1993). Therefore, the trace elements
represent well-established provenance and tectonic setting
indicators (Bhatia and Crook, 1986; McLennan, 2001). This
recognition has led to several studies using trace elements in
sedimentary rocks to determine their provenance and
tectonic setting (e.g. McLennan et al., 1993; Eriksson
et al., 1994; Bahlburg, 1998; Burnett and Quirk, 2001;
Zimmermann and Bahlburg, 2003). Also, there is a
widespread agreement that the fine-grained clastics are
more likely to preserve trace elements than coarse-grained
clastics (McLennan, 2001).

424

H.A. Wanas, N.M. Abdel-Maguid / Journal of Asian Earth Sciences 27 (2006) 416429

1997; Burke and Kraus, 1998). These mountains had been

eroded and had low relief, typical of tectonically-stable
cratonic areas (Husseini, 1990; Amireh, 1991; Wanas, 1997;
Burke and Kraus, 1998).
Studies of the Cambro-Ordovician rocks in the North
African and Arabia show that they were deposited in either
terrestrial or shallow marine environments (Fig. 11). A
terrestrial fluviatile facies characterised mainly by siliciclastic rocks is recorded in the southern regions of the
countries of Northeast Africa, (Klitzsch and Squyres, 1990;
El-Hawat, 1997), western Saudi Arabia (Dabbagh and
Rogers, 1983; the present work), Oman and other countries
around the Arabian Gulf (Al-Sharhan and Kendall, 1986;
Husseini, 1990; Millson et al., 1996) (Fig. 11). In addition,
most of these studies show that the fluvial deposits
prograded from south (where the Arabo-Nubian Shield
crops out at the present time) to north, towards the northern
borders of North Africa and Arabia (Fig. 11). Upstream
deposits prevail in areas adjacent to the Arabo-Nubian
Shield, whereas downstream deposits are developed in areas
on the northern borders of North Africa and Arabia. Fluvial
to marginal marine environments are recorded in NW
Jordan (Amireh et al., 1994), in the extreme NW of both
central and northern portions of Saudi Arabia (Clark-Lowes,
1980; AlLaboun, 1986), in the eastern portion of northern
Egypt (Issawi and Jux, 1982; Abdallah et al., 1992; Wanas,
1997; El-Araby and Abdel-Motelib, 1999), in the northern
and southern portions of western Egypt (Keeley, 1989;
Klitzsch, 1990), in the western and southern portions of
Libya (Bellini and Massa, 1980; Turner, 1980), in eastcentral Oman (Millson et al., 1996), in SW Iran and
southern Iraq (Wolfard, 1981) (Fig. 11). These fluvial to
marginal shallow marine deposits are mainly composed of
siliciclastic rocks with a few carbonate interbeds. Carbonate
interbeds are recorded in the Jbalah/Fatimah groups of
northwest Saudi Arabia, the Ara and Andam formations of
east-central Oman, the Burj Formation of Jordan and parts
of Syria (Beydoun, 1991), the middle part of the Shifa

SiO2/20

C
B
A
K2 O+Na2O

Ti2O +Fe2O3 + MgO

Fig. 8. Plots of the major element composition of the Wajid Sandstone on

the tectonic setting discrimination diagrams of Kroonenberg (1994).
Symbols as in Fig. 6.

As stated above, regardless of the alteration, trace

elements represent a reliable tool for discriminating the
tectonic setting of clastic rocks. Therefore, we used the
discriminant plots of trace elements-tectonic setting
proposed by Bhatia and Crook (1986). Trace element
values of the Wajid sediments (Table 4) plotted on tectonic
setting diagrams indicate that they were deposited in passive
margin setting (Fig. 9).

8. Regional perspective
From a regional point of view, Cambro-Ordovician
deposits are widespread in outcrop and the subsurface
throughout the North African and Arabian terrains
(Wolfard, 1981; Beydoun, 1988; Keeley, 1989; Keeley,
1994; Millson et al., 1996; Burke and Kraus, 1998; Fig. 10).
Provenance studies have shown that these CambroOrdovician sediments have been derived from local PanAfrican mountains (e.g. Beuf et al., 1971; Amireh, 1991;
Abdel-Wahab, 1992; Droste, 1997; Wanas, 1997; Unurg,
Table 4
Trace element values of the selected sandstone samples of the Wajid Sandstone
Sample
No.
Section A
1
5
7
9
11
15
Section B
2
4
7
9
13
15

Crppm

Lappm

Scppm

Vppm

Yppm

Zrppm

Thppm

17
21
8
19
21
17

30
18
14
21
26
22

2
4
1
2
1
1

26
44
22
52
24
36

14
15
16
14
16
15

145
255
195
205
165
245

24
11
7
13
6
8

16
18
16
22
15
19

24
34
12
21
19
22

2
2
2
6
3
7

32
55
40
28
25
22

17
16
15
14
17
16

235
550
280
240
185
445

12
7
23
11
12
25

Coppm

8
3
4
n.d
3
3
4
4
9
4
6
10

Bappm

Rbppm

Nbppm

22
20
22
16
15
23

16
18
18
20
15
14

8
9
9
8
10
8

20
15
16
22
16
20

16
20
17
18
16
16

9
7
6
8
10
7

H.A. Wanas, N.M. Abdel-Maguid / Journal of Asian Earth Sciences 27 (2006) 416429

(a)

Th

(b)

Th

C
B

D
B

Co

Zr/10

(c)

Zr/10

Sc
(d)

70
60

1.5
A
La/Y

50
Ti/Zr

425

40

C
D

1.0

30
20
10

0.5

D
1 2 3

4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13
La/Sc

0.2

0.4
0.6
Sc/Cr

0.8

Fig. 9. Plots of the trace element composition of the Wajid Sandstone on the tectonic setting discrimination diagrams of Bhatia and Crook (1986). Symbols as in
Fig. 6.

Formation in the north Western Desert of Egypt (Keeley,

1989) and the middle part of the Araba Formation of
extreme northeast of Egypt (El-Araby and Abdel-Motelib,
1999) (Fig. 10). Typical shallow-marine deposits are
recorded in southern Turkey (Cater and Tunbridge, 1992),
northern Syria (Best et al., 1993), northwest Iran (Stocklin et
al., 1964) and northern Iraq (Wolfard, 1981). The shallow-

marine Cambro-Ordovician rocks in North Africa and

Arabia are mainly siliciclastic, with minor carbonate
rocks. Carbonate rocks are recorded in the the Barut and
Mila formations of northwest Iran, and Sadan/Sosink
formations of southeast Turkey (Beydoun, 1991) (Fig. 10).
From the foregoing discussion, and from a paleogeographic map of the Cambro-Ordovician North Africa and

Fig. 10. Correlation chart of the Lower Paleozoic rock units in North Africa and Arabia, compiled from: 1. Bellini and Massa (1980); 2. El-Araby and
Abdel-Motelib (1999); 3. Keeley (1989); 4. Selley (1972); 5. AlLaboun (1986); 6. Best et al. (1993); 7. Wolfard (1981); 8. Stocklin et al. (1964); 9. Cater and
Tunbridge (1992); 10. Millson et al. (1996); Italconsult (1969).

426

H.A. Wanas, N.M. Abdel-Maguid / Journal of Asian Earth Sciences 27 (2006) 416429

Fig. 11. Regional distribution of the depositional facies of the Cambro-Ordovician rocks in North Africa and Arabia.

Fig. 12. Probable Cambro-Ordovician paleogeographic map of Arabia and North Africa. The other symbols as in Fig. 11.

H.A. Wanas, N.M. Abdel-Maguid / Journal of Asian Earth Sciences 27 (2006) 416429

Arabia it is suggested that North Africa and Arabia formed a

broad stable continental shelf on the northern margin of the
Gondwana supercontinent (Beydoun, 1991) bordering the
Paleo-Tethys Ocean (Fig. 12), while the southern portions
of the North African and Arabian countries (including the
area of this study) formed a low-lying continental area
(Fig. 12). This may be inferred from the dominance of
fluvial deposits showing a northward progradation in these
areas (Figs. 11 and 12). On the other hand, the alternation of
fluvial and marginal marine deposits in Jordan, the extreme
northwest of northern and central Arabia and the northern
and southern portions of western Egypt, indicate that these
areas formed the shelf margin of Paleo-Tethys during
transgressions, and low-lying parts of the Gondwana
landmass during regressions (Fig. 12). Shallow-marine
deposits in Turkey, northern Syria, northern Iraq and
north-west Iran show that these areas constituted the
southern marginal shelf of the Cambro-Ordovician PaleoTethys Ocean (Figs. 11 and 12).

9. Conclusions
The Cambro-Ordovician Wajid Sandstone in the southwest of Saudi Arabia consists chiefly of sandstones with
granule conglomerates and siltstone interbeds. These rocks
exhibit different types of primary structures (e.g. planar- and
trough- cross bedding and flat bedding), and form repeated
fining-upward sequences indicating that they were deposited from a braided river system which flowed from SW to
NE. Microscopic investigation of selected samples of the
Wajid Sandstone showed that the sandstones are chiefly
quartz arenites consisting of quartz grains (O95%), heavy
minerals (!3%) with scarce feldspars and rock fragments
(!1%). These framework components are cemented by
various types of cement material (clay, iron oxides and
traces of carbonate).
Petrographic data (framework mineralogy, quartz types
and heavy minerals) obtained from the study of the Wajid
Sandstone suggest that metamorphic and plutonic igneous
rocks in a cratonic interior were the most important source
rocks for the Wajid Sandstone. These source rocks were
most probably the basement rocks of the adjacent Arabian
Shield. This interpretation is supported by the southwesterly
provenance from paleocurrent data, and the geological
setting of the Wajid Sandstone resting directly on the
basement rocks of the Arabian Shield. Major and trace
element data for the Wajid Sandstone exhibit ratios close to
the average values for a craton interior provenance and a
passive margin tectonic setting. Therefore, the petrographic
and geochemical data suggested that the Wajid Sandstone
was derived from the Precambrian basement rocks of the
southeastern margin of the Arabian Shield, and was
deposited in a passive margin setting after the stabilization
of the Arabian Shield following the Late Precambrian PanAfrican Orogeny.

427

The regional correlation of the Cambro-Ordovician

Wajid Sandstone in southwest Saudi Arabia rocks with
their equivalents in North Africa and Arabia indicates that
they were deposited on a low-lying landmass forming a
stable continental shelf on the margin of the ArabianNubian Shield, flanked by the southern shores of the ancient
Tethys Ocean.

Acknowledgements
We thank Prof. G. D. Nichols (University Centre, Svalbard,
Norway) and Prof. A. J. Barber (University of London,
Egham, UK) for their helpful advice and constructive
suggestions during the review of the manuscript.

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